Major Construction Impacts for Sacramento Have Begun

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Blackwolf

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Been a while since the last update to the ongoing construction/renovation work in Sacramento.

Starting Wednesday (November 12th) and scheduled to progress through February 13th, the vehicle access and parking availability for Sacramento Valley Station (SAC) will be severely impacted in a negative manner.

For Parking:

  • Most parking options will involve using the "Old Sacramento Parking Garage" located off of I street. It is not said if the discount will apply with this particular project, but with previous projects affecting parking at SAC there was a special rate of $6.50 a day for this garage. You had to show the parking attendant your same-day Amtrak ticket in order to get the rate, or else the normal rates ($1.50 every 30 minutes, up to $13 a day maximum) would apply.
  • On-site parking will be severely limited and access will be difficult. Only a small number of spaces will be able to be accessed off the station's main entrance from 5th street; most of the available on-site parking will have to be accessed by passing into Old Sacramento and turning onto the California State Railroad Museum's short access road from 2nd street.
For Drop-off/Pick-up:

  • Passenger curb-side drop off and pickup will not be available at the front of the station. A temporary (and small) drop-off/pick-up area will be provided on 5th street (beside the old REA building where Starbucks is located.)
  • A special "Holiday Drop-off/Pick-up" are will be provided on I street; on the curb opposite the side of the street the station is located. This will require people using it to cross the street via a signaled cross-walk and pass through the construction area.

See the image below to visually explain the area involved:

http://sacramentovalleystation.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/SVS-PARKING-PHASE-1.1-FINAL.jpg

SVS-PARKING-PHASE-1.1-FINAL.jpg


This is all due to the re-starting of the work inside the building (which had been, for a publicly unknown reason, stopped for most of the summer.) Basement foundation work for seismic retrofitting is apparently active once again, as is the re-wiring and re-plumbing of the utilities infrastructure. Once the parking lot is cordoned off, the construction of the new "Building within the Building" that will be Amtrak's new home for ticketing, baggage and offices will start in the former station restaurant. Amtrak is supposed to fully vacate the current facilities by 2016, at which time the demolition work will begin to rebuild the back "porch" off the waiting room.

Lots of things happening. The project is way behind schedule, but at least there is work being done again!
 
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Looks like the simplest way to get to the station is to park at some outlying Light Rail station and take the light rail in. They aren't disrupting the light rail station at the moment, are they?
 
Nope, but overnight parking is prohibited in RT's park and ride lots. Unless you're doing a same day trip and getting back before light rail stops running you're pretty much SOL.
 
The Regional Transit system's inflexibility and inability to handle the needs of any user beyond typical (and generally State employee) commuters is aggravating to be sure. IF light rail ever made it to the airport (not holding my breath) I still don't think that they would allow even pre-paid overnight parking in any of their lots.

Of course, the security issues in many of their lots leaves a lot to be desired. All one has to do is skim the Sacramento Bee law enforcement activity section to see the number of car break-ins and burglaries that take place daily inside RT lots to get a picture of the problem.

The other aggravation is that areas surrounding RT light rail access points all generally prohibit parking ether entirely or have a 72-hour limit at best. Before moving to where I am now, I once tried to locate a good place to park for multiple days near any one of the Folsom stations as it would mean convenience to my travel needs. The bottom line was, I'd return to find my car gone and a hefty impound bill waiting for me. Luckly I can grab the 72 bus just steps from my house now and be dropped off at the Manlove station 14 minutes later. Better than nothing! Of course, having to buy two fares to use the transfer is a ****-off! (RT bus fares are not good toward light rail fares, or vice-versa. Buses and trains are treated as two separate, and generally non-compatible systems. The only exception is for pass holders.)
 
For some, the best option might be to park free in Davis or Woodland and take a YOLO bus (42 A or B) into the city. They stop running after 10PM. I have taken the YOLO bus out to the SMF airport to rent a car after riding Amtrak into SAC.
 
True, most areas near light rail stations at least in the City of Sacramento (at least in areas you would want to park in) are either permit parking only or covered by the city ordinance prohibiting on street parking for longer than 72 hours. RT has always been a horrible mess and as I've always said RT was the reason I bought a car.

I can also foresee a big mess at their 5th Street drop off point unless the city decides to temporarily make 5th Street one way again to allow people to easily access the west side of the street. That I'll have to check out tomorrow.
 
I can also foresee a big mess at their 5th Street drop off point unless the city decides to temporarily make 5th Street one way again to allow people to easily access the west side of the street. That I'll have to check out tomorrow.
5th is still striped as one-way (northbound only) between H and I street, or where the drop-off is located. BUT the landscaping between the street and the sidewalk is going to do anything but help and will likely be trampled/destroyed if this spot sees much use. Walked past this area, and the station as a whole, this afternoon on my way to lunch (had jury duty at the courthouse - escaped with no assignment to a trial!)

Man, the confusion is already palpable on a slow Wednesday with the parking situation royally screwed and most of the station entryway blocked off. It is going to be a pure ZOO come the holiday crush! (Sacramento sees over 3,500 people a day though the station!)
 
I can also foresee a big mess at their 5th Street drop off point unless the city decides to temporarily make 5th Street one way again to allow people to easily access the west side of the street. That I'll have to check out tomorrow.
5th is still striped as one-way (northbound only) between H and I street, or where the drop-off is located. BUT the landscaping between the street and the sidewalk is going to do anything but help and will likely be trampled/destroyed if this spot sees much use. Walked past this area, and the station as a whole, this afternoon on my way to lunch (had jury duty at the courthouse - escaped with no assignment to a trial!)

Man, the confusion is already palpable on a slow Wednesday with the parking situation royally screwed and most of the station entryway blocked off. It is going to be a pure ZOO come the holiday crush! (Sacramento sees over 3,500 people a day though the station!)
No, 5th is striped two way (2 lanes NB/1 lane SB) from the south driveway of the station to I Street. For some reason I though it was striped two way to the second driveway just south of the light rail station. I checked it out this afternoon. It used to be one way only all the way up. So that cleared up my mistaken thought. It's going to be a mess, that area always is. As a former downtown resident don't even get me started :) .
 
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Ow. I'm sorry to hear about the way Sacramento runs its light rail system, and the way they're managing the train station construction.

What a... lot of mismanagement. :-(
 
Yesterday, March 21st, marked a major point in the remodeling of Sacramento Valley Station with the complete relocation of all Amtrak ticket and baggage services.

Sacramento Bee article, with video: http://www.sacbee.com/news/local/transportation/article67501227.html

The old ticket counter and baggage desk, along with the little "Sleeping Car Passenger waiting area" next to the old baggage desk, have closed and construction barricades are now placed around where they were. The old entrance lobby, located between the waiting room and former restaurant, is now the ticketing and baggage hall. This is a permanent move, as the location of the old counters will now serve as additional doors from the waiting room to the outside courtyard and platform path.
 
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Something got gummed up in your link. The visible text is correct but the link is wrong.

Link removed to avoid confusion - use corrected link above

The city plans to increase the usable space of the building, adding office and retail space, as well as a restaurant, and expanded bike rack areas. The project is expected to wrap up by the end of the year. The move is part of several upgrades planned at the site for Amtrak, including a new indoor baggage claim area to open this summer.
 
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Something got gummed up in your link. The visible text is correct but the link is wrong.

Link removed to avoid confusion - use corrected link above

The city plans to increase the usable space of the building, adding office and retail space, as well as a restaurant, and expanded bike rack areas. The project is expected to wrap up by the end of the year. The move is part of several upgrades planned at the site for Amtrak, including a new indoor baggage claim area to open this summer.
Yeah, sorry about that. I blame my feeble attempt at trying to embed the video so that it would play without having to follow the link, but I found the task mighty impossible.
 
**** Moderators Note - This thread is still timely, but note the previous posts were made 2014-16 ****

Unfortunately, it seems that the "new" construction (namely the Phase I part with the much-maligned new platforms) is not aging well. The lawsuits are working their way through the legal system, and uncomfortable disruptions to the use of the brand new facility are just around the corner.

It never ceases to annoy me how almost nothing built in this day and age can ever be high-quality or reliable.

http://www.sacbee.com/news/local/article209372284.html
 
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Sounds like a mix design problem along with possible lack of rebar inspections beforehand. How much freeze/thaw does Sacremento see? I don't think it's a climate that air in the concrete being out of spec would matter a ton.
 
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