48,000 New California Jobs

California is getting a little more love from the feds.  The US Department of Transportation has approved a $171 million loan for construction of the Transbay Transit Center in San Francisco, which is expected to create up to 48,000 jobs in California.

"This project will create thousands of jobs at a time when the state unemployment rate is 12.4 percent and more than two million Californians are out of work," California US Senator Dianne Feinstein said. "Creating jobs by funding projects like the Transbay Transit Center must be our top priority right now, and this $171 million loan will provide a significant economic boost."

Senator Feinstein played a key role in legislation appropriating $10.5 billion for high-speed rail, and she supported Proposition 1A, the $10 billion bond measure that funded the California High-Speed Rail Authority plan.

Senator Feinstein continues, "This downtown rail station will bring us one step closer to a high-speed rail system for California, which has been a long-term priority for me. In addition to creating jobs, high-speed rail will spur commerce while reducing greenhouse gases and reliance on foreign oil. So the Transbay Transit Center is exactly the kind of public works project California needs."

The loan is issued through the DOT’s Transportation Infrastructure Finance Innovation Act (TIFIA) Program.  Construction of the Transbay Transit Center building will be completed over the next four years. The program also finances ramps to the Bay Bridge, a bus storage facility and design of an underground transit facility.

The new Transbay Transit Center will serve 45 million passengers per year and contain nine transportation systems, including California high-speed rail. Of the projected 48,000 new jobs, 8,000 are expected to be created immediately.

This great news is right on time.  It's fantastic when people work together toward mutual success.  That is, after all, what California is supposed to be all about.

Now let's start hiring some Californians!