The last time a ridership study was presented to the Transbay Joint Powers Authority (TJPA) Board was in 2009 when a transportation consulting firm projected that 31,500 rail passengers would alight at the Salesforce Transit Center in 2030. This firm’s modeling work on the California high-speed rail project has faced sharp criticism from University of California, Irvine economist [and Professor Emeritus of economics] David Brownstone, who told the Los Angeles Times that the group’s forecasting “mistakes were obvious and crude,” resulting in high-speed rail ridership forecasts being lowered from 90 million to 25 million.

For the full story, please visit https://sfstandard.com/perspectives/perspective-sfs-proposed-downtown-railway-extension-is-an-unnecessary-boondoggle/.