Palo Alto Loses Effort to Block High Speed Rail

A five-year legal challenge to block the California high-speed rail line from roaring through Palo Alto came to an abrupt end Thursday when a judge dismissed the case.

The cities of Menlo Park and Atherton were also parties in the suit.

A Sacramento County Superior Court judge ruled that the rail authority has the right to cross from the central valley to Santa Clara County through Pacheco Pass east of Gilroy. Palo Alto and the other cities argued that the rail line would damage the environment.

The goal of the lawsuit was to force the rail line further north, cutting through to the Bay Area at Altamont Pass, thus sparing the Peninsula altogether.

The rail authority is moving forward with planning and engineering work, but other legal challenges are moving forward. Last month, Atherton voted to allocate money to another legal battle to try to stop high speed rail from being built.

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