The newly released State Rail Plan lays out strategies that can significantly impact how Californians and visitors get around the state - and can make California a place that's easier for everyone to get around in an affordable, low-carbon, safe, and accessible way.

The plan establishes a long-term vision for an integrated, cohesive statewide rail system that offers passenger and freight service and helps achieve California's mobility, economic, and climate goals.

Tune into this webinar to learn about the plan from California State Transportation Agency staff. Researchers and advocates will give their reaction to the updated plan including cost analysis, the political changes needed to implement reforms, and upcoming funding and reform opportunities.

Register to get the Zoom link for the event.

Confirmed panelists:

• Shannon Simonds - Caltrans, Office Chief of Rail Planning & Implementation

• Eric Goldwyn - NYU Marron Institute of Urban Management, Program Director

• Adriana Rizzo - Californians for Electric Rail

• Moderator: Adina Levin - Seamless Bay Area, Executive Director

About the panelists:

Shannon Simonds is the Chief of the Office of Rail Planning and Implementation at Caltrans in the Division of Rail. In this role, she manages a team of planners who develop, update, and implement the California State Rail Plan and the new Federal Corridor Identification and Development Program for the State. Prior to this role, she served as the Regional Rail Coordinator for the Bay Area and Central Coast where she acted as the primary liaison for passenger rail service planning and capital project development for internal and external partners. Shannon has a M.A. in Urban Affairs from the University of San Francisco.

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Eric Goldwyn is Program Director at the NYU Marron Institute of Urban Management

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Adriana Rizzo is a member of Californians for Electric Rail, a volunteer advocacy organization dedicated to removing barriers to electrification via overhead catenary of California's railways through state legislative advocacy and engagement in decision-making within local transit agencies and regulatory boards.

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Adina Levin is Executive Director of Seamless Bay Area, a non-profit advocacy organization working to transform the Bay Area's fragmented and inconvenient public transit into a world-class, unified, equitable, and widely-used system by building a diverse movement for change and promoting policy reforms.

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