October 2022 I Will Ride Update

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Greetings I Will Riders,

As you move through your semester and towards midterms, mark your calendars for great scholarship opportunities for students studying transportation and rail. Once you get through those scholarship apps, check out some of the news from our October Board Meeting as we advance station planning for the nation’s first ever high-speed rail stations!

Nation’s First High-Speed Rail Stations to Begin Design

Photo of a high-speed rail station rendering with a large canopy structure and a road next to the station with buses, cars, pedestrians and cyclists. The road is lined with trees next to it. Title included in the graphic that reads Nations First High-Speed Rail Stations to Begin DesignThe Authority Board of Directors unanimously approved awarding the design and support services contract for the Merced, Fresno, Kings/Tulare and Bakersfield stations that will serve high-speed rail passengers on the initial 171-mile segment. The contract award will go to Foster + Partners and Arup (F+P Arup) who will be responsible for advancing the design work at the four station sites. This includes identifying right-of-way and utility relocation requirements necessary for construction, and to progress to final design and construction ready documents. You can read additional details in the press release below. Additionally, Tim Sheehan from the Fresno Bee ran a story on the awarding of the contract.

Merced: Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook

Fresno: Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook

Kings/Tulare: Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook

Bakersfield: Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook

Read More

California High-Speed Rail Leads the Path in Sustainability

Photo of the 2022 Sustainability Report with a photo of a station surrounded by agricultural farms and parking. Title included that reads California High-Speed Rail Leads the Path in Sustainability.The California High-Speed Rail Authority is setting a new green standard for transportation and infrastructure projects nationwide. At the Authority, we define sustainability comprehensively and know that it includes environmental, social and political factors. Such sustainability efforts include requiring our major contracts to hire nationally targeted local employees, requiring contractors to use the cleanest construction equipment, building a rail system that will be fully electric, running on renewable energy and working closely with station communities to create smart, green and connected station sites. Our annual Sustainability Report details our goals, policies, reporting and sustainability initiatives.

2022 Sustainability Report

Authority Applies for Federal Grant for Grade Separations

https://hsr.ca.gov/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/Grade-Separation-Federal-Grant.pngThis month, the California High-Speed Rail Authority applied for $67 million in federal grant money to advance high-speed rail construction towards Bakersfield. The funds will be used to create new grade separations at six at-grade crossings along the BNSF freight railroad. Grade separations allow for vehicle traffic to be completely separated from a rail line, by either going above or below the tracks. The six grade separations, which are primarily being built in the city of Shafter, will improve safety along the existing freight rail corridor.

Read More

Students Can Earn Prizes for Transportation Projects and Innovation

Flyer that reads MTI Elementary Poster Contest with illustrations of a high-speed rail train, buses cars, trolleys and the San Jose State and Mineta Transportation Institute logos.For students in early elementary school, the Mineta Transportation Institute (MTI) Elementary Poster Contest allows students, grades 1 to 6, to demonstrate their knowledge of the year’s transportation theme through an artistic, visually compelling image. That image should encourage, inspire, and/or convey a message to others about the theme.

For middle school and high school students, MTI hosts an Essay Contest inviting students, grades 6 to12, to propose and explore a solution to a problem centered around a specific theme each year under one or more of the following principles of transportation: sustainability, equity, safety, community, and innovation.

K to 6 6 to 12

CONTACT

Communications and Media Relations
(916) 322-1422
news@hsr.ca.gov

Privacy Officer
(916) 324-1541
privacyofficer@hsr.ca.gov

TRANSLATION

For consultation and/or translation support, call (916) 324-1541 or email info@hsr.ca.gov.

For TTY/TTD assistance, call (800) 881-5799 or the California Relay Service at 711.

Student Opportunities 

Scholarships

 

Women in Transportation Central Valley Chapter

WTS-CenCal is thrilled to be announcing their inaugural year providing scholarships to the student community! See below link to download, complete and submit an application to wtscencal@gmail.com. Deadline for submission is Nov. 18, 2022. Please share with all you think may be interested. Let’s support the next generation of bright new professionals in our industry!

Learn More and Apply: https://lp.constantcontactpages.com/cu/OGrpivC/WTSCenCal2022Scholarship

 

Women in Transportation Sacramento Chapter

WTS is committed to the advancement of women in the transportation industry, and one of the many effective ways we actively enable this advancement is through our scholarship program. Since 2005, the Sacramento Chapter has awarded over $125,000 in scholarships to 100 young women pursuing careers supporting the transportation industry through the generous donations of our supporters and members.

Learn More and Apply: https://files.constantcontact.com/f4a77c8a001/a864a0f9-10da-499a-825a-16bc3b538c78.pdf

 

Amtrak

The National Passenger Corporation, also known as Amtrak, is a corporation striving to deliver a high-quality, safe, on-time rail passenger service that exceeds customer expectations. For 50 years, Amtrak has connected businesses and communities across the country and as Amtrak celebrates its 50th anniversary it looks to the next 50 years and beyond to move America’s workforce toward the future.

The Amtrak Scholarship Program provides academic scholarships to undergraduate and graduate college students who have an active interest in the railroad industry. This program has been established to provide support to help encourage academic achievement within railroad programs, ensuring a future in this industry.

Amtrak will award 11 scholarships in categories including:

  • Women in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math);
  • Amtrak dependents;
  • Non-Technical, Engineering and IT (Information Technology) degree candidates;
  • African American, Asian Pacific American Islander and Hispanic/Latinx students.

Award amounts range from $3,000 to $5,000, and students are allowed to apply to more than one applicable category if criteria are met. Applications will be accepted through January 31st, 2023.

Learn More and Apply: https://careers.amtrak.com/content/Academic-Scholarship-Program/?locale=en_US

Internships and Fellowships

 

Dragados (Selma) – Field Engineer Intern (Summer 2023)

This role will be responsible for assisting the Project Manager, Superintendent, Project Engineer(s), and all other construction staff in various areas of the project. Engineering Intern will have the opportunity to apply education to a professional setting, while gaining valuable experience and skills. In this role, the Intern will learn and apply processes, and understand industry best practices and trends. Specific areas may include tracking and assistance with RFI’s; processing change orders; general project layout assistance relating to engineering plans and specs; and assisting with the project close out process.

Learn More and Apply

 

Capital Fellows Program Applications Open

The Capital Fellows Programs is a nationally recognized public policy fellowships which offer unique experiences in policymaking and development in each branch of government. Capital Fellows are placed at some of the highest levels of California state government and assist state legislators, senior-level executive staff, and court administrators with a broad range of public policy issues and projects and are typically given assignments with a significant amount of responsibility and challenges.

Applications for the Capital Fellows program close on February 6, 2023 at 5:00pm.

The Authority is a proud partner of the Capital Fellows program having welcomed various fellows for their service year within our Communications team.

Learn More and Apply

 

CivicSpark Fellowship

CivicSpark is a Governor’s Initiative AmeriCorps program dedicated to building capacity for local public agencies to address community resilience issues such as climate change, water resource management, housing, and mobility. CivicSpark is a program of CivicWell (formerly the Local Government Commission). Each year, CivicSpark recruits Fellows to build local public agency capacity for 11 months. During their service year, CivicSpark Fellows implement a needed sustainability and resilience project, while also building long-term capacity to ensure the work is sustained after their service year is completed.

The Authority is a proud partner of the CivicSpark program, having hosted various fellows for their service year in our Communications and Sustainability teams.

Learn More and Apply

 

Stay Connected 

 Informational flyer for student I Will Ride program. Webinars, Project Updates, Student Opportunities and Construction Tours. Photos of professionals panel, train rendering, students tabling and construction tour. Are you a student that wants to learn more about the California high-speed rail project, tour construction or join the project as a fellow or intern? Don’t miss any important updates, opportunities or notifications when you sign up for I Will Ride!

Sign-Up for I Will Ride

The California High-Speed Rail Authority makes every effort to ensure the website and its contents meet mandated ADA requirements as per the California State mandated Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.0 Level AA standard. If you are looking for a particular document not located on the California High-Speed Rail Authority website, you may make a request for the document under the Public Records Act through the Public Records Act page. If you have any questions about the website or its contents, please contact the Authority at info@hsr.ca.gov.