While most local transit watchers are focusing on the upcoming Westside Subway Scoping meetings, particularly the one on January 31 in Beverly Hills, another set of transit expansion meetings will begin tomorrow night for the second Foothill Extension for the Gold Line.

This month’s transit expansion meetings will kick off not on the Westside but in the San Gabiel Valley with the environmental scoping hearings for Phase 2B of the Gold Line Foothill Extension.  This phase will run from from Azusa to Montclair, extending the Metro Gold Line 12.6 miles and adding six stations in the cities of  Glendora, San Dimas, La Verne, Pomona, Claremont, and Montclair.  You can get the details for the public meetings at the Streetsblog calendar section.

The earliest construction could begin on this line, assuming the Construction Authority manages to get the $400 million the extension would cost after the $100 million allocation expected from Measure R, would be 2015.  At that point the extension would already be completed from Pasadena through Azusa, an extension that began construction last year.

The Foothill Extensions have proven controversial amongst some transit advocates who site lower than normal projected ridership numbers.  But with all the complaints about transit expansion projects within the city, it’s nice to write about a project that, thus far, hasn’t attracted an organized opposition.

For more information on the Gold Line Foothill Extension, visit the official website for the Gold Line Foothill Extension Construction Authority.  You could also visit the authority’s blog site at I Will Ride.