Irvine, CA
Stop on the proposed 17,000-mile maglev network. Next stop: Santa Ana, CA (5.9 mi).
About Irvine
Irvine is a planned city in central Orange County, California, United States, in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. It was named in 1888 for the landowner James Irvine. The Irvine Company started developing the area in the 1960s.
Source: Wikipedia summary (full article). Population and facts as published there.
Cost breakdown (proposal-scale estimates — see math)
| Item | Basis | Estimate |
|---|---|---|
| Terminal construction | Large-city terminal ($2–4B range) | $3.0B |
| Land acquisition | Regional factor 1.5× on $200M base | $300M |
| Track: Irvine → Santa Ana | 5.9 mi × $500M/mi | $3.0B |
| Annual operations (share) | 2% of $3.0B terminal | $60M/yr |
| Stop total (excl. annual ops) | $6.2B |
Best terminal location (proposed)
The Irvine Transportation Center district. The Irvine Transportation Center already serves Metrolink and the Pacific Surfliner in the heart of the Irvine Spectrum employment zone. The surrounding office parks have structured parking that can be redeveloped without touching neighborhoods. The catchment is South Orange County's job core — the Spectrum, UCI, and 300,000+ residents who currently drive everywhere.
Before / after
Aerial mock-up (illustrative, not an engineering rendering). Left: the proposed site today. Right: with the maglev terminal.
- Costa Mesa / South Coast Metro — office and retail district on the corridor.
- Tustin — master-planned community on the approach.
- John Wayne Airport edge — airport-connector station zone.