Jim Alexander's presentation had a slide which I believe five bulleted points regarding the new relocate alternative costs that weren't factored into the listed cost. I didn't write the list down myself nor did I grab the packet, so maybe someone who attended can post them. But two stuck in my memory, one was that with proposing Lake Street and Walker being closed off, proposed was a frontage road running under the rail bridges to give the buses dropping at the Spanish immersion elementary school an exit. This proposed north side frontage road was not calculated.Is anyone else amused* at the fact that the decision is now entirely a political one, rather than a technical one?
The second that stuck in my memory regarded linking the CP to BNSF, what I understood was that the North Cedar Lake Trail was going to be impacted. To make the connection work the trail would need to be put on a bridge over rail since all the rail companies were deeply resistant to adding another at-grade crossing. Putting the North Cedar Lake Trail onto a bridge up and over the rail connection wasn't calculated in the cost either.
Those seemed kind of significant misses.
Can't recall the other elements Jim noted weren't in the total cost, but I'm in agreement with your point, this will be a political decision not technical.