Tri-Cities vie to get funds for their projects first in the race for commuter rail network.

Plans to funnel $150 billion into Southern California's budding rail network have raised more than hopes about easing gridlock by the early 21st Century: it has created a scramble among a handful of cities to get their own projects funded first.

Glendale officials, who have spent nearly a decade pressing for a light rail connection to downtown Los Angeles, were shocked when their plans were omitted in a draft of the county's 30-year transportation blue-print.

"We were furious," recalled Ginger Bremberg, Glendale's mayor. "We're the third largest city in L.A. County, dealing with a lot of regional traffic yet we weren't chosen. We felt put upon to say the least."

Reacting to strident complaints from officials of municipalities cut out of the rail system, the Los Angeles County Transportation Commission -- which is managing and holds the purse strings for the 300-mile rail system -- rewrote parts of its so-called "30-year Metro plan" last summer.

Most important for the eastern San Fernando Valley city, Glendale's proposal for a $208-million light rail was included in a list of six "candidate" projects that the LACTC will fund during the next 20 years. Other candidates include a western extension of the L.A.-to-Long Beach Blue Line from USC to Santa Monica; two new spurs of the Norwalk-to-El Segundo Green Line towards Hawthorne and the county line; and a commuter rail line along the Pomona (60) Freeway corridor.

But the major issue is now one of timing: Which proposal will be built before the 1990s come to an end. The only certainty to emerge out of the tentative transit blueprint was a 10 mile, eastward extension of the Pasadena-to-Los Angeles leg into Azusa through Arcadia, Monrovia and Duarte.

Many sources believe the competition for the first project will boil down to either Glendale light rail or the Blue Line extension.

"The question is which will come first," noted LACTC Executive Director Neil Peterson. "Our biggest problem is competing priorities. We could put a rail line in most parts of the county and have good ridership right now."

But like other project-hungry cities, Glendale officials believe they can persuade the LACTC to build their above-ground, 5.2-mile line first because of an "aggressive" funding and lobbying effort, according to Peterson.

The light rail would travel from the northern part of the city along the San Fernando Road right-of-way, a route purchased by Glendale City Hall from the Southern Pacific Railroad Co. When it reached the area near the Los Angeles River, the light rail would follow the same path into downtown Los Angeles' Union Station that the Pasadena light rail will use.

As proof the city is serious about improving its gridlock problems, Glendale has already spent $5 million and may add another $5 million for its purchase and renovation of the old Amtrak station, where the light rail would connect. Initially, that depot will serve a commuter rail line, slated to be running in a few years, linking Santa Clarita and Moorpark with Glendale and Los Angeles.

But the city is also trying to offer local cash.

One financing scheme for the Glendale light rail is to use local Proposition A funds -- the half-cent sales tax Los Angeles County voters approved in 1980 -- to float bonds that could contribute about $34 million to the project up front.

Alternatively, some are eying possible joint development deals, where builders would contribute money to the light rail in return for the approvals to build near five proposed stations or the right-of-way.

Another idea is for Glendale to construct and finance some of the overhead electrical wiring system that powers the line or, separately, use tax increments from a possible new redevelopment area.

"We think that if we are willing to fund part of it, we should be moved up to the No. 1 candidate," Bremberg said. "The San Gabriel Valley was sitting on their hands until they heard about the 30-year plan and then they got religion. They're a Johnny-come-lately."

Demographics may also be on the side of Glendale, one of the Southland's major financial centers and home to operations run by Disney, Carnation and Nestle.

According to various projections, the Glendale line would be used by 24,000 commuters per day, higher than the L.A.-Long Beach Blue Line when it opened last year. Because the Tri-Cities area is a nexus for at least five freeways and regional east-west traffic, congestion there increased steadily during the 1980s, according to Caltrans.

Comparable numbers were not available for other light rail proposals.

"Glendale has a legitimate point in arguing for the light rail because the city is obviously a destination for a lot of people," said Peterson. "It's also got an employment base, that in terms of total square feet used, is near L.A.'s."

To give the line a broader, more regional appeal, there is a drive to extend it -- with an additional $178 million -- roughly five miles into Burbank.

Bob Huddy, the senior transportation planner at the Southern California Association of Governments, said the rivalry for new rail lines grew fierce after the Blue Line proved successful. "After that, everyone wanted one," Huddy said.

Glendale, however, may have the edge over other areas, Huddy added, because of a strong lobbying effort and cohesive community support. Some regions in West Los Angeles, for example, are voicing strong doubts about the environmental impact that a rail line would have, like various enclaves in the western portion of the San Fernando Valley.

The LACTC is expected to formally approve its 30-year plan -- composed of funding for light, commuter and heavy rail as well as various highway, street and bus programs -- by November. The environmental impact report for the Glendale line is scheduled to come in before month's end.

Bremberg said Pasadena got funding and approval for its line because it started lobbying the LACTC soon after a number of transit-funding ballot measures were passed. "Back then we were fat, dumb and happy," Bremberg said, "but not anymore."