25 railroad places to visit out West

Cajon Pass, California

Railroad places to visit 1. GOAT LICK TRESTLE: Fast-paced action of BNSF’s northern transcon and the beauty of Glacier National Park, plus live GN goats. 2. CAJON PASS: Busy mainline mountain crossing for both BNSF and Union Pacific leaving LA. 3. TEHACHAPI: Mind-boggling over-and-under loop in Southern California sees more than 40 trains a day. […]

Read More…

Completion of LA airport people mover delayed to 2025

Illustration of four-car people mover trainset on elevated right-of-way

LOS ANGELES — The long-awaited, much-needed people mover system at Los Angeles International Airport, which was originally expected to be finished this year, may not be complete until late 2025, the Los Angeles Times reports. The $2 billion, 2.25-mile automated, elevated rail system will connect airport terminals with parking lots, a new central rental car […]

Read More…

Former Caltrain official, contractor face felony charges for allegedly building apartments in stations

Mission-style passenger station

REDWOOD CITY, Calif. — A former Caltrain official, as well as a former contractor for the commuter agency, are facing felony charges after allegedly spending public funds to secretly build themselves small apartments inside two of the agency’s train stations, the San Jose Mercury News reports. Joseph Vincent Navarro, 66, formerly of the Bay Area […]

Read More…

Caltrain retires 32 gallery cars

Commuter train with stainless steel bilevel cars

SAN CARLOS, Calif. — Caltrain has retired 32 of its bilevel gallery commuter railcars to make room for coming electrified equipment, sending them to Sonoma-Marin Area Rail Transit for storage until a buyer can be found, the agency has announced. The nearly 40-year-old cars were built in San Francisco by Nippon Sharyo and entered service […]

Read More…

Plans for private San Francisco-Los Angeles overnight sleeping car service revived

Passenger train on track paralleling road

NEWPORT BEACH, Calif. — The company seeking to start a luxury sleeping car train between downtown San Francisco and Los Angeles Union station says it has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Union Pacific “formalizing the parties’ negotiations toward a comprehensive final agreement” to begin operations by 2025. A press release issued by Dreamstar Lines […]

Read More…

Stadler hydrogen trainset sets distance record

Blue and white two-car passenger trainset on display track

PUEBLO, Colo. — Stadler Rail’s hydrogen powered multiple-unit passenger trainset has set a record by traveling more than 1,700 miles without refueling or recharging. The FLIRT H2 trainset, destined for use on the San Bernardino County Transportation Authority’s Arrow service, covered 1,741.7 miles on the test loop at the Transportation Technology Center in Pueblo. The […]

Read More…

Caltrain lands funding for grade crossing improvements (corrected)

Caltrain logo

SAN CARLOS, Calif. — Caltrain will upgrade safety at five grade crossings after receiving $1 million in federal funding as part of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, the commuter rail agency has announced. Funds will improve grade crossings at two crossings in San Francisco (16th Street and Mission Bay Drive), as well as Whipple Avenue in […]

Read More…

Five rail transit projects receive federal grants to demonstrate new technologies (updated)

Commuter train with diesel locomotive on electrified line

WASHINGTON — Five rail-related projects are among those selected for funding under the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Strengthening Mobility and Revolutionizing Transportation, or SMART, grant program announced last week by the U.S. DOT. A total of 34 projects in 22 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico received grants totaling $54 million under the […]

Read More…

Full passenger service through San Clemente, Calif., to resume Monday, March 25

Aerial view of landslide next to railroad track

SAN CLEMENTE, Calif. — Regular Amtrak Pacific Surfliner and Metrolink commuter rail service through San Clemente is slated to resume Monday, March 25, after two months of disruptions because of the latest in a series of landslides along the Surf Line in the South Orange County community. The Orange County Transportation Authority announced today (Tuesday, […]

Read More…

Work to begin on Del Mar Bluffs stabilization

Passenger train next to ocean

DEL MAR, Calif. — Construction will begin this month on a three-year, $78 million project to stabilize the Del Mar Bluffs along the Surf Line rail line, the Times of San Diego reports. The segment along the Pacific Ocean has long been a source of erosion and occasional line closures on the route used by […]

Read More…

Metrolink brings back Angels Express service

Overhead view of commuter train at station

ANAHEIM, Calif. — LA-area commuter rail operator Metrolink will revive Angels Express service after a five-year hiatus, offering round-trip service to Friday, Saturday, and Sunday Los Angeles Angels baseball home games, as well as midweek games against the Los Angeles Dodgers on March 26, Sept. 3, and Sept. 4. Round trips will operate from LA […]

Read More…

Orange County agency considers half-mile wall to address San Clemente slide issues

Cab car leads passenger train along track next to ocean

ORANGE, Calif. — The Orange County Transportation Authority is considering a proposal to build a $200 million, half-mile-long wall along the Surf Line right-of-way to address slide issues that have repeatedly closed the rail route since 2021 — but the city of San Clemente has reservations about the idea. Meanwhile, work continues on the temporary […]

Read More…