Pacific Surfliner

The Pacific Surfliner is a 350-mile (560 km) passenger train service serving the communities on the coast of Southern California between San Diego and San Luis Obispo.

Pacific Surfliner

Pacific Surfliner in Santa Barbara, California, 2017
Overview
Service type	Inter-city rail, higher-speed rail
Locale	Southern California
Predecessor	San Diegan
First service	June 1, 2000; 23 years ago (2000-06-01)
Current operator(s)	LOSSAN Rail Corridor Agency, in partnership with Amtrak and Caltrans
Annual ridership	1,634,087 (FY22) 94.3%^[a]^[1]
Website	pacificsurfliner.com
Route
Termini	San Luis Obispo San Diego
Stops	25
Distance travelled	350 miles (560 km)
Average journey time	8 hours, 45 minutes^[2]
Train number(s)	562–595, 761–794
On-board services
Class(es)	Coach Class, Business Class
Catering facilities	Café
Technical
Rolling stock	Siemens Charger locomotive Surfliner (railcar)
Track gauge	4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge
Operating speed	41 mph (66 km/h) (avg.) 90 mph (140 km/h) (top)
Route map Show interactive map Legend Coast Starlight to Seattle 0 mi 0 km San Luis Obispo 12 mi 19 km Grover Beach 25 mi 40 km Guadalupe 51 mi 82 km Lompoc–Surf 110 mi 177 km Goleta 119 mi 192 km Santa Barbara 129 mi 208 km Carpinteria 145 mi 233 km Ventura Metrolink to Ventura–East 155 mi 249 km Oxnard 165 mi 266 km Camarillo 175 mi 282 km Moorpark 186 mi 299 km Simi Valley 194 mi 312 km Chatsworth   Northridge 203 mi 327 km Van Nuys ( 2030) 209 mi 336 km Hollywood Burbank Airport Metrolink to Lancaster Downtown Burbank 216 mi 348 km Glendale   Sunset Limited to New Orleans 222 mi 357 km Los Angeles      | Metrolink to San Bernardino   248 mi 399 km Fullerton Southwest Chief to Chicago & Metrolink to Perris–South 253 mi 407 km Anaheim Metrolink to San Bernardino 256 mi 412 km Orange 258 mi 415 km Santa Ana ( 2025) 268 mi 431 km Irvine Laguna Niguel/Mission Viejo 280 mi 451 km San Juan Capistrano 288 mi 463 km San Clemente Pier 309 mi 497 km Oceanside Sprinter to Escondido 312 mi 502 km Carlsbad Village 316 mi 509 km Carlsbad Poinsettia 321 mi 517 km Encinitas 325 mi 523 km Solana Beach Del Mar Fairgrounds (planned, 2028^[3]) 332 mi 534 km Sorrento Valley Green Line Blue Line 347 mi 558 km San Diego–Old Town 350 mi 563 km San Diego Green Line Blue Line   Silver Line All stations are accessible Parking is available at all stations except San Diego–Old Town Key Track shared with Metrolink Track shared with Metrolink & Coaster Track shared with Coaster Limited service, not all trains stop Former station, no longer served This diagram: view talk edit Show diagram map

The Pacific Surfliner is Amtrak's third-busiest service (exceeded in ridership only by the Northeast Regional and Acela), and the busiest outside the Northeast Corridor.^[4]

Like all regional trains in California, the Pacific Surfliner is operated by a joint powers authority. The Los Angeles – San Diego – San Luis Obispo (LOSSAN) Rail Corridor Agency is governed by a board that includes eleven elected representatives from the six counties the train travels through. LOSSAN contracts with the Orange County Transportation Authority to provide day-to-day management of the service and with contracts with Amtrak to operate the service and maintain the rolling stock (locomotives and passenger cars). The California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) provides the funding to operate the service and also owns all of the locomotives and some of the rolling stock; with Amtrak owning the rest.

Portions of the line in southern Orange County have been suspended three times in 2022 and 2023 due to coastal erosion.

Operations

 

A Pacific Surfliner entering San Clemente

The 350-mile (563 km) San Luis Obispo-San Diego trip (LOSSAN Corridor) takes approximately 8+1⁄2 hours with an average speed of 41.2 miles per hour (66 km/h); maximum track speed is 79 to 90 miles per hour (127 to 145 km/h). Much of the Pacific Surfliner's scenic route follows the Pacific coast, with the tracks being less than 100 feet from the ocean in some locations. However, trains travel inland through expansive farmlands in Ventura County and industrial backlots in the Los Angeles Basin, San Fernando Valley, and parts of Orange County.

As of October 2021^[update], the Pacific Surfliner operates ten daily round trips between Los Angeles and San Diego. Four round trips run north of Los Angeles: two run all the way to San Luis Obispo, and two run to Goleta (near Santa Barbara), with Amtrak Thruway motorcoach service over the rest of the route to San Luis Obispo.^[5]

Thruway motorcoach connections are also available to San Pedro; to Palm Springs and Indio; and to San Jose or Oakland (with connections to Capitol Corridor trains) via Paso Robles.

Because the stations at the ends of the line do not have wyes to turn equipment, trains are operated in push-pull mode. The locomotive is at the rear of the train, pushing the train from Goleta, San Luis Obispo or San Diego to Los Angeles. At Los Angeles, the train reverses at the station, and the locomotive pulls the train to San Diego or Goleta/San Luis Obispo, respectively. Run-through tracks are proposed at Union Station in Los Angeles to ease congestion and reduce time spent waiting to enter or depart the station.^[6] The ongoing North Coast Corridor project plans to increase rail capacity on the route of the Surfliner in North San Diego County.

LOSSAN Rail Corridor Agency

Local agencies along with the host railroads formed the Los Angeles–San Diego-San Luis Obispo Rail Corridor Agency (LOSSAN) in 1989.^[7] The Pacific Surfliner is operated by Amtrak under the Amtrak California brand with funding provided by the California Department of Transportation (Caltrans). Serious discussions were held in 2009 regarding the local agencies administering the service rather than Caltrans.^[8] California Senate Bill No. 1225, passed in 2014, allowed LOSSAN to amend the joint powers agreement and become the sponsor of state-supported intercity passenger rail service in the corridor.^[9] In mid-2015, LOSSAN assumed oversight for the Surfliner.^[10] They are also working with Caltrans to assess rail operations from Los Angeles to San Diego to develop better connections, close gaps in the schedule, and optimize the assets of the railroad.^[11]

Board Members

Board members of LOSSAN comprise of 11 members from the following planning agencies^[12]

• North County Transit District has one seat
• Ventura County Transportation Commission has one seat
• San Luis Obispo Council of Governments has one seat
• Santa Barbara County Association of Governments has one seat
• Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority has two seats
• Orange County Transportation Authority has two seats
• Riverside County Transportation Commission has one seat
• San Diego Metropolitan Transit System has one seat
• San Diego Association of Governments has one seat

History

 

The San Diegan in 1985

The route is the successor of the San Diegan, a Los Angeles–San Diego service operated since 1938 by the Santa Fe Railway. It had been one of the Santa Fe's premier routes until Amtrak took over operations in 1971. Initially there were three daily trips, but the schedule was expanded to six round trips during the 1970s with funding from the state of California. In 1988 the service was extended to Santa Barbara to provide the Central Coast with an additional train to Los Angeles, followed in 1995 with one trip a day going all the way to San Luis Obispo.^[13] To better reflect the route's extent, it was renamed the Pacific Surfliner in 2000.^[14] The route is named after the Surf Line, which now comprises the route's busiest section from Los Angeles to San Diego.

A stop at Old Town Transit Center was added in 2004. Stops at Orange and Laguna Niguel/Mission Viejo were added in 2007 but dropped in 2012. On October 7, 2013, stops were added at Coaster stations at Carlsbad Village, Carlsbad Poinsettia, Encinitas and Sorrento Valley.^[15] The Carlsbad Poinsettia and Encinitas stops were dropped on October 9, 2017, due to low ridership.^[16] The Carlsbad Village and Sorrento Valley stops were dropped on October 8, 2018, due to changes with the cross-ticketing arrangement with Coaster.^[17]

A 13th daily round trip was added on October 14, 2019.^[18]

On September 30, 2022, all rail service between Irvine and Oceanside was suspended due to coastal erosion under the track in San Clemente.^[19] Emergency repairs were expected to take at least 90 days.^[20][21] Full Pacific Surfliner service resumed on April 17, 2023.^[22] Service south of Irvine was again suspended on April 27 due to further erosion at Casa Romantica.^[23] Service resumed on May 27, 2023.^[24] Service was suspended again on June 5 due to continued erosion at Casa Romantica and resumed on July 19.^[25][26]

Route

 

Map of Pacific Surfliner stations

The Pacific Surfliner runs on track owned by several private railroads and public agencies:

• Union Pacific Railroad (Coast Line): San Luis Obispo – Moorpark
• Southern California Regional Rail Authority: Moorpark – Los Angeles
• BNSF Railway: Los Angeles – Fullerton
• Southern California Regional Rail Authority: Fullerton – Orange County/San Diego County line
• North County Transit District: Orange County/San Diego County line – San Diego

Stations

Station	Location	Miles (km) from San Luis Obispo^[27]^[28]	Connections
San Luis Obispo	San Luis Obispo	0 (0)	Amtrak: Coast Starlight   Amtrak Thruway to Santa Barbara, San Jose, San Francisco, Oakland   SLO Transit, Orange Belt Stages
Grover Beach	Grover Beach	12 (20)	Amtrak Thruway to Santa Barbara, San Jose, San Francisco, Oakland   South County Transit
Guadalupe	Guadalupe	24 (39)	Amtrak Thruway to San Jose, San Francisco, Oakland   Guadalupe Flyer
Lompoc–Surf	Surf	51 (81)
Goleta	Goleta	109 (176)	MTD Santa Barbara
Santa Barbara	Santa Barbara	119 (191)	Amtrak: Coast Starlight   Amtrak Thruway to Los Angeles, UCSB, San Jose, San Francisco, Oakland   MTD Santa Barbara
Carpinteria	Carpinteria	129 (207)	Amtrak Thruway to Los Angeles, UCSB   MTD Santa Barbara
Ventura	Ventura	145 (234)
Oxnard Transit Center	Oxnard	155 (250)	Amtrak: Coast Starlight   Amtrak Thruway to Los Angeles, UCSB   Metrolink: Ventura County   Gold Coast Transit
Camarillo	Camarillo	164 (264)	Amtrak Thruway to UCSB   Metrolink: Ventura County   VCTC Intercity
Moorpark	Moorpark	175 (282)	Amtrak Thruway to UCSB   Metrolink: Ventura County   Moorpark City Transit, VCTC Intercity
Simi Valley	Simi Valley	186 (299)	Amtrak: Coast Starlight   Amtrak Thruway to UCSB   Metrolink: Ventura County   Simi Valley Transit
Chatsworth	Los Angeles	193 (311)	Amtrak Thruway to UCSB   Metrolink: Ventura County   Metro:   G Line   City of Santa Clarita Transit, LADOT Commuter Express, Los Angeles Metro Bus
Van Nuys		203 (326)	Amtrak: Coast Starlight   Amtrak Thruway to UCSB   Metrolink: Ventura County   LADOT DASH, Los Angeles Metro Bus
Hollywood Burbank Airport	Burbank	208 (335)	Amtrak: Coast Starlight   Metrolink: Ventura County   Los Angeles Metro Bus
Glendale	Glendale	216 (348)	Amtrak Thruway to UCSB   Metrolink: Antelope Valley Ventura County   Greyhound Lines   Glendale Beeline, Los Angeles Metro Bus
Union Station	Los Angeles	222 (357)	Amtrak: Coast Starlight, Southwest Chief, Sunset Limited, Texas Eagle   Metrolink: 91/Perris Valley Antelope Valley Orange County Riverside San Bernardino Ventura County   Metro:   A Line,   B Line,   D Line,   J Line   FlyAway to LAX
Fullerton	Fullerton	247 (398)	Amtrak: Southwest Chief   Amtrak Thruway to Cabazon, Palm Springs, Indio   Metrolink: 91/Perris Valley Orange County   OC Bus
Anaheim	Anaheim	253 (407)	Metrolink: 91/Perris Valley Orange County   Greyhound Lines   Anaheim Resort Transportation, Flixbus, OC Bus
Santa Ana	Santa Ana	258 (415)	Metrolink: Inland Empire-Orange County Orange County   Greyhound Lines   OC Bus
Irvine	Irvine	267 (430)	Metrolink: Inland Empire-Orange County Orange County   iShuttle, OC Bus
San Juan Capistrano	San Juan Capistrano	280 (450)	Metrolink: Inland Empire-Orange County Orange County
San Clemente Pier	San Clemente	287 (462)	Limited service, not all trains stop at this station   Metrolink: Inland Empire-Orange County Orange County
Oceanside	Oceanside	309 (497)	Coaster   Sprinter   Metrolink: Inland Empire-Orange County Orange County   Greyhound Lines   NCTD Breeze, Riverside Transit Agency
Solana Beach	Solana Beach	324 (521)	Coaster   NCTD Breeze
Old Town Transit Center	San Diego	346 (557)	Coaster   San Diego Trolley:   Blue Line,   Green Line   Metropolitan Transit System,   San Diego Flyer shuttle, University of San Diego shuttle
Santa Fe Depot		350 (563)	Coaster   San Diego Trolley:   Blue Line,   Green Line   Metropolitan Transit System

Carlsbad Poinsettia, Carlsbad Village, Encinitas and Sorrento Valley stations were previously served under the "Rail 2 Rail" reciprocal pass program with Coaster, while Laguna Niguel/Mission Viejo and Orange were served under a similar program with Metrolink.

Rolling stock

 

Coach/baggage/cab car #6908 on the Pacific Surfliner in Santa Barbara in 2018

The Pacific Surfliner uses push-pull trainsets with a diesel locomotive at one end and a cab car at the other. Eight of the nine trainsets used for regular service use a fleet of 49 bilevel Surfliner coaches (39 owned by Amtrak and 10 by Caltrans), plus nine leased Amtrak Superliner long-distance coaches modified for push-pull operation. A typical six-car set has a business class car; three coach cars; a coach/café car with food sales on the lower level; and a coach/baggage/cab car equipped with coach seating, a checked baggage space on the lower level, and engineer's operating cab.^[29] The ninth trainset consists of leased Amtrak equipment: Horizon or Amfleet passenger cars plus a Non-Powered Control Unit.^[29] The Surfliner cars will be supplemented and partially replaced by new Siemens single-level cars beginning in 2020.^[29] In 2018, to provide additional capacity before the new cars arrive, LOSSAN began negotiating with the Great Lakes Central Railroad to lease bilevel railcars previously refurbished for a never-opened commuter railroad in Michigan.^[29]

The Surfliner cars were introduced in 2000–02, and were designed specifically to handle the demands of the nation's third-busiest rail line.^[30] They replaced the California Cars which had been introduced on the then-San Diegan in 1996, and had been fraught with problems in the latter part of the 1990s.^[31]

A dedicated fleet of 14 Caltrans-owned Siemens Charger locomotives began pre-revenue testing in October 2018 and entered revenue service later that year.^[32][33] The Chargers replaced a fleet of 15 Amtrak-owned EMD F59PHI locomotives (built in 1998), which were sold to Metra on March 2, 2019.^{[34][35][29][36]} Amtrak-owned GE P42DC locomotives (which are also used at other times) were temporarily used as motive power until the Chargers were ready for service. The Surfliner cars and Charger locomotives (and previously the F59PHI locomotives) are painted in a blue and silver livery that is unique to the Pacific Surfliner.^[37][38]

Additional Amtrak-owned cars are added (up to 12-car consists) during periods of high demand, including the San Diego Comic-Con, the San Diego County Fair, events at the Del Mar racetrack, and after the 2018 Southern California mudflows closed Highway 101.^[39][40] Amtrak Great Dome car Ocean View was occasionally used as an additional business class car prior to its retirement in 2019.^[41][42]

•  

  A Pacific Surfliner Siemens Charger locomotive at L.A. Union Station in 2022.

•  

  A typical single-level consist in 2010

•  

  Lower-level seating on a "Pacific Business Class" car in 2012

•  

  A Pacific Surfliner train hauled by a P42DC locomotive in 2012

•  

  A Superliner car used in 2016

•  

  Ocean View on the Pacific Surfliner in 2017

References

1. "Amtrak Fiscal Year 2022 Ridership" (PDF). Amtrak. November 29, 2022. Retrieved December 6, 2022.
2. "Amtrak Timetable Results". www.amtrak.com. Retrieved December 20, 2021.
3. "Transit and Intercity Rail Capital Program Sixth Round Selected Projects – Project Detail Summary" (PDF). California State Transportation Agency. April 24, 2023. p. 11. Retrieved October 11, 2023.
4. "Amtrak FY16 Ridership and Revenue Fact Sheet" (PDF). Amtrak. April 17, 2017. Retrieved February 21, 2018.
5. "Pacific Surfliner Timetable". Amtrak. October 25, 2021.
6. . Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority. Archived from the original on April 17, 2016. Retrieved May 8, 2016.
7. "LOSSAN Corridorwide Strategic Implementation Plan, Final Report (April 2012)" (PDF). San Luis Obispo Council of Governments. Retrieved April 24, 2018.
8. "LOSSAN Board discusses JPA and the Future Governance of Passenger Rail in Southern California". Rail Passenger Association of California & Nevada. July 7, 2009. Retrieved December 6, 2009.
9. "Senate Bill No. 1225" California Secretary of State (September 29, 2012)
10. Sheehan, Tim (June 26, 2015). "Valley agency takes control of Amtrak San Joaquin trains". Fresno Bee. Retrieved February 11, 2016.
11. Weikel, Dan (January 27, 2015) "Little-known agency keeps commuter rail network on track" Los Angeles Times
12. "Board of Directors". Orange County Transportation Authority. Retrieved September 27, 2023.
13. Schmidt, Brian (November 30, 2022). "Amtrak San Diego service through the years". Trains. Retrieved December 4, 2022.
14. Gabbard, Dana (September 24, 2012). "History of the Surfliner, LOSSAN and a Look at Pending Legislation". StreetsBlog LA. OpenPlans. Retrieved April 11, 2014.
15. "Amtrak Pacific Surfliner Adds Four New stops" (Press release). Amtrak. September 18, 2013.
16. Diehl, Phil (September 21, 2017). "Amtrak to discontinue two stops, add one". San Diego Union Tribune.
17. (Press release). Amtrak. Archived from the original on November 26, 2018.
18. "AMTRAK PACIFIC SURFLINER INTRODUCES 13TH ROUNDTRIP" (Press release). Amtrak. October 10, 2019.
19. "Pacific Surfliner, Metrolink halt operations in South Orange County". Trains. September 30, 2022. Retrieved October 2, 2022.
20. "Pacific Surfliner, Metrolink facing 60-day service outage to Oceanside, San Diego official says". Trains. October 1, 2022. Retrieved October 2, 2022.
21. "News - Emergency Track Stabilization Work Set to Begin Next Week in South Orange County".
22. Connelly, Laylan (April 10, 2023). "Metrolink, Amtrak to resume full passenger train service through San Clemente". Orange County Register. Retrieved April 13, 2023.
23. Jennewein, Chris (April 28, 2023). "Amtrak, Metrolink Service to San Diego Still Unavailable Friday After Landslide in San Clemente". Times of San Diego. Retrieved May 1, 2023.
24. Lester, David C. (May 30, 2023). "Rail Service, Including Metrolink, Pacific Surfliner, Cleared to Resume Through San Clemente". Railway Track and Structures. Retrieved June 1, 2023.
25. Rendon, Karla (June 6, 2023). "Landslide in San Clemente Rail service out of North County again". NBC 7 San Diego. Retrieved June 7, 2023.
26. . LOSSAN Rail Corridor Agency. July 11, 2023. Archived from the original on July 12, 2023.
27. (PDF). Amtrak. April 8, 2019. Archived from the original (PDF) on April 4, 2019.
28. SMA Rail Consulting (April 2016). "California Passenger Rail Network Schematics" (PDF). California Department of Transportation. pp. 15–18, 22, 25–26.
29. "Chapter 9: Equipment". LOSSAN Rail Corridor Agency Business Plan: FY 2018-19 to FY 2019-20 (PDF). Los Angeles – San Diego – San Luis Obispo Rail Corridor Agency. April 2018. pp. 41–47.
30. Alstom. (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on April 7, 2014. Retrieved April 2, 2014.
31. "STATE RAILROAD CARS PLAGUED WITH DEFECTS". Daily News. Los Angeles, CA. Associated Press. April 13, 1998. Retrieved December 30, 2019.
32. "New, Cleaner Locomotives Coming Soon to the Amtrak Pacific Surfliner Service". Pacific Surfliner Blog. October 5, 2018. Retrieved November 29, 2018.
33. "Charger Locomotive Deployment: ' The California Experience'" (PDF). Next Generation Equipment Committee - 2019 Annual Meeting. American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials. February 22, 2019.
34. "Cleaner Locomotive Fleet Powers Up: 22 New Units Ordered for State-Supported Amtrak Corridors" (PDF). The Mile Marker. Caltrans. December 2016. pp. 31–32.
35. Young, Allen (November 6, 2015). "Siemens Sacramento nabs $240M multistate contract". Sacramento Business Journal.
36. "Metra moves to buy newer engines" (Press release). Metra. February 21, 2018.
37. "Official Paint Scheme and Logo Branding Guide" (PDF). Amtrak. August 17, 2018. (PDF) from the original on September 18, 2018.
38. Solomon, Brian (2004). Amtrak. Saint Paul, Minnesota: MBI. pp. 114, 138. ISBN 978-0-7603-1765-5.
39. "EXTRA PACIFIC SURFLINER SERVICE AND CAPACITY ADDED FOR COMIC-CON". Pacific Surfliner Blog. Amtrak. July 11, 2018.
40. "Amtrak boosts Pacific Surfliner capacity in response to mudslides". Progressive Railroading. January 16, 2018.
41. "PANORAMIC VIEWS OF the CALIFORNIA COAST FROM THE GREAT DOME". Pacific Surfliner Blog. Amtrak. July 14, 2017.
42. "Amtrak's 'Great Dome' car has been retired". Times Union. August 30, 2019. Retrieved September 4, 2019.

Notes

1. Amtrak's Fiscal Year (FY) runs from October 1 of the prior year to September 30 of the named year.

External links

 

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• Pacific Surfliner – Amtrak
• Official website  
• Los Angeles–San Diego-San Luis Obispo Rail Corridor Agency (LOSSAN)
• Amtrak California