Metrolink and Amtrak Pacific Surfliner have resumed operating regular schedules following emergency construction effort
ORANGE – Regular passenger rail service through San Clemente resumed on Monday morning, restoring a critical link in Southern California’s transportation system with the completion of a catchment wall at Mariposa Point to protect the track.
At the same time, work continues to address other potential problem areas along the coastal rail line and to further study longer-term solutions for protecting the track that connects passengers and freight from San Diego to Orange County and farther north.
The Orange County Transportation Authority, which owns the track through San Clemente, worked with Metrolink, which operates regional passenger rail service, to build a 200-foot-long wall at Mariposa Point, to safely re-establish rail service after a Jan. 24 landslide on private property above the track littered the rail line with soil and debris, halting passenger service for several weeks.
The LOSSAN Rail Corridor Agency, which operates Amtrak’s Pacific Surfliner service, worked closely with OCTA and Metrolink to safely restore passenger service.
Metrolink and Pacific Surfliner passengers received updates through social media, traditional media, station messages and direct communication. Service updates and train schedules can be found at:
- Metrolink: metrolinktrains.com
- Pacific Surfliner: pacificsurfliner.com/alerts
The emergency construction was necessitated by the Jan. 24 collapse of a privately owned slope, which toppled a large span of pedestrian bridge above the tracks. Caltrans quickly declared an official emergency and CalSTA awarded $9.2 million in emergency funds to OCTA for cleanup and construction of the catchment wall.
More background information is available at octa.net/railupdates.
For the longer term, OCTA and its rail partners will continue to work with local, state and federal stakeholders on both near-term and long-term solutions for protecting rail movement along this critical corridor.
Work is already under way on the first of two studies. Listening sessions with stakeholders and the public have begun on the OCTA-led Orange County Coastal Rail Resiliency Study, which aims to protect the rail line in place for the next 10 to 30 years.
The public is encouraged to participate in two upcoming listening sessions:
- April 11, a virtual public meeting via Zoom will be held at 5 p.m. to get public input.
- May 30, an in-person public meeting will be held at 5 p.m. at San Clemente City Hall.
For more information on the study and to register to attend either meeting, visit octa.net/CRRS.
