Metrolink and Amtrak passenger rail service continues to be limited during the emergency repairs. Rail service could resume prior to construction completion, but no decision has been made. OCTA will work in partnership with all rail agencies to determine at what point service can safely restart.
OCTA expects to place approximately 540,000 cubic yards of sand. Emergency action is necessary to prevent additional disruption of vital rail service. In addition, continued erosion requires quick action to repair and replace existing riprap, and deliver enough sand to help protect the tracks.
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.
Work is continuing on the new I-5 bridge over Avenida Pico, part of the $230 million I-5 South County Improvements Project that extends the carpool lanes from San Juan Capistrano to San Clemente.
Metrolink and Amtrak passenger rail service continues to be limited during the emergency repairs. Rail service could resume prior to construction completion, but no decision has been made. OCTA will work in partnership with all rail agencies to determine at what point service can safely restart.
Crews have hit some significant milestones over the last month on the I-5 South County Improvements Project, a $230 million effort that extends the carpool lane from San Juan Capistrano to San Clemente and reconstructs the Avenida Pico interchange.
The emergency fix, which began in October 2022, included installing 220 ground anchors – each 133 feet long – into the bedrock below, securing two rows of 110 grade beams that helped stabilize the hillside above. The wall included approximately 1,000 cubic yards of shotcrete to help protect the railroad track.
ORANGE – While the Orange County Transportation Authority is nearing completion on emergency work to stabilize railroad tracks in San Clemente, the agency and its partners continue to push forward on finding long-term solutions to protect the vital coastal rail line.
In mid-October, crews completed the placement of 27 precast concrete girders above the active Metrolink railroad at the La Paz Road Interchange. The concrete girders were placed as the primary support for the future northbound freeway lanes as part of the I-5 South County Improvements Project.
Emergency action is necessary to prevent additional disruption of vital rail service. In addition, continued erosion requires quick action to repair and replace existing riprap, and deliver enough sand to help protect the tracks.