List of Caltrain stations

The current Caltrain system map

Caltrain is a commuter rail transit system that serves the San Francisco Peninsula and the Santa Clara Valley in the U.S. state of California. It is operated under contract by TransitAmerica Services and funded jointly by the City and County of San Francisco, San Mateo County Transit District (SamTrans), and Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority (VTA) through the Peninsula Corridor Joint Powers Board (PCJPB). The system's average mid-weekday ridership is 65,095 as of February 2018.[1][2]

The original railroad between San Francisco and San Jose (known as the Peninsula Commute) was built by the San Francisco and San Jose Railroad in 1863.[3][4] In 1870 the railroad was acquired by Southern Pacific.[3] Southern Pacific double tracked the line in 1904. In 1958 the railroad had record ridership, 7.5 million passengers.[5] The popularity of the railroad began to decline and in 1977 Southern Pacific petitioned to the state government to discontinue Peninsula Commute.[3][4] After months of negotiation, the California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) reached an agreement with the three counties of which the Peninsula Commute ran through to continue rail operation.[3] Under the agreement, the system was renamed Caltrain and operation responsibilities were shared by Caltrans, Southern Pacific and the three counties.[3] The Peninsula Corridor Joint Powers Board was formed in 1987, and it bought the right of way of Caltrain from Southern Pacific in late 1991 for $220 million.[3][4][5] The PCJPB formally took over the operation of Caltrain in 1992 and contracted Amtrak to operate the system. In the same year, Caltrain extended to Gilroy.[6] Amtrak's contract with PCJPB was renewed in 2001.[3]

The system has 31 stations. 28 stations are served daily, one (Broadway) is served on weekends and holidays only, one (College Park) is served via two round trips on weekdays only, and one (Stanford) is served on Stanford University's football game days only on weekends. San Francisco 4th and King Street is the northern terminus of the system, while Gilroy is the southern terminus. The five southernmost stations—Capitol, Blossom Hill, Morgan Hill, San Martin, and Gilroy—are served only on weekdays during commute times by select trains.[7][8][9] Sixteen stations are served by the limited train service. Eleven stations are served by the express train service, inaugurated in 2004.[6] Seven stations (Millbrae,[a] Burlingame, San Carlos, Menlo Park, Palo Alto, Santa Clara, and San Jose Diridon) are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.[11]

Of the 31 stations in the system, 27 of them are accessible. The four stations that are not accessible are in order from north to south, 22nd Street, Broadway, Stanford, and College Park.[12] The weekend and holiday-only Broadway station is planned to be completely rebuilt; upon completion, it would be ADA-compliant.[13] The non-accessible Atherton station was closed on December 13, 2020.[14] Of the four non-accessible stations in the system, only 22nd Street sees regular service. A plan to add ADA-compliant ramps to the station is currently being considered.[15]

  1. ^ "Caltrain 2018 Annual Passenger Count: Key Findings" (PDF). Caltrain. February 2018. Archived from the original (PDF) on May 20, 2020. Retrieved October 18, 2018.
  2. ^ Prior to 2018, Caltrain counted "average weekday ridership" by counting riders on all weekday (Monday through Friday) trains for one week and computing the average as the sum of all riders over one week divided by five. In 2018, Caltrain shifted to counting "average mid-weekday ridership" by counting riders on trains on two of the three mid-weekday days (Tuesday, Wednesday, and/or Thursday) for two weeks and computing the average as the sum of all riders on the four mid-week days divided by four. An examination of mid-weekday ridership data from 2013 through 2017 showed ridership on these three mid-weekday days is approximately equal. Since Monday (-1% compared to mid-weekday ridership) and Friday (-9%) trains tend to have lower ridership than mid-weekday trains, the pre-2018 "average weekday ridership" results in a count approximately 2% less than the 2018+ "average mid-weekday ridership" methodology. Details from 2018 Ridership Report Archived 2020-05-20 at the Wayback Machine
  3. ^ a b c d e f g "Caltrain — San Francisco to Gilroy". Caltrain. Archived from the original on January 2, 2010. Retrieved November 22, 2008.
  4. ^ a b c "History, Caltrain Milestones". Caltrain. Archived from the original on August 27, 2006. Retrieved November 22, 2008.
  5. ^ a b Pimentel, Benjamin (June 30, 1997). "A New Look for Caltrain — Critics want better service instead of cosmetic changes". San Francisco Chronicle. Hearst Communications Inc. Retrieved November 22, 2008.
  6. ^ a b Van Hattem, Matt (July 5, 2006). "Caltrain". Trains Magazine. Archived from the original on December 4, 2008. Retrieved November 22, 2008.
  7. ^ "Caltrain System Map". Caltrain. Archived from the original on February 18, 2013. Retrieved February 11, 2013.
  8. ^ "Printer–Friendly WEEKDAY Caltrain Schedule". Caltrain. 21 September 2024.
  9. ^ "Printer–Friendly WEEKEND Caltrain Schedule". Caltrain. 21 September 2024.
  10. ^ Somers, Janets (February 4, 2005). "All aboard for train buffs". San Francisco Chronicle. Hearst Communications Inc. Archived from the original on June 4, 2011. Retrieved November 22, 2008.
  11. ^ "Caltrain Facilities and Statistics". Caltrain. Archived from the original on June 15, 2008. Retrieved November 22, 2008.
  12. ^ "Accessibility". www.caltrain.com. Archived from the original on 2020-08-03. Retrieved 2020-08-04.
  13. ^ "Burlingame Broadway Grade Separation Project". www.caltrain.com. Archived from the original on 2020-09-24. Retrieved 2020-08-04.
  14. ^ "Proposed Closure of Atherton Caltrain Station". www.caltrain.com. Archived from the original on 2020-12-06. Retrieved 2020-08-04.
  15. ^ "22nd St Station ADA Access Improvement Feasibility Study: SFCTA Update" (PDF). Peninsula Corridor Joint Powers Board. October 2021. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2022-09-07. Retrieved 2022-09-07.


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