Palo Alto station

Palo Alto
A southbound train leaving Palo Alto station in 2018
General information
Location	95 University Avenue Palo Alto, California
Coordinates	37°26′37″N 122°09′55″W / 37.44361°N 122.16528°W / 37.44361; -122.16528
Owned by	Stanford University; City of Palo Alto
Line(s)	PCJPB Peninsula Subdivision[1]
Platforms	2 side platforms
Tracks	2
Connections	City of Palo Alto shuttles: Crosstown, Embarcadero Dumbarton Express: DB East Palo Alto shuttle Menlo Park midday shuttle Samtrans: ECR, 280, 281, 296, 397 VTA: 21, 22, Rapid 522 Stanford Health Care TECH shuttle Stanford Marguerite: MC, N, O, P, RP, S, SE, X, Y
Construction
Parking	389 spaces; paid
Bicycle facilities	178 racks and 94 lockers
Accessible	Yes
Other information
Fare zone	3
History
Opened	1890
Rebuilt	1893, 1896, 1941
Original company	Southern Pacific
Passengers
2018	7,764 per weekday[2]  1.6%
Services
Preceding station Caltrain Following station Menlo Park toward San Francisco Local (L1) California Avenue toward San Jose Diridon or Tamien Weekend Local (L2) California Avenue (select trains stop at Stanford on game days) toward San Jose Diridon or Tamien Limited (L3) California Avenue toward San Jose Diridon, Tamien or Gilroy Redwood City toward San Francisco Limited (L4) Mountain View toward San Jose Diridon, Tamien or Gilroy Menlo Park toward San Francisco Limited (L5) Mountain View toward San Jose Diridon or Tamien Redwood City toward San Francisco Baby Bullet (B7) Mountain View toward San Jose Diridon
Former services Preceding station Southern Pacific Railroad Following station Menlo Park toward San Francisco Coast Line California Avenue toward Los Angeles Peninsula Commute Stanford toward San Jose Peninsular Railway Terminus Palo Alto – Jose Mayfield toward Market Street Depot Palo Alto – Los Gatos Mayfield toward Los Gatos
Palo Alto Southern Pacific Railroad Depot
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
Built	1940-41
Architect	John H. Christie[3]
Architectural style	Streamline Moderne
NRHP reference No.	96000425[3]
Added to NRHP	April 18, 1996
Location

Palo Alto station (also called Palo Alto Transit Center) is an intermodal transit center in Palo Alto, California. It is served by Caltrain regional rail service, SamTrans and Santa Clara VTA local bus service, Dumbarton Express regional bus service, the Stanford University Marguerite Shuttle, and several local shuttle services. Palo Alto is the second-busiest Caltrain station after San Francisco, averaging 7,764 weekday boardings by a 2018 count. The Caltrain station has two side platforms serving the two tracks of the Peninsula Subdivision and a nearby bus transfer plaza.

The San Francisco and San Jose Railroad was built through then-empty land north of Mayfield in 1863. The first Palo Alto station was opened in 1890 to serve the then-newly established Stanford University. It was replaced by a larger depot in 1896. The Southern Pacific Railroad opened a new station in 1941 as part of a grade separation project. Designed by John H. Christie, it was constructed in the Streamline Moderne style to match the railroad's Daylight series of streamlined passenger trains. Intercity service to Palo Alto ended in 1971; the Peninsula Commute service continued and was renamed Caltrain in 1985. The station building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places as Palo Alto Southern Pacific Railroad Depot in 1996.