California State Rail Plan 2005-06 to 2015-16

Chapter IX – Commuter Rail Services
CALTRAIN COMMUTER RAIL SERVICE
(SAN FRANCISCO-SAN JOSE-GILROY)
PRINCIPAL 2005-06 to 2015-16 ROUTE OBJECTIVES
• Evaluate and fine-tune the newly inaugurated Baby Bullet service.
• Increase parking at stations impacted by initiation of Baby Bullet
service.
• Increase employer bus shuttles as demand grows.
• Implement Translink regional ticketing system.
• Reduce costs and gain productivity and performance through automated
ticket purchasing and track and system capital improvements.
• Plan and design service extensions to downtown San Francisco, across
the Dumbarton Bridge, and to Salinas.
• Complete Centralized Maintenance Facility.
• Improve operations capacity at targeted stations and other route
locations, including outside boarding platforms and additional
crossovers.
• Complete customer service improvements, including improved station
access and amenities at selected stations.
• Improve ROW by designing various grade separations in
San Mateo County, and rehabilitate bridges, culverts, tracks, and
tunnels.
• Prepare design plans, specifications, and estimates to electrify the route
between San Francisco and Gilroy.
• Implement Dumbarton rail service extension.
• Implement extension to Salinas.
BACKGROUND
The Caltrain commuter rail service (previously known as the Peninsula Commute
Service) operates on one of the oldest railroad lines in California.
The SP operated passenger rail service on the peninsula between San Francisco
and San Jose from the 1860s until 1980 when SP decided to phase the service out.
The Department and the counties of San Francisco, San Mateo, and Santa Clara
reached a service agreement to preserve the passenger rail service.
Between 1980 and July 1991, the Department’s District 4 administered a
purchase-of-service agreement with SP to continue operating and partially funding
the service in cooperation with local agencies. The Department’s responsibilities
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