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The North County Transit District (NCTD) of San Diego announced that earlier this year the board authorized the purchase of two additional Siemens SC-44 Charger diesel-electric locomotives, pending receipt of funding from a source that has yet to be announced.
The procurement would be part of NCTD’s plan to increase Coaster commuter-rail service frequency.
Within the 2050 Regional Plan, NCTD officials included analysis that shows adding two new trainsets would increase service frequency to 30-minute headways during peak times and 60-minute headways during the non-peak periods, according to an agency newsletter.
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ExCon90 wrote: ↑Tue Jun 18, 2019 2:05 pm Breathtaking, when you think of it: within living memory there were three San Diegan round trips a day to and from LA, making only Fullerton, Santa Ana, Oceanside, and Del Mar, plus an all-stops local, and no commuter service at all. Between Santa Ana and San Diego there were three controlled sidings (or maybe two main tracks). One San Diegan trip in each direction included a reserved-seat coach for El Capitan passengers to and from the east; the whole service appeared to be focused on Chicago connections.This is a really good example of how the business and environment have changed so much since 1971, 1950, 1920... look at the population explosion in So Cal. LA went from backwater to second largest and then San Diego followed, it's in the top ten cities for population I think. Responding to that with more Surfliners and new equipment has been a giant success. This is why I advocate so strongly for corridor trains and regional focus. If they tried to tie every Surfliner to a LD connection, it just wouldn't make sense, but there' what, 20m people there of their own accord that need the train.
ExCon90 wrote: ↑Tue Jun 18, 2019 2:05 pm Breathtaking, when you think of it: within living memory there were three San Diegan round trips a day to and from LA, making only Fullerton, Santa Ana, Oceanside, and Del Mar, plus an all-stops local, and no commuter service at all. Between Santa Ana and San Diego there were three controlled sidings (or maybe two main tracks). One San Diegan trip in each direction included a reserved-seat coach for El Capitan passengers to and from the east; the whole service appeared to be focused on Chicago connections.I have only seen videos of how the Surf Line looked before the Coaster began service. I do remember seeing footage of the station in Del Mar that closed 24 years ago. The tracks through Solana Beach also used to be at-grade instead of in a man-made canyon. That even continued a few years after the Coaster began service.
Fun fact: when the Coaster service was in the planning stage the good burghers of Del Mar made it clear that they did not want commuters cluttering up their station, so the planners went north to sound out Solana Beach. The reaction there was "you want to stop your trains here? So we'll have train service, and commuters can park here, and maybe buy some things in town on their way home? Great! When can it start?" So Solana Beach became a Coaster stop, and Amtrak, in keeping with its policy of sharing stations with local transportation, announced that Amtrak trains would henceforth stop at Solana Beach instead of Del Mar since it made no sense to have two stops so close together. Del Mar travelers who had been accustomed to taking Amtrak when they went to LA were not happy, but it was too late by then.
ExCon90 wrote: ↑Mon Aug 05, 2019 3:47 pm Right--I was told by a trainman that the interlocking at the west end of Solana Beach (can't think of the name) was named after a local Congressman who was instrumental in securing funding for the grade separation. As to the pre-Coaster Surf Line, there's a book out on the history of that line showing a photo of a San Diegan passing the station at Pico Rivera sometime in the 1950's--single track, with empty fields visible. Today it's three tracks, reverse signaled, with at least one stack train in sight more often than not, along with Amtrak and Metrolink trains.I don't know exactly which year the tracks were lowered. I would have to say it was in 2000 or 2001. I was only a toddler at the time, so I have only seen the tracks in the canyon.
NCTD Coaster commuter-rail service turns 25
The North County Transit District (NCTD) tomorrow will mark 25 years of Coaster commuter-rail service in San Diego.
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Since its 1995 launch, the service has grown from six morning trains and six evening trains to 22 weekday trains and eight weekend trains.
The commuter-rail service has an annual ridership of more than 1.4 million and an average weekday ridership of nearly 4,900 riders, NCTD officials said in a press release.
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atest evolution of the popular BiLevel car offers a Crash Energy Management system and new amenities designed to enhance the passenger experience
Represents third BiLevel car contract for U.S. transportation authorities this year
Global mobility solution provider Bombardier Transportation has been awarded a contract with the North County Transit District (NCTD) for eleven new commuter rail cars for the COASTER service. The agreement was signed on July 7, 2020, following authorization by NCTD’s Board of Directors at its April 2020 meeting and funding by the California Transportation Commission at its June 2020 meeting. With the purchase of these rail cars, NCTD will be in a position to significantly increase service frequencies to 30-minute headways and begin state of good repair replacement of current legacy COASTER coaches and cab cars over the coming years.
