Pacific Surfliner

The Pacific Surfliner is a 563 km long railway line in the State of California between San Diego and San Luis Obispo. The trains will be financially supported by California and operated by the public company under the brand Amtrak Amtrak California.

With the Surfliner trains drove in the fiscal year of 2011, almost 2.8 million passengers, an increase of 6.6% over 2010. 's Total revenues in 2011 amounted to $ 55,317,127, an increase of 11.7% over 2010. The Pacific Surfliner is Amtrak's third best haunted train services and the highest demand outside of the Northeast Corridor.

The section of the Pacific Surfliner from Los Angeles to San Diego was previously served by the San Diegan trains on the former railway company Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe until Amtrak took over the operation.

Timetable and operating

On the northern section between Los Angeles and San Luis Obispo operate a total of four pairs of trains daily, of which two only to Goleta. In addition, serves the Coast Starlight to Seattle or from the northern stretch. The southern route between Los Angeles and San Diego is more frequented, a total of eleven here operate daily services in each direction and another on weekends. In the off-peak times also operate single bus pairs. Amtrak also provides Thruway motor coaches as connections to, among other things, of Fullerton to Palm Springs and Santa Barbara or San Luis Obispo to San Jose and Oakland.

Since there are neither in San Diego, San Luis Obispo or Goleta options for turning the train set, the train service as a push-pull trains. The diesel locomotives push it from San Luis Obispo and Goleta to Los Angeles and San Diego to Los Angeles, in the respective opposite direction, the locomotives are at the top of the train set. In Los Angeles Union Station, the trains make head. The Federal Railroad Administration and Los Angeles County plan to the Union Station renovation into a through station to avoid the head making.

The 350 miles or 563 km long connecting San Luis Obispo San Diego put the Pacific Surfliner in about 8.5 hours back, the speed limit is, depending on section 79-90 miles per hour, the equivalent of 127-145 km / h The trains operate a portion of the stations only days outlying areas, especially on the additionally served by Metrolink and Coaster sections between Santa Barbara and San Diego. Much of the scenic route of the Pacific Surfliner follows the Pacific coast, only in the narrower the metropolitan area of ​​Los Angeles and the San Fernando Valley of the routes run through residential areas, industrial facilities and extensive agricultural land. In the section between Goleta and Lompoc, the route passes the site of the Vandenberg Air Force Base on a narrow strip of coast. The routes are mainly single track, north of Los Angeles to 80% outside the narrow metropolitan Los Angeles. Due to its location on the Pacific coast expansion measures are only to a limited extent, both the coast as well as the partially parallel Highway 101 are an expansion often in the way. In this area, the route is partially threatened by the erosion processes of the coast.

, Operated by Amtrak Pacific Surfliner is funded by the State of California, is responsible for the California Department of Transportation ( Caltrans ). The regional transport authorities of the counties of San Diego and Los Angeles, founded in 1989, together with the State and the owner companies of the Pacific Surfliner, the Los Angeles - San Diego - San Luis Obispo Rail Corridor Agency ( LOSSAN ), through planning, controlling and financing of the Surfliner Services take place. The Fahrgastverband Rail Passenger Association criticized in 2009 the role of regional transport authorities, especially they like the Pacific Surfliner negligible compared to the local commuter trains of Metrolink and San Diegan Coaster. The fare revenues covered in 2007 about 63 % of the operating expenses for the Pacific Surfliner, which was well before the other two by the State of California funded regional corridors that covered their costs to 51% (San Joaquin ) and 47 % ( Capitol Corridor ). In comparison with the other two corridors, the Pacific Surfliner are on unpünktlichsten. While in the Capitol Corridor trains on time 96 % were achieved in August 2013 and run on time in the San Joaquin Corridor 80%, the Pacific Surfliner remained at 77% back behind it. Until 2015/ 16 should, so planning from 2007, the offer of the Pacific Surfliner to be expanded to six pairs of trains and to San Luis Obispo on three pairs of trains on the northern section to Goleta. Punctuality should be increased to 90% and the cost coverage be increased to 65%. Expansion plans for the southern section primarily pursue the doubling between Orange County and San Diego.

Rolling stock

On the trains of Amtrak Pacific Surfliner is primarily in the years 2000 to 2002 by Alstom and supplied as " Surfliner " designated bi-level cars. Owner has a majority Amtrak, 22 of the 62 vehicles owned by the California Department of Transportation. Each train set consists of a car with business class, three normal seating car, a wide-body cars cafe, and a cab control car with space and luggage compartment. In the luggage compartment can be taken along surfboards and since June 2013 up to seven seats are reserved for bicycles.

The color of the Surfliner car is decorated in blue - silver and differs from the usual color of Amtrak trains as well as the color schemes of the other Zugangebote Amtrak California. Featuring the car with luggage racks, folding tables, footrests, reading lights and a ramp for wheelchairs. In trains with Wi- Fi is also available.

The third Großraumwagen was added later due to high demand. Since insufficient " Surfliner " cars are available, " Superliner " cars are often used, which are otherwise used in the long distance trains from Amtrak. In contrast to the surf liners because they have no automatic doors, they are usually placed directly behind the wheel of the car. Wagon shortage has also meant that Amtrak uses a train set from one-story Amfleet and Horizon Großraumwagen. As a control car serves a former EMD F40PH diesel locomotive, of which Amtrak has some converted by removing the motors and installation of a baggage compartment in cab control car.

All Pacific Surfliner be covered with Amtrak locomotives. 15 locomotives EMD F59PHI, the North American standard locomotive for passenger trains are designed specifically for the Surfliner and painted in the colors. The locomotives with the wheel arrangement B = B 'is allowed for a maximum speed of 177 km / h ( 110 mph ). Amtrak also uses other locomotives from the park for the long haul passenger trains, such as the GE Genesis.

Operator of the routes used

• North County Transit District: San Diego - San Diego County border
• Southern California Regional Rail Authority: Limit Orange County - Fullerton
• Burlington Northern Santa Fe: Fullerton - Los Angeles
• Southern California Regional Rail Authority: Los Angeles - Moorpark
• Union Pacific Railroad: Moorpark - San Luis Obispo