Metrolink (Southern California)

Metrolink

Metrolink Hyundai Rotem cab car, Virginia Colony, Moorpark, California
Overview
Owner	Southern California Regional Rail Authority
Locale	Southern California
Transit type	Commuter rail
Number of lines	7
Number of stations	55
Daily ridership	41,951 (Q4 2014)
Chief executive	Art Leahy
Headquarters	MTA Building, Los Angeles
Website	Welcome to Metrolink
Operation
Began operation	October 26, 1992
Operator(s)	Amtrak (under contract to the SCRRA)
Reporting marks	SCAX
Number of vehicles	55 locomotives, 274 rail cars
Technical
System length	388 mi (624 km)
Track gauge	4 ft 8 1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge
Top speed	90 mph (140 km/h)
System map

Metrolink (reporting mark SCAX) is a commuter rail system serving Southern California; it consists of seven lines and 55 stations operating on 388.2 miles (624.7 km) of rail network. It travels up to 79 miles per hour (127 km/h) and up to 90 mph on sections of the Orange County line.

The system operates in Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, and Ventura counties, as well as Oceanside in San Diego County. It connects with the Los Angeles County Metro Rail system, the San Diego Coaster commuter rail and Sprinter light rail services, and with Amtrak's Pacific Surfliner, Coast Starlight, Southwest Chief, and Sunset Limited intercity rail services.

The system, founded in 1991 as the Southern California Regional Rail Authority (SCRRA) and quickly adopting "Metrolink" as the marketing and user friendly moniker, started operation in 1992. Average weekday ridership rose to 42,265 in 2012, but had fallen slightly to 41,951 in the fourth quarter of 2014.

Routes

In addition to several suburban communities and cities, Metrolink also serves several points of interest such as Downtown Los Angeles, Bob Hope Airport, California State University, Los Angeles, Angel Stadium, and the San Clemente Pier. Special service has also been extended to the Pomona Fairplex, the Ventura County Fairgrounds, and the Auto Club Speedway for certain events.

The rail system experiences its peak ridership during weekday mornings and afternoons. More trains operate during the morning between 5 a.m. and 9 a.m. and between 3 p.m. and 9 p.m. However, the agency's recent success providing trains to concerts at the Honda Center has rekindled interest in providing more service to other venues near stations, and inspired AEG, in its effort to build Farmers Field, a proposed NFL football stadium, to cite the possibility of selling Metrolink fare media at the time of purchasing tickets for events at the stadium to meet environmental concerns regarding increased vehicular traffic should the stadium be built.

Line	Series	Termini	Operation	Routing
91 Line	700	Los Angeles Riverside	Daily	Southeast from Union Station, then east along the Riverside (California Route 91) Freeway.
Antelope Valley Line	200	Los Angeles Lancaster	Daily	Northwest from Union Station, roughly following Interstate 5. Turns east, then north, to parallel State Route 14.
Inland Empire–Orange County Line	800	San Bernardino Oceanside	Daily	Southwest from the Santa Fe Depot to follow the Riverside Freeway west. Turns south to parallel Interstate 5.
Orange County Line	600	Los Angeles Oceanside	Daily	Northwest from the Oceanside Transportation Center along Interstate 5. Deviates slightly from the interstate in north Orange and southeast Los Angeles counties.
Riverside Line	400	Los Angeles Riverside	Weekdays	Northwest from the Downtown Riverside Metrolink / Amtrak station, eventually paralleling State Route 60.
San Bernardino Line	300	Los Angeles San Bernardino	Daily	West from the Santa Fe Depot between Interstate 10 and I-210. Runs in the Interstate 10 median starting near El Monte.
Ventura County Line	100 900	Los Angeles East Ventura	Weekdays	East from the East Ventura Metrolink station roughly following State Route 118. Turns south at Bob Hope Airport towards Union Station. Trains with 900-series numbers run between Union Station and Bob Hope Airport.

Fares

Metrolink ticket vending machines. Machines also sell tickets for Amtrak trains and the FlyAway Bus to LAX.

Metrolink's fare structure is based on a flat fee for boarding the train and an additional cost for distance with fares being calculated in 25-cent increments between stations.

Metrolink riders can ride most buses in Los Angeles and Orange County, as well as the Metro Rail, free with their valid ticket or pass, and monthly pass holders in Orange, Los Angeles, and Ventura Counties can use Amtrak Pacific Surfliner and Thruway Coach services through the Rail 2 Rail program.

Fare increases normally occur annually in July, to coincide with increased fuel and labor expenses, and have generally averaged between 3.5% and 5% per year (although the restructuring caused a larger jump in rates). The oil price increases since 2003 are partly to blame for consistently increasing fares, as Metrolink trains are powered by diesel fuel.

In July 2011, Metrolink introduced a new Weekend Pass allowing for passengers to travel all weekend trains for only $10. This was the first pass of its kind on Metrolink giving passengers unlimited rides all weekend long going anywhere in the system. However, with a fare increase on July 1, 2013, the Weekend Pass was renamed the Weekend Day Pass and is valid for one day rather than the entire weekend. The Weekend Day Pass still functions as an EZPass and TAP media for travel on LACMTA and other L.A. County transit services.

On January 1, 2016, Metrolink lowered short-distance fares to as low as $3 for adults/youth/students and $1.50 for disabled riders for One-Way tickets. These fares are offered to encourage local travel on Metrolink and are good for travel from one station to the next on any line. For example, riding from Cal State L.A. to Los Angeles Union Station is only $3 for One-Way and $6 Round-Trip for adults/youth/students. El Monte Station to Los Angeles Union Station is $6 for an adult One-Way ticket and $12 for a Round-Trip ticket. For travel more than two stations, distance-based pricing is more affordable.

History

See also: CalTrain

Metrolink trains approaching and leaving Union Station during the evening rush hour

The member agencies of the SCRRA purchased 175 miles (282 km) of track, maintenance yards, and stations and other property from Southern Pacific for $450 million in 1990. The rights to use Los Angeles Union Station were purchased from Union Pacific, the station's owner at the time, for $17 million in the same year (Union Station has since been purchased by and is owned by the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority). The Authority was formally founded in 1991. It began operation of the Ventura, Santa Clarita, and San Bernardino Lines on October 26, 1992 (the Santa Clarita Line later became the Antelope Valley Line) which were operated by Amtrak.

In 1993 service was expanded to include the Riverside and Orange County Lines in 1994. The Inland Empire-Orange County Line opened in 1995, becoming the first suburb to suburb commuter rail line in the country. In 1995 more trains on the Orange County service were funded. The system gained its current form in 2002 with the addition of the 91 Line.

From July 2004, Metrolink fares were changed from zone based to one based on distance. In 2005 a five-year operational contract was awarded to Connex Railroad/Veolia Transport. In 2005, the Orange County Transportation Authority approved a plan to increase frequencies to 76 trains daily on the Orange County and Inland Empire-Orange County Lines by 2009, and funding for increased Metrolink service was included in the renewal of the Measure M sales tax for transportation approved by voters in November 2006. A proposed station in Yorba Linda was canceled in 2005 due to local opposition.

In July 2008 it was announced that ridership had risen 16% over the previous year. Following the 2008 Chatsworth train collision in which 25 people died and 135 were injured a number of safety measures were taken; in the fall of 2009, inward-facing video cameras were installed in locomotives in order to ensure that staff were complying with regulations, in particular a ban on use of mobile phones, $200 million of funding from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act was provided to implement the positive train control crash avoidance system, and in 2010, the first of 117 energy absorbing passenger carriages (which lessen the toll on passengers in the case of an accident) were received by the operator. Amtrak regained the contract to operate Metrolink beginning in July 2010. Average weekday ridership for the fourth quarter of 2009 was 38,400.

In 2010, to save money in the face of funding cuts, the Metrolink board voted to reduce mid-day service on the Inland Empire–Orange County Line, as well as weekend service on both the Orange County and Inland Empire–Orange County lines.

Average weekday ridership was 41,000 during May 2011. A survey found that 90% of users during a typical weekday in 2009 would have previously driven alone or carpooled and the system replaced an estimated that 25,000 vehicle trips. During a weekend closure of Interstate 405 in July 2011 the system recorded its highest-ever weekend ridership of 20,000 boardings which was 50% higher than the same weekend in 2010 and 10% higher than the previous weekend ridership record which occurred during U2 360° Tour in June 2011. Ridership continued to rise in 2012 (up 2%), when average weekday ridership reached 42,265. Although 2013 annual boardings were almost 12.07 million, ridership dropped to 11.74 million by fall 2014 which was contrary to projections. Blaming the decrease on the worst recession since World War II, the railroad found itself caught between cutting service and boosting fares. Both of which would probably further decrease ridership.

Expansion

Metrolink has grown in popularity and there are a number of planned extensions of the system and new stations. Station parking capacity has also been strained.

The Riverside County Transportation Commission (RCTC) is extending the 91 Line southeast 24 miles (39 km) to Perris, using the existing San Jacinto Branch Line, which it already owns. Initial plans were for construction/renovation of the line to begin in 2012, but these were delayed by a lawsuit filed by homeowners in the affected area, who challenged the RCTC's environmental report. The lawsuit was finally settled in late July 2013. Construction on the $248.3 million extension began in October 2013; originally planned to debut in December 2015, public service on the Perris Valley Line Metrolink extension is scheduled to begin in February 2016.

A new Metrolink station in Placentia, which will serve the 91 Line's north Orange County passengers, has completed its final design phase, save for issues related to the parking needed to accompany the station. Construction on the $24 million Placentia station is currently projected to begin in late 2015. It will be the only station on the 91 Line not shared by another Metrolink line.

The San Bernardino-Redlands Passenger Rail Corridor, a 9-mile (14 km) eastward rail extension from San Bernardino to Redlands and Mentone, is planned by the San Bernardino Associated Governments (SANBAG). The association was considering whether to extend commuter rail along the corridor or to install either bus rapid transit or light rail lines, but the current plan is to use diesel multiple units in lieu of Metrolink locomotive-hauled coaches. The project, budgeted at $242 million, is expected to begin final design in September 2015. Construction is projected to begin in late 2017, with service starting in late 2019.

The Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (Metro) has proposed adding commuter rail service along the Harbor Subdivision corridor offering services to Inglewood, Los Angeles International Airport, the South Bay, the Port of Los Angeles, and/or the Port of Long Beach. A decision whether to employ commuter rail, light rail, or bus rapid transit in this corridor has not yet been reached.

In 2008, lobbyists pushed for a rail line to Temecula in southwestern Riverside County via the 91 Line's La Sierra station. While this proposed line could follow the route of an abandoned freight line, it would require significant money, as freight service ceased almost 30 years ago. Despite this, the Riverside County Transportation Commission's 2008 Commuter Rail Feasibility Study still lists this route as one possibility being considered.

The cities of the Coachella Valley (Palm Springs, Cathedral City, Palm Desert, and Indio) have requested commuter rail service from Los Angeles and Orange County, but the Union Pacific Railroad opposes further passenger service on its tracks. Nonetheless, as recently as 1999, the Coachella Valley Association of Governments was investigating the possibility of two daily round trips via the 91 Line from Los Angeles's Union Station through Fullerton and Riverside to stations in Palm Springs and Indio (with a possible stop near Palm Desert), possibly through a partnership with Amtrak. This extension would likewise require significant money for infrastructure improvements: at least $500 million, according to the California State Rail Plan of 2005. Nonetheless, in 2013 Caltrans conducted a feasibility study of a Coachella Valley service and RCTC has resolved to pursue establishing one.

Governance

The MTA Building, where Metrolink is headquartered

The SCRRA is a joint powers authority governed by five county-level agencies: the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority, the Orange County Transportation Authority, the Riverside County Transportation Commission, the San Bernardino Associated Governments, and the Ventura County Transportation Commission. Ex officio members include the Southern California Association of Governments, the San Diego Association of Governments, and the state of California. It is headquartered at the MTA Building at Union Station in Los Angeles where Metro (LACMTA) is headquartered. In 2014, a report suggested changes in the railroad's governing structure as the conflicting demands of the various agencies are difficult to meet. The report proposed turning the operation over to a local transit agency.

The Metrolink system is operated under five-year contracts. For fiscal year 2013 it was allotted an operating budget of $211.17 million.

Facilities

Metrolink operates several maintenance facilities across its service area. Its Central Maintenance Facility (CMF) is located on the east bank of the Los Angeles River near the intersection of the 5 and 110 Freeways, just south of the location of the former Southern Pacific Taylor Yard. The facility is operated by Metrolink's equipment maintenance contractor, Bombardier Transportation. The Eastern Maintenance Facility is located in San Bernardino. Metrolink's first crash-resistant cars were displayed at the facility at an event in May 2010. Metrolink trains are also serviced at Coaster's Stuart Mesa Facility, located between San Clemente Pier and Oceanside at the southwest end of Camp Pendleton. This yard is owned by the North County Transit District.

Metrolink's operations center is located in Pomona, near the Pomona (North) station.

Rolling stock

Metrolink F59PH 860.

Late afternoon train passing through Lake Forest, California

Metrolink F59PHI.

The Metrolink fleet consists of 55 locomotives (52 owned, 3 leased) and 137 active Bombardier BiLevel Coaches (Sentinel Fleet) with 137 Hyundai Rotem Bi-level cars (Guardian Fleet) with cab cars that can absorb energy in case of a collision. An additional order of 20 Rotem cars was ordered after Metrolink obtained a loan from the LACMTA, although this still leaves Metrolink 34 cars short of its goal of completely replacing its entire Bombardier fleet. With Metrolink continuing to receive its new Rotem cars, the agency has returned all its leased equipment to their owners. Around 2009, the authority leased 10 cars from the Utah Transit Authority, which operates FrontRunner.

With the delivery of many of the new Rotem cars (Guardian Fleet), Metrolink now has sufficient numbers of cars that have enabled Previous CEO John Fenton to introduce new services on board trains. All weekday trains now include at least one Quiet Car (designated as the 2nd car from the locomotive) and 35 legacy Bombardier cars have had all seats removed from the first level to create Bicycle Cars as in-line on some trains. Future Bicycle cars will be retrofitted legacy Bombardiers as the Rotem's seats have been cited by Metrolink as an integral part of the safety features of the new Guardian Fleet and cannot be removed. Both new services have had positive reaction from the public.

In addition, the extra equipment has allowed Metrolink to add express service on the Antelope Valley Line and the San Bernardino Line as pilot programs. If they are successful (currently reducing travel times upwards of 45 minutes), Metrolink will make express service permanent and add express service to other lines to gauge if such service should also be permanent on those lines.

Several of the surplus legacy Bombardier cab cars and in-line cars are stored just outside Union Station along the track used by Pacific Surfliner, OC Line, and 91 Line trains along the Los Angeles River. Metrolink's long-term plan is uncertain for these cars as their original goal was to replace all Bombardier cars with the Guardian Fleet (Rotem cars), but will be short of that goal, until they are able to place additional orders. The decision of which Sentinel Fleet cars to keep or lease or sell will have much to do with the financing terms as much as age or cost to upgrade Sentinels with some of the Guardian Fleet safety features (this will be limited to enhanced seating and break-away tables, etc., but will not include the material and structure of the sentinel cars such as the weaker aluminum or aluminum alloy skin/body and the lack of horizontal steel beams on either side of the car to absorb impact forces. Although the Sentinel Fleet lacks crumple zones, it is unknown if that could be engineered for the Sentinel Fleet). The older the Sentinel car, the less debt owed on the car (or completely owned), or superior financing, while younger Sentinel cars carry more debt or less desirable financing. Metrolink is analyzing the cost of keeping either older or younger Sentinel cars to upgrade, as older Sentinel cars will require major rehabilitation of its systems, as they are close to the end of their life, in addition to upgrading them to some of the Guardian Fleet safety features. The younger Sentinel cars will not require any major rehabilitation of is systems, but carry more debt while still needing to upgrade to some Guardian Fleet safety features.

On September 3, 2015, Metrolink announced they will add a second locomotive to each train set while cab cars, designed by Hyundai Rotem, undergo a review of the safety features of the cars following the 2015 Oxnard train derailment. The cab cars will remain in service as passenger coaches. Using BNSF Railway locomotives, Metrolink will have a locomotive on either end of each train. The investigation is examining the plow-like attachment on the front of the cab cars that failed to prevent the derailment in the collision by allowing wreckage to get under the wheels.

Model	Manufactured	Road Numbers	Number In Fleet	Notes
Locomotives
EMD F40PH	1981	800	1	Used as a spare, for special events, switching, and for work trains. 4 units purchased from Amtrak, 3 later sold.
EMD F59PH	1988	18520, 18522, 18533	3	Ex-GO Transit units on short-term lease to Metrolink while the rest of the locomotive fleet receives PTC equipment upgrades.
EMD F59PH	1992–1993	851–873	23	#855 was involved in the Chatsworth wreck and has been retired.
EMD F59PHI	1994	874–881	8
EMD F59PHI	1995	882, 883	2	Part of the canceled Marlboro train project.
EMD F59PHI	2001	884–887	4	Part of a canceled VIA Rail Canada order.
MPI MPXpress MP36PH-3C	2008–2009	888–902	15
EMD F125	2015	TBD	20	Order for ten locomotives announced in December 2012, with ten additional options, since exercised. Deliveries expected to begin in 2015.
GE AC4400CW	2015	5XXX	40	On loan from BNSF. Temporarily replaced Rotem Cabcars for revenue service during investigation of the 2015 Chatsworth Derailment.
Passenger cars
Bombardier BiLevel Generation 1	1992–1993	101–163	60	35 cars converted into bike cars. #162 and 163 sold to Caltrain.
Bombardier BiLevel Generation 2	1997	164–182	18	#184 was wrecked en route from the factory and number was retired, #197 was involved in the Glendale accident and #164–179 sold to Caltrain
Bombardier BiLevel Generation 3	2002	183–210	26	Generation 3 cars have smooth sides without rivets and power ports at most seats.
Hyundai Rotem bilevel cars	2010–2013	211–290	80
Cab cars
Bombardier BiLevel Generation 1	1992–1993	601–631	28	Generation 1 cab cars have only one window on the front of the car. All cab cars retired and replaced by Rotem cab cars.
Bombardier BiLevel Generation 2	1997	632–637	5	#634 was involved in a head-on collision in Orange County and has been retired. All cab cars retired and replaced by Rotem cab cars.
Hyundai Rotem bilevel cars	2010–2013	638–695	57	All cab cars will be temporarily withdrawn and replaced by BNSF AC4400CWs during the investigation of the 2015 Oxnard train derailment. Cab cars will still be used as passenger coaches.
References:

Livery

Hyundai Rotem cab car, in the new livery.

Most Metrolink-owned units are painted in the Metrolink livery, white with blue streaks. The agency is currently in the process of rolling out a new blue and green "ribbons" design. Locomotives are being given the new livery during downtime for maintenance and the new Rotem Bi-level cars are coming from the factory with the updated design already applied.

High speed rail interface

During the initial years of operation of the California High-Speed Rail between Merced and Burbank, projected to commence in 2022, passengers would use Metrolink for travel between Burbank and downtown Los Angeles. An alternative plan would have track-sharing to Union Station but this would require electrification for that portion of the line. This alternate plan would provide a "one-seat ride" at the start of service between the Central Valley and downtown, or even Orange County.

Notable accidents

Placentia, April 2002

Two people died and 22 were seriously injured on April 23, 2002, when a BNSF Railway freight train collided head-on with a Metrolink train in Placentia, near the Atwood Junction, at the intersection of Orangethorpe Avenue and Richfield Road. Both trains were on the same east–west track moving toward one another. The Metrolink had the right-of-way; it was supposed to switch to a southbound track. The BNSF train was supposed to slow and stop just before the switch while the Metrolink passed, but the crew missed a signal one and a half miles back warning them to slow down. By the time the crew saw the red "stop" signal at the switch and the Metrolink train, they were going too fast to avoid a collision. Although there was speculation that the signals alerting the BNSF to slow and stop had malfunctioned, an investigation later concluded that it was human error by the crew that caused the accident.

Glendale, January 2005

Main article: 2005 Glendale train crash

File:DC200501261006439933.jpg

2005 Glendale crash aftermath

Eleven people were killed (including an off-duty sheriff's deputy and a train conductor) and over 100 people were injured, about 40 seriously on January 26, 2005, when a Metrolink passenger train collided with a vehicle parked on the tracks, which then jackknifed and struck a stationary freight locomotive and a Metrolink train moving in the opposite direction. The man who parked the vehicle on the tracks, Juan Manuel Alvarez, was apprehended and charged with 11 counts of first-degree murder with special circumstances, including murder by train wrecking. On June 26, 2008, Alvarez was convicted on the 11 murder counts and sentenced to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole.

Chatsworth (Los Angeles), September 2008

Main article: 2008 Chatsworth train collision

Twenty-six people were killed and 135 injured when a Metrolink commuter train carrying 222 persons collided head on with a Union Pacific freight train, toppling one of the passenger cars and the locomotive onto its side in the Chatsworth district of Los Angeles. Along with the 135 people who were injured, 81 were transported to local hospitals in serious or critical condition. The velocity of the trains caused the Metrolink locomotive to telescope into the first passenger car. Some 218 people have been killed by Metrolink train accidents from 1993 to 2008, a figure which includes pedestrians.

Safety enhancements

Following the Glendale accident, Metrolink began work with the NTSB and FRA to design a new rail car from the ground up that would incorporate the latest in crash energy management technology. This included impact absorption technology and other safety features, necessitating a radical redesign of the cab cars. Crumple zones, steel beams to redirect impact forces around the car, high back seats, and tables designed to break away during strong impact were incorporated. These interior safety features were deemed to be of primary importance, as the two fatalities from the Placentia crash were blamed on riders' impacts with solidly fixed passenger car tables. The resulting Guardian Fleet was designed and constructed from the ground up, as existing rail cars could not be modified to meet the new Metrolink safety specifications. Hyundai Rotem submitted the lowest contract bid (beating out top bidder Kawasaki and middle bidder Bombardier) to produce the rail cars at $2 million per car, which was approximately twice the cost of the previously used legacy Bombardier cars.

Oxnard, February 2015

Main article: 2015 Oxnard train derailment

Thirty people were injured when southbound Metrolink Ventura County Line train 102 (East Ventura to LA Union Station) crashed into a truck that was stopped on the tracks at the Rice Avenue crossing near Oxnard at about 5:40 am on February 24, 2015. One person, the train's engineer, later died of his injuries. The driver, who had left the truck before the crash, was located by the police and taken into custody. The train consisted of a Hyundai-Rotem "guardian fleet" cab car in the lead, a Bombardier Bi-level "bike car" coach, two Hyundai-Rotem "guardian fleet" coach cars and an EMD F59PH locomotive.

See also

• California High-Speed Rail
• San Diego Public Transportation
• Transportation in Los Angeles
• Metro Rail (Los Angeles County)
• List of Metrolink (Southern California) stations

People

• Hal Bernson, Los Angeles City Council member, 1979–2003, former Metrolink chairman

External links

• Metrolink
• Metrolink service updates on Twitter
• Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority
• Orange County Transportation Authority Metrolink info
• Riverside County Transportation Commission
• San Bernardino Associated Governments
• Ventura County Transportation Commission