Pajaro/Watsonville is a proposed train station that will serve both Pajaro and Watsonville, California. The station is expected to open after track improvements in the area and service commences to Salinas as part of the Monterey County Rail Extension.[1][2][3] It will be located in Watsonville Junction near the corner of Salinas Road and Lewis Road,[4] adjacent to the former Southern Pacific Railroad depot and current Union Pacific Railroad office. The station will eventually serve Caltrain, Capitol Corridor, and Coast Starlight.[5] Construction of the station is expected to begin in 2027.[6]
Pajaro/Watsonville | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| General information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Location | Pajaro, California | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Coordinates | 36°53′29″N 121°44′49″W / 36.8914°N 121.7470°W | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Line(s) | UP Coast Subdivision | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Other information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Status | In planning | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| History | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Opened | 1871 (SP) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Closed | 1971 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Rebuilt | 1949 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Previous names | Pajaro Watsonville Junction | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Original company | Southern Pacific | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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History
editThe Southern Pacific Railroad was built out to Pajaro by November 26, 1871.[7] The railroad changed the name to Watsonville Junction in 1913 to aide travelers unfamiliar with Spanish pronunciation.[8] A new station building was constructed in 1949.[9]
The overnight passenger train The Lark stopped at Watsonville Junction between 1941 and 1968. The Del Monte served the old station until service was discontinued on April 30, 1971, the day before Amtrak took over intercity passenger train service in the United States. The 1949-built depot was demolished in 2011.[9]
Funding was awarded to the Transportation Agency for Monterey County in 2024 from the CalSTA Transit & Intercity Rail Capital Program for design and engineering the new station.[10]
References
edit- ^ Johnson, Jim (August 3, 2018). "Salinas rail extension project set for groundbreaking ceremony". Monterey Herald. Retrieved February 25, 2019.
- ^ Johnson, Jim (May 9, 2018). "Salinas commuter rail extension project gets $10 million SB 1 gas tax grant". Monterey Herald. Retrieved May 11, 2018.
- ^ "TAMC Selects LAN as Part of Construction Management Team for Salinas Rail Extension". Mass Transit. January 3, 2018. Retrieved February 2, 2018.
- ^ "Pajaro/Watsonville Station Fact Sheet" (PDF). Transportation Agency for Monterey County. Archived from the original (PDF) on March 18, 2020. Retrieved June 18, 2020.
- ^ "Santa Cruz, Monterey counties receive funding for rail projects". Trains. April 28, 2023. Retrieved May 16, 2024.
- ^ Colón, Brisa (May 1, 2024). "Connecting San Jose to the Central Coast by train one step closer". KSBW.
- ^ "History of Rail Transportation in Santa Cruz County" (PDF). Santa Cruz County Regional Transportation Commission. Retrieved December 23, 2020.
- ^ Gudde, Erwin Gustav (1969). California Place Names: A Geographical Dictionary. University of California Press.
- ^ a b Jones, Donna (February 1, 2011). "Tracks of history: Railroad represented "a lifeline" to Pajaro Valley". Santa Cruz Sentinel. Retrieved December 23, 2020.
- ^ Herrera, James (April 26, 2023). "TAMC gets $2.274M grant for Pajaro-Watsonville station project". Monterey Herald. Retrieved November 20, 2024.
External links
edit- Monterey County Rail Extension Phase 2: Pajaro / Watsonville — Transportation Agency for Monterey County station planning
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