OC line observations

[bluelineshawn]

I had the opportunity to ride metrolink to work for the last couple of weeks and was surprised and actually a little disappointed to see relatively light ridership. I imagine that it being summer and schools being out had something to do with it. I took the 644am train from Union Station which is a 6-car train terminating in Irvine. The 6-cars are obviously for the NB trip as the train only gets about 20% full heading south. But curiously when I head back to LA in the evening the NB trains can be about 75% full, but as they're only 3-cars I guess that makes sense.

The trains get noticeably more ridership on LAA of A game days and I was glad to see people taking advantage of that service. Non-train fans are taking advantage of the free parking at the station as the lot gets very full and people trudge across a sea of empty spaces in the adjacent pay parking lot.

On the other hand nearly all of the IEOC line trains that I saw were pretty full. This line should be a candidate for increased service as it's very popular even though there are only a handfull of trains each day.

[bluelineshawn]

On the construction side, the double tracking is still moving along but it looks like it's going to take a while. It's a little silly to try and judge this project over just 2-3 weeks, so take it FWIW. From my observations the work crews are small. There are only maybe 5-10 people working on the project and half of them are doing misc. stuff like new fencing. This is a big contrast to when I see UP or BNSF adding new tracks. Similarly the pace of construction moves much quicker.

Speaking of small work crews...Buena Park Station. They have maybe 3-6 people there each day. The majority of the major construction appears to be complete, but at the slow pace they're putting on the final touches it's hard to say how long this will take. From the point that they're at now, the similar new platform in Santa Ana was opened in a couple of months, but somehow I don't think that we're headed for that kind of speed. Also with Measure M the OCTA is supposed to be adding parking structures to many of the stations. The Buena Park lot is tiny. (unless the grading west of the station is for a lot instead of for homes as I suspect).

[whitmanlam]

I think the IE is really under served by Metrolink. They could use a major expansion out there. Perhaps an extension to Temecula or Hemet ??

[tonyw79sfv]

Actually, the IE is pretty well served with 4 Metrolink train services, 3 to LA (San Bernardino and the two Riverside lines), 1 to the OC (IEOC). I'm surprised about the ridership in your observations for the IEOC lines, as this line doesn't connect to any local rail line like LA does, but I assume OCTA's StationLink bus service is reliable to people who wouldn't otherwise use the bus since StationLink buses run according to Metrolink schedule, including accounting for delays. I haven't been on the OC line since Thanksgiving, but riding since January 2006, I've seen the start of the Buena Park station project and the double tracking projects on the BNSF line and in the OC. Last I rode the OC train, the small street Lincoln crossing was closed in Santa Ana; did that street get torn out to make room for two tracks? Also, that section north of Santa Ana station is setup in a way that makes NIMBYs scream to the top of their heads. A track in a neighborhood, no walls, with huge trains running 15 - 20 yards from some people's front yards. As for the IE trains connecting to Temecula, it'll be costly because there are no tracks going to Temecula Valley. There is a track from Riverside that heads south, but it looks like it ends around Menifee. Metrolink service is made possible with the use of existing freight rail lines, in which no line to Temecula exists.

[bluelineshawn]

Yeah the IE is pretty well served. Service on the San Bernardino line is fairly comparable to service levels that you see on much busier systems like LIRR, NJT, Metra, and MNRR.

Lincoln is the street where they're still working on adding another track. Parts of the street are closed and parts are open. They didn't really have to tear up much if any of it that I can tell. The little crossing near the Orange end is still closed, but it looks fairly close to reopening. They're building a fence there now, but it's not a sound wall fence.

[bobdavis]

Riverside County is planning to upgrade the former BNSF San Jacinto Branch for ML service to the south side of Perris. It won't be quite as big a renovation as rebuilding the ex-PE line through Covina and San Dimas, but the present track is only rated for 20 MPH. There was also some discussion of using an old SP branch east of downtown Riverside to provide a more convenient access to the Riverside ML station. There may also be some regrading of the hilly Box Springs area, realigning the curves for faster operation. The RCTC Perris Valley Line website says that service is expected to begin in 2008, but so far there have been no signs of major activity, and some rumors have the date pushed back to 2010. Service to Temecula is probably at least 5 years away and more likely 10.

[jeffe77]

FYI: I rode the IEOC from Anaheim Canyon to Irvine from July 06 to May this year. I now commute via Amtrak from Fullerton to Irvine and ride home on Metrolink.

tonyw79sfv said:

Actually, the IE is pretty well served with 4 Metrolink train services, 3 to LA (San Bernardino and the two Riverside lines), 1 to the OC (IEOC). I'm surprised about the ridership in your observations for the IEOC lines, as this line doesn't connect to any local rail line like LA does, but I assume OCTA's StationLink bus service is reliable to people who wouldn't otherwise use the bus since StationLink buses run according to Metrolink schedule, including accounting for delays.

Observations/Info: The IEOC (Rush hour Schedule) Has 3 trains departing from San Bernardino and 1 from Riverside.

Train 803 - 4 cars: Departs at 4:55am/terminates at Oceanside
Train 805 - 5 cars: Departs at 5:26am/terminates at Irvine (Becomes Train 683 to LA)
Train 807 - 6 cars: Departs at 6:02am/terminates at San Juan Capistrano
Train 809 - 4 cars: Departs from Riverside 7:26am

When the train arrives at Anaheim Canyon the train is at capacity including people standing. I would estimate 25% of passengers detrain at Anaheim Canyon. Based on my observation from occasionally commuting from Corona, Anaheim Canyon is the first station where passengers detrain. In other words, stations from Riverside to Corona, you'll find passengers boarding and with virtually none detraining. I would say that AC is last station where you have a good amount of people boarding the train to commute to south OC and Irvine.

In my list of the amount of passengers getting off the Metorlink, I rank them:
1. Irvine
2. Anaheim Canyon
3. Tustin
4. Orange
5. Santa Ana

Train 807 which departs San Bernardino at 6:02am which arrives at Irvine at 7:29am has so many passengers detraining that the 2 StationLink buses lines (One to Lake Forest, the other to Irvine) has 2 buses each packed.

The OCTA's StationLink bus service is very reliable and it will wait for the train even if there's a significant delay.

Let me know if you like more info.

[bluelineshawn]

Thanks for the info. Sounds like at least one more IEOC train would be a good idea if they can work it logistically.

[nickv]

RCTC and RTA are planning on expanding the Metrolink system into Temecula in the long run, although trains probably won't be running for many years to come due to... well, many things to say the least. According to reports, the agencies are studying a few alternatives:

1. A rail line down the I-215 corridor between Perris and Temecula: This might work, although grading and ROW could be a problem once the line enters Murrieta and Temecula. The proposed Temecula Transit Center is said to be capatible for High Speed Rail, but I didn't find any information about it serving Metrolink trains.

2. A rail line along Winchester Road corridor. I see this a very difficult project and expensive with extensive grading and limited ROW space. Tunneling may be even be required once the line hits the French Valley and Temecula areas.

The agencies are also determining whether the lines should operate as commuter-only (during rush hours with select trains midday) or as regional rail (high frequency). I believe the Regional rail concept with the cities rezoning station stop areas to be mixed-use.

...But this is years away.

In the mean time, Temecula residents have Commuterlink busses which offer timed connections to Metrolink both in Corona and in Riverside, and people do use them. RTA line 206 between Temecula and Corona has some very high ridership figures and RTA plans to offer line 206 service on weekends too.

[dasubergeek]

Well, you are going in the counter-commute direction -- very few people train down from LA to OC in the morning. I was shocked at how full the northbound trains are when I started taking Metrolink from Fullerton to Burbank... parking is full by the time the 6.19 91 Line train to LA leaves, and one morning when I took the 4.51 train (the first one of the day) it was full too.

On the way home, though, it's not crowded at all.

[bluelineshawn]

dasubergeek said:

Well, you are going in the counter-commute direction -- very few people train down from LA to OC in the morning. I was shocked at how full the northbound trains are when I started taking Metrolink from Fullerton to Burbank... parking is full by the time the 6.19 91 Line train to LA leaves, and one morning when I took the 4.51 train (the first one of the day) it was full too.

On the way home, though, it's not crowded at all.

I was in part basing my comments on the fact that the southbound pm rush trains look fairly light and that seems to agree with your observations. I hadn't noticed if the am northbound trains were crowded, but I'm glad to hear that they are.

My reverse commuting experience was similar to yours, but opposite. My morning train was nearly empty, but the evening train could be pretty full. I wonder what causes these big discrepancies that we see in the am and pm rush?

[nickv]

bluelineshawn said:

I wonder what causes these big discrepancies that we see in the am and pm rush?

Does your PM train have fewer cars than your AM train? If so, that's probably why the numbers aren't "appearing" to add up.

Don't forget that Metrolink train sets are shared between different lines. I think this is what makes some of the trains appear lighter than others; the passengers are more spread out throughout the train set.

[bluelineshawn]

Does your PM train have fewer cars than your AM train?

It definitely does. Six cars in the morning and 3 cars in the afternoon. But at approx 20% capacity in the am and 75% in the pm it still doesn't quite add up. Plus the Amtrak trains have the same number of cars in the early morning and early afternoon. They are VERY light in the morning and can be SRO in the afternoon.

I think that in addition to the different lengths partly what's going on is that I'm seeing the casual riders in the afternoon, but my morning train is too early for most casual riders to be out and about.

[jeffe77]

Perhaps the discrepancy is due to the Rail 2 Rail program, where Metrolink Monthly pass holders like myself can ride not only Metrolink but Amtrak as well. I'm willing to bet that a lot of afternoon commuters use Amtrak in the afternoon. It has less stops than Metrolink.

Keep in mind that in AM rush to LA, with the arrival times to LA at 5:30am 6:40am 7:05am 7:20am 7:50am 8:10am 8:15am 8:40am 9:18am 9:45am
via Metrolink with the first Amtrak arrival to LA at 8:50am.

In contrast in the afternoon there are 3 Amtrak departures vs 1 in the am from LA Union Station -
Amtrak: 2:00pm
Metrolink: 2:50pm
Metrolink: 3:30pm
Metrolink: 3:55pm
Amtrak: 4:05pm
Metrolink: 4:20pm
Metrolink: 4:35pm
Metrolink 4:55pm
Amtrak: 5:10pm
Metrolink:5 :25pm
Metrolink: 5:40pm

[dasubergeek]

I've taken the 16.05 departure from Union Station and it's hardly full -- I've been the only person in the car sometimes, on weekdays.

I'm finding that the trains are increasingly crowded, but that's fine -- they're not stuffed full yet. It can be hard to find a seat on the northbound trains (particularly the ones that arrive at LA at 6.40 and 7.05) once you get to Fullerton, where 150-200 people board, particularly on the last cars (which are the quickest exit to the Red Line and the downtown skyscrapers).

I do wish they'd be clearer about the Rail-2-Rail program, especially for Amtrak passengers. I was talking to a woman who was trying to get to Anaheim for a family emergency and she was hanging around waiting for the 17.10 Amtrak departure -- I explained that there was a Metrolink departure at 16.20 and she could be in Anaheim almost an hour sooner. She didn't believe me until I took her to the Metrolink window and had them explain it, but she did get on the earlier Metrolink.

It would be nice if it were spelled out somewhere visible in the station.

[nickv]

I do wish they'd be clearer about the Rail-2-Rail program, especially for Amtrak passengers. I was talking to a woman who was trying to get to Anaheim for a family emergency and she was hanging around waiting for the 17.10 Amtrak departure -- I explained that there was a Metrolink departure at 16.20 and she could be in Anaheim almost an hour sooner. She didn't believe me until I took her to the Metrolink window and had them explain it, but she did get on the earlier Metrolink.

It would be nice if it were spelled out somewhere visible in the station.

That's very true; I'm pretty sure some of our Amtrak passengers aren't aware of that.

I also think that some Amtrak ticket holders wait for their Amtrak trains instead of boarding Metrolink because Amtrak offers more amenities and with Amtrak being much more expensive, I can understand the reason why they choose to wait for the next Amtrak train. Metrolink of course doesn't offer reclining coach class seats with footrests, personal overhead reading lights with dimmed coach lighting, overhead luggage rack space, laptop outlets, or the option to buy a regular meal from the cafe car.

But as I said, there is the other half of passengers who would benefit from the Rail2Rail benefit, and would choose to board Metrolink, if they knew their Amtrak ticket or pass was valid on Metrolink to begin with.

[nickv]

OC Line Survey:

Metrolink is having an Online Station Survey to help improve the stations.

The survey included questions addressing the following:

1. Signage of getting to the station.
2. Signage and ease of getting around the station.
3. Parking crowd problems.
4. Whether parking tolls/fees should be launched to pay for parking structures, and if the commuter/traveler would be willing to pay.
5. Local transit connections.
6. Upkeep and security of station.
7. Other comments.

The survey took me about 10 minutes to complete which included writing some comments and can only be submitted once per computer.

................................

There were two major issues that I submitted:

1. Better local bus connections in OC to give commuters more options to get to the station in lieu of driving. For example, in Irvine OCTA Bus Routes 70, 83, and 177 bypass the station. In Laguna Niguel, Routes 85, 91, and 191 bypass the station.

2. Timed transfers at the Orange Station between the OC and IEOC Lines on weekends. That will give Metrolink Weekends travelers from the Inland Empire better connections to LA. Another option is to expand Rail2Rail by allowing IEOC riders going to LA to transfer to Amtrak at Orange, using their Metrolink ticket valid between the orgin station and LAUS.