After years of delay, the first Metrolink extension since 1994 is about to open. This route has been in construction since 2013, and extends the current 91 line an additional 24 miles past Riverside to four new stations:
Riverside - Hunter Park
Moreno Valley/March Field
Downtown Perris
South Perris
This will allow residents of Menifee, Lake Elsinore, etc., to commute to their jobs in Riverside, Fullerton, or Los Angeles. The extension has been anticipated since 2002, and, with the collaborative efforts of the Riverside County Transportation Commission and Metrolink, the route is finally going to be open to the public on Monday, June 6th. There is a $10 promotional round-trip fare while travelling within Riverside County, and a 10% discount starting at one of the new stations, and travelling outside Riverside County. I really don't understand why they couldn't have made it free for the first day, I mean, come on.
The route is expected to serve over 4,000 passengers a week, which will ease traffic on Interstate 215. Metrolink will operate 3 round trips from South Perris to Los Angeles, and an additional 3 round trips from South Perris to Riverside-Downtown. Unfortunately, on weekends, trains will only operate between Los Angeles and Riverside, so this route mainly seems to be for commuters.
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| If you are having trouble viewing the schedule, click HERE |
RCTC purchased the old freight right of way in 1993, and they planned for the route to be open in December of 2015 even though it wasn't finished. They improved it, which included adding a second track along 10 miles of the extension, which is important to prevent congestion. Grade crossings were also enhanced for safety. And unfortunately, safety improvements usually come with quiet zones, which are being implemented in Riverside. This will silence the beautiful whistles of trains except in emergency situations.
You can read my blog post about why quiet zones can be a waste of money, and don't really improve safety, HERE.
You can read my blog post about why quiet zones can be a waste of money, and don't really improve safety, HERE.
I'm very excited as I'm sure many of you foamers are as well, so I will be at the grand opening on Monday, June 6th, covering the event, and I'll post a video to my YouTube channel as well. Follow me on Twitter @snazzysky1234 for photos and videos of the new route.
Sources:
http://www.metrolinktrains.com/agency/page/title/Perris_Valley_Line
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/91_Line
http://perrisvalleyline.info/history
http://www.latimes.com/local/california/la-me-perris-train-20151212-story.html
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