Grant funding in the amount of $63 million from the Transit and Intercity Rail Capital Program of the California State Transportation Agency, has been awarded to provide rail improvements along the Union Pacific Coast Line between Monterey and Santa Barbara counties.
The funding was awarded to the Facilitating and Accelerating Service Transformations on the Central Coast Program, or FAST Central Coast Program, according to the Transportation Agency for Monterey County.
The FAST Central Coast Program is a collaborative effort of the Coast Rail Coordinating Council involving the San Luis Obispo Council of Governments, the Transportation Agency for Monterey County, Santa Barbara County Association of Governments, and the Los Angeles – San Diego – San Luis Obispo Rail Corridor Agency.
The Coast Line is a railroad line between Southern California and the San Francisco Bay Area, roughly along the Pacific Coast. It is the shortest rail route between Los Angeles and the Bay Area.
The grant award provides funding for several coordinated projects along the coast rail line between Monterey County and Santa Barbara County to increase ridership, reliability and train frequency. The coordinated projects include the King City Multi Modal Transportation Center which will establish a new rail station in downtown King City, including railroad siding upgrades and a staging area for National Guard service members connecting between the rail station and Fort Hunter Liggett, crossover and siding improvements near San Luis Obispo and Paso Robles stations that will improve train reliability and operational flexibility for increased train service along the Central Coast, and the Ortega Siding which will be built between Santa Barbara and Carpinteria, enabling a seventh Pacific Surfliner roundtrip and improving overall corridor efficiency for both freight and passenger rail.
The King City multimodal transit project will include a new Amtrak stop near Pearl Street east of First Street, according to the city in a previous report. Passenger service was provided in King City until the mid-1940s.
The design includes the relocation of the Pearl Street crossing to Broadway Street to provide access to the proposed facility. The grant will bring the total funding programmed and/or reserved for the project to approximately $52,875,000, which is projected to be enough to fund Phase I which is designed to accelerate access to passenger rail service and includes the rail platform, railroad crossing, new rail siding and parking area. Phase II will consist of the station building. The project is currently in the design process and the city is seeking approvals from Union Pacific.
“The funding is a transformative opportunity for King City by offering access, economic opportunity, and critical support for our military,” said Mayor of King City and TAMC Board Member Mike LeBarre in a press release. “We look forward to celebrating this monumental achievement when it’s completed.”
All rail improvements are expected to be completed by 2029 and will be advanced in partnership with the California Department of Transportation in a manner consistent with the network vision established in the State Rail Plan and included in ongoing Corridor Identification and Development Program efforts being advanced along the Central Coast.
A sizeable portion of the matching funds for this project is provided by Senate Bill 125 funding, with over $14 million committed to deliver this suite of projects.
The State of California Transit and Intercity Rail Capital Program was created to fund transformative capital improvements that modernize California’s intercity rail, bus, ferry and rail transit systems to achieve the following policy objectives including reduce emissions of greenhouse gases, expand and improve transit service to increase ridership, integrate the rail service of the state’s various rail operations, including integration with the high‐speed rail system and improve transit safety.
More than $4.8 billion has been invested since 2023 to transit and passenger rail projects from competitive Transit and Intercity Rail Capital Program grants.
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