SAN CLEMENTE, Calif. — The Orange County Transportation Authority will build a wall to protect Surf Line tracks at the site of the landslide that has halted passenger rail operations since Jan. 24, OCTA and Metrolink announced on Friday.
The decision comes a day after a state emergency declaration made $10 million in funding available to address the issue in San Clemente, and was made in consultation with the Califrnia State Transportation Agency, BNSF Railway, and the LOSSAN Rail Corridor Agency. BNSF will continue operating freight trains through the area at 10 mph during overnight hours but no timeline has been set for restoring Metrolink or Amtrak Pacific Surfliner service.
“I’m tremendously appreciative to all of our partnering rail agencies and, of course, to the state, for the partnership and working together to deal with the emergency and pursue a solution to restore service,” OCTA CEO Darrell E. Johnson said in a press release. “We all know how vital this rail line is for Orange County and for the region.”
Details on the scope of the wall project, as well as approvals and funding still need to be finalized.
“As we have faced these challenges along the San Clemente coastline, I appreciate the collaborative efforts of Metrolink, OCTA, BNSF, LOSSAN, the State of California, and local officials,” Metrolink CEO Darren Kettle said. “The hard work and expertise of the project team is truly astounding to ensure safe rail travel.”
Surfliners are operating on a reduced schedule through at least Feb. 9, while Metrolink service has been halted to Oceanside [see “Pacific Surfliner extends slide-related schedule changes …,” Trains News Wire, Feb. 2, 2024].
The slide is the fifth in three years to halt passenger service in the San Clemente area. Earlier slides disrupted service between Sept. 30, 2022, and July 16, 2023, allowing only 41 days of normal operations in that period. The most recent slide, just a few hundred yards from the current location beneath the Casa Romantica Cultural Center and Gardens, was addressed with a 250-foot-longk, 12-foot-high wall, with piles 32 feet deep [see “Surfliner, Metrolink to resume service …,” News Wire, July 12, 2023].
The area has hit by heavy rains in recent days. The current slide site has been covered by tarps; soil movement has been slowed but continues.
A sturdy retaining wall on the hill side should provide enough protection and would be cheaper than re-locating and boring a tunnel. Passengers would still have a beach view. If the retaining wall needs to be more than 50′ tall, other options may come into play.
Until these atmospheric rivers quit we will have no idea what is any damages are done to the roads and RRs. If a complete disaster around San Clemente freight traffic might not be able to restore the old Santa Fe freight route Perris – Oceanside due to unstable problems on that route.
A lot of persons may be without rail service SAN LAX for a long time? But, then again maybe no additional mud slides.
Then Lossan may have major problems north of LAX especially around Vandeburg AFB?
Suddenly, CAHSR’s plan to lay its San Diego to LA route inland doesn’t seem so crazy.
Time to move the tracks inland or through a tunnel. Anything less is sure to fail.
I would say bury the line with a cover tunnel. It will create a slide barrier and keep trespassers off the tracks. It will kill the view for the passengers probably, but do they want to gawk or get where they want to go?