BNSF is proposing to build a massive new rail facility in Barstow called the Barstow International Gateway (BIG). Separate from BNSF’s existing Barstow rail yard, the BIG would be an intermodal facility with rail-oriented warehouses and a solar field in addition to block-swapping and transloading facilities. It is projected to Read more…
In this series, we’ve explained Metrolink’s imminent budget crisis and its struggles to deliver comprehensive service improvements or capital modernization, all stemming from its broken governance. The imminent fiscal crisis provides urgency for reform. Metrolink is a regional system that will someday be part of the backbone of the state Read more…
In previous posts in this series, we discussed Metrolink’s imminent budget crisis and its struggles to maintain and expand service and ridership. These are exacerbated by its inability to deliver capital improvements, from basic maintenance to ambitious modernization programs like electrification. Given the size and age of the network, there Read more…
In the last installment of this series, we learned about how political choices by specific counties are driving a $30M shortfall that threatens service cuts. These cuts are part of broader flaws in Metrolink governance that have stymied a more ambitious vision since its founding, and threaten to curtail Metrolink’s Read more…
Metrolink is in a dire situation in 2026. Dozens of trains across the system have been permanently cut due to equipment issues stemming from deferred maintenance – and more cuts could be coming in October thanks to a $30M operating budget deficit. While Metrolink had ambitious plans for service improvements, Read more…
A wide body of academic research suggests that bringing project delivery in-house results in more cost-effective transit capital projects. But how does this play out on a project-level? In this blog post we investigate how overreliance on consultants, coupled with lack of oversight, is inflating costs and reducing scope and Read more…
Why: The Greater Sacramento region needs fast, frequent and affordable ways to get around. For most people, driving on congested roads and freeways is the only viable way to travel. The state is spending millions to widen the Davis Causeway, which will do nothing to improve commutes. Existing transit options Read more…
2025 has been a challenging year for many, dominated by the Trump administration’s attacks on civil rights, democracy, and the environment, from ICE kidnappings that suppressed transit ridership to the administration’s attacks on emissions regulations, transit funding, and renewable energy. But despite the difficult environment, Californians for Electric Rail has Read more…
The SB 125 Transit Transformation Task Force (TTTF) is poised to adopt a final report on September 30, 2025. The State Legislature intended for the report from the TTTF to serve as the basis of legislative and administrative actions to reform transit to better achieve the state’s goals of reducing Read more…
New whitepaper outlines how to transform Southern California rail through electrification, level boarding, and through-running. Southern California is a megaregion, with jobs, homes, and destinations spread across an area as large as some countries. Population has grown fastest far from city centers, leading to worsening traffic and the US’s dirtiest Read more…