ACE rail expansion runs late, just as Modesto readies its historic downtown depot
The Altamont Corridor Express expects a two-year delay in its expansion into Stanislaus and Sacramento counties.
The first trains will not run until late 2026 under the latest timeline from ACE management. It attributed the delay in part to a complex review process by Union Pacific Railroad, which runs freight trains on the same tracks.
A spokeswoman for UP said it is working with ACE to ensure that the expansion provides for safe and reliable service.
The delay comes as Modesto is close to finishing the renovation of a 1915 depot for use by ACE. The Ninth Street building is part of a transit center that already serves bus riders.
ACE has run on weekdays since 1998 between Stockton and San Jose. Four trains head west in the morning and return in the late afternoon and evening. They stop along the way at the Lathrop/Manteca border and in Tracy, Livermore, Pleasanton, Fremont and Santa Clara.
The southern branch is funded mainly by a $400 million state grant awarded in 2017. It will have stations in north Lathrop, downtown Manteca, Ripon, Modesto, Ceres, Turlock, Livingston and Merced. The initial goal was to reach Ceres by 2023 and Merced by 2027.
The new schedule would mean stations by late 2026 in Manteca, Modesto and Ceres. Ripon and north Lathrop would wait another year. Turlock would follow in 2029 and Livingston and Merced in 2030.
ACE’s northern branch got most of its funding from a $500.5 million state grant in 2018. It will have stations west of Lodi, in northwest Elk Grove and at Sacramento City College, Midtown, Old North Sacramento and Natomas.
The new timeline means stations by late 2026 in Elk Grove, Midtown and Natomas. Lodi would start service in 2027 and the college and Old North Sacramento in 2029.
Amtrak grows, too
The northern ACE branch also will carry two new round trips on the Amtrak San Joaquins service. This line now has one daily round trip to the capital and another still suspended due to COVID-19, using tracks to the east. Five other Amtrak trips run between Bakersfield and Oakland by way of Stockton.
The expanded ACE and Amtrak lines could connect in Merced with the first leg of the state’s high-speed rail system. It would have stations also in Madera, Fresno, Hanford and Bakersfield. That segment now has a 2030-33 completion window, assuming it can withstand complaints about huge cost overruns.
The overall ACE/Amtrak effort is called Valley Rail. The new timeline was presented at the March 3 meeting of the San Joaquin Regional Rail Commission, which oversees the expansion.
Adding passenger service on a freight line requires a second track in many stretches, commission Executive Director Stacey Mortensen said. She noted that each specific location requires three rounds of reviews by the host railroad as the drawings become more detailed.
ACE runs entirely on UP tracks now and will do the same with its northern and southern branches. Robynn Tysver, a communications manager for the Omaha-based railroad, commented by email Friday:
“The process to overlay new passenger services onto an existing freight network is complex and must be done very carefully and thoughtfully. Union Pacific values our longstanding relationship with SJRRC and is committed to working with the agency to ensure the proposed Valley Rail and San Joaquin trains can be introduced safely and operate reliably.”
Amtrak runs on UP tracks between Stockton and Sacramento, but it reaches Oakland and Bakersfield on the Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway. That includes stations on the east side of Modesto and in Denair, Merced and points south.
The ACE branches will start out with the current line’s emphasis on Bay Area commuters. Eventually, it and Amtrak could have frequent, all-day service. The trains could reach perhaps 130 mph with future investments in tracks separated from freight trains and roads.
Old depot shines anew
Remodeling of the Modesto Transit Center began in late 2021 under a $5.23 million contract with Simile Construction Services. The city used state and federal money.
The project still has about a month to go, but much of the center is already open to the public, said Adam Barth, CEO of the Stanislaus Regional Transit Authority.
The agency’s bus loading zones got new lighting, landscaping, security and other upgrades, Barth said at the site Friday. Passengers can go inside the old depot for bus passes and other business.
Southern Pacific Railroad erected the depot and had passenger service there until 1971. Its freight operation is now owned by UP.
The station is in the Mission Revival style, with a tile roof, cupolas and other touches of 18th-century California. The contractor retained them because the building is a registered landmark.
The job included patching the roof and exterior stucco. Inside, Simile removed part on an interior wall to increase lobby space. The building has a refurbished tile floor and new restrooms and heating and air conditioning.
White paint went over the brown interior walls and the pinkish hue on the outside.
Other holdups on the tracks
The new timeline involves issues beyond the UP review process, David Lipari, marketing manager for both ACE and Amtrak, said by phone Thursday.
For example, ACE had planned to have Modesto passengers board on a single platform. Instead, it will get two to handle future ridership growth, but this will require a pedestrian bridge over the tracks.
Lipari also cited the complexity of a project aimed at easing a rail bottleneck in south Stockton. UP’s north-south line crosses at ground level with the east-west BNSF route. State and federal sources will pay for a $237 million flyover for UP, easing both freight and passenger movement.
The state last month granted another $142 million to cover inflation on various aspects of Valley Rail. Some of the money will go to the Stockton flyover. Some will help with new stations. The rest will lengthen platforms at five current ACE stations to handle longer trains.
This story was originally published March 12, 2023 at 6:00 AM.
