Category: Rail

News involving Caltrain, ACE or BART

Welcome To Super Bowl LX

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The Seattle Seahawks and New England Patriots are ready for Sunday’s big game in Santa Clara. Are you going to the game itself?

If so, the Super Bowl LX Transit Guide is for you. It will help you beat traffic gridlock and parking woes at or near Levi’s Stadium. The money you save is money you are not spending on excessively high parking fees, fuel, or event surge pricing at some ride-hailing companies. This informative guide focuses mainly on events happening in and around San Jose and Santa Clara County. You will find that Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority (VTA) buses, light rail, Caltrain commuter rail, and BART (Bay Area Rapid Transit) trains will help ease your Super Bowl LX experience.

In addition to the Big Game on Sunday, this transit guide also features

  • Pre-game events and tailgating parties
  • Watch parties at bars and restaurants
  • Post-game after-parties

The watch parties are useful for those who don’t have a ticket to the Big Game, yet want to enjoy seeing the big game with fellow football fans.

The transit guide will be amended as needed. Check often for updates and additions.

Know of additional watch parties or post-game after-parties in the San Jose area? Tell about them in the comments.

On that note, Welcome to Super Bowl LX!

Eugene Bradley
Founder, Silicon Valley Transit Users

Help VTA Speed Up Light Rail in Downtown San Jose

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VTA light rail train car.
Santa Teresa-bound VTA light rail car along 2nd Street in downtown San Jose.

The Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority (VTA) proposes speed up light rail service in downtown San Jose. In their proposal, VTA proposes to move southbound light rail tracks from 2nd Street to 1st Street, and eliminate St. James Park station. Read more about VTA’s proposal here.

VTA has a survey where they seek input from YOU on the proposal. The survey only takes 5-10 minutes to complete. Fill out that survey here. Note the survey expires October 10.

Should the proposal go through, it will go thru environmental clearance this winter. From there, it is expected to be voted on by the VTA Board of Directors sometime next year.

What are your thoughts and ideas on what VTA is proposing? Please comment and suggest.

Eugene Bradley
Founder, Silicon Valley Transit Users

Happy Memorial Day 2024

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Happy Memorial Day!
Happy Memorial Day!

Today, we remember those who perished serving our nation’s Armed Forces. This after we remembered the horrific shootings at Guadalupe Rail Yard on May 26, 2021.

All transit agencies serving Silicon Valley are running on a Sunday/Holiday schedule today. This includes but is not limited to:

  • Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority (VTA) buses and light rail
  • SamTrans (San Mateo County)
  • Caltrain
  • BART
  • Altamont Corridor Express (ACE) trains to/from Stockton
  • Capitol Corridor trains to/from Oakland and Sacramento

Normal weekday service will return Tuesday morning.

Read on for a transit guide of things to do around San Jose – and how to get there on public transit.

Read more →

Swiftie Transit Weekend…and More

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Taylor Swift. Source: mepixels.com

You cannot avoid the hype. Taylor Swift and her “Eras” tour is in town. Specifically, Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara for shows Friday night and Saturday night.

Levi’s Stadium staff advises concertgoers to take public transportation to and from both shows.

Read on for how BART, Caltrain and Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority (VTA) will get you to and from the shows – and other events – this weekend.

Read more →

April Showers (Of Service Increases)

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Passengers boarding a white and blue VTA 68 bus heading to Gilroy, in downtown San Jose.
People boarding VTA’s 68 bus in downtown San Jose.

On April 24, the Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority (VTA) made several service changes to increase bus and light rail service throughout Santa Clara County. Read more about these changes here.

Key notes on the April 24 service changes:

  • Going to the South County Courthouse in Morgan Hill? The 568 Rapid bus no longer serves the Morgan Hill Caltrain station. Instead the bus will stay on Monterey Hwy. thru downtown Morgan Hill. The stop now shares the 68’s bus stop on Monterey/3rd, a 10 minute walk to the Courthouse on 301 Diana Ave.
  • On weekends, the 27 bus no longer serves downtown Los Gatos due to area traffic and resulting delays. Those normally taking the bus to downtown Los Gatos. Bus stops for downtown Los Gatos on weekends will be Santa Cruz/Los Gatos-Saratoga (EB to Kaiser SJ), and Los Gatos-Saratoga/University (WB to Winchester LRT station).
  • Also, VTA still does not have enough light rail operators to run light rail at 15-minute frequencies on weekends. This will change as bus drivers apply to become light rail operators throughout the year. VTA is still hiring bus operators; here’s how to apply for a bus operator job.

What are your thoughts and feelings on today’s service increases? Please comment and suggest below.

More later this week. Meanwhile, have a nice day and stay safe.

Eugene Bradley
Founder, Silicon Valley Transit Users