Train service from the Central Coast will take longer if your destination is San Clemente or San Diego
SANTA BARBARA, Calif. - Commuters from San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara and Ventura Counties will face delays on AMTRAK if their destination is San Clemente and stops south due to a recent landslide.
It may be related to the storm damage aftermath that's been seen along the coast. The location is near another project that is unrelated to the recent landslide.
The tracks will be closed for an undetermined time according to the Los Angeles-San Diego-San Luis Obispo (LOSSAN) Rail Corridor Agency. It manages the Pacific Surfliner service in close coordination with its member agencies, Amtrak and Caltrans.
Travelers will have extended travel times both directions and be going on a bus as an alternative transportation answer to their destination.
This comes at a time when business is picking up due to warmer Spring weather, college graduations and more seasonal traveling.
The specific area of debris is falling from a slope north of the San Clemente Pier. It has resulted in a track closure in the area. Pacific Surfliner service is affected between Irvine and Oceanside.
LOSSAN says the location of the closure is near San Clemente’s Casa Romantica Cultural Center and Gardens, approximately two miles north of where the Orange County Transportation Authority (OCTA) is completing construction work.
LOSSAN says it is working to secure buses to transport passengers around the closure. At that point, train service will resume between Oceanside and San Diego, with buses providing connections to trains in Irvine.
This will remain in effect until the tracks are cleared to reopen.
Train passenger Bob Myers was recently in Irvine at the station there. "They had probably three large busses out there that I could see shuttling people around, nice busses."
Extra personnel were on hand.
Myers, "there was also a lot of people manning the buses to ask everyone everyone walked up where were they headed before you wandered off to get on the train. The people who were there were well organized and doing a good job."
Passengers who were concerned about what might be happening ahead on the rails said they did get good answers from those working for the Pacific Surfliner and Amtrak.
Train passenger Margaret Lyburtus, " I was upset because I thought today we were going to go on a bus again. It also happened to us up north in Vancouver Washington the train washed out there and we had to be bused around to Vancouver from Portland."
Also she needed some extra help during a mixup.
Lyburtus said, "we almost missed the last bus. They said the bus was there and I don't know they had to come back and get us and they did otherwise we would still be sitting in San Luis Obispo. "
She was ready to ride the rails but not the buses.
Lyburtus said, "the rail pass is terrific. It is ten stops in 30 days. So you can get off and on as much you want and get back on as long as you complete your travel in 30 days."
 The LOSSAN Agency is a rail corridor agency for the 351 mile route that the Pacific Surfliner travels. We were told us in a statement:
The LOSSAN Agency is continuing to provide bus bridges between Irvine and Oceanside for Pacific Surfliner customers to maintain the vital intercity connections between San Diego, Orange, and Los Angeles counties.
Metrolink also handles passenger traffic in the area. A statement in part reads:
OCTA owns the track in San Clemente, while Metrolink manages and operates rail service on their behalf.
Metrolink weekday trains operate as far south as the Laguna Niguel/Mission Viejo Station, while on weekends, Metrolink trains operate to and from San Juan Capistrano.
There is no defined timeline as to when passenger rail service will resume.
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Reservations can be updated online at Amtrak.com, by phone, or by sending a message to the @PacSurfliners account on Twitter.
Effective Until the Tracks Reopen:
Bus connections will be in place to transport passengers around the closure, to connect to trains in Irvine and Oceanside. Limited train service will be available from San Juan Capistrano. This schedule will remain in place until the tracks reopen.
- Trains 572, 573, 583, and 586 remain cancelled
- Trains 562, 765, 567, 770, 774, 777, 784, 785, 588, and 591 have bus connections available between Irvine and Oceanside
- Trains 564, 580, and 595 start/end in Irvine
- Trains 770, 774, 777, 581, 784, and 591 extend to San Juan Capistrano
- Train 761 originates in Los Angeles
