Sacramento Regional Transit District Aims to Complete Light Rail Modernization in 2024

Sacramento Regional Transit District

The Sacramento Regional Transit District has announced updates to its Light Rail Modernization Project as the new year gets underway.

The modernization work includes double-tracking, signal upgrades, station remodeling, and power station replacement, all of which are expected to improve accessibility and reliability, the agency said in a release. 

The project will also bolster the light rail system by adding new low-floor light rail vehicles, updated station platforms, and a passing track in Folsom. The passing track will be installed between Parkshore Drive and Bidwell Street in Folsom to provide 15-minute service between the Sunrise and Historic Folsom Stations, rather than the current 30-minute service, the agency said.

In addition to purchasing new low-floor light rail vehicles to modernize the aging light rail fleet, the agency has also planned station conversions to accommodate the new low-floor vehicles. 

Because only a single track connects the Hazel Station and the Folsom Station, the 15-minute service at Folsom area stations is currently hampered, according to a release. As a result, light rail trains traveling eastbound from downtown Sacramento to Folsom and westbound from Folsom to downtown Sacramento must share the same track.

Construction on the passing track will begin in the winter of 2023, with station closures and bus shuttle service beginning in the summer of 2023. 

The agency began planning for the modernization work in the spring of 2019. Construction is expected to wrap up  by the spring of 2024.