Riverside–Rialto Line

Riverside–Rialto was an interurban train service operated by the Pacific Electric Railway from 1914 to 1940, running from Downtown Los Angeles to Downtown Riverside. This was the longest service in the Pacific Electric system, and the only line to have exclusive trackage owned by the Union Pacific instead of the Southern Pacific Railroad. The line reached its highest ridership the year it opened but never recovered at a time when the Inland Empire was far less populated and a commute of that distance was rare.

Riverside–Rialto
The former Rialto Depot, seen in 2008. The ticket window is still intact, but unused.
Overview
OwnerUnion Pacific Railroad
LocaleLos Angeles, San Gabriel Valley, Inland Empire
Termini
Stations71
Service
TypeInterurban
SystemPacific Electric
Operator(s)Pacific Electric
Rolling stock1300 class (last used)
History
OpenedMay 1, 1908 (1908-05-01)
ClosedNovember 18, 1940 (1940-11-18)
Technical
Track gauge1,435 mm (4 ft 8+12 in) standard gauge
Electrification600 V / 1200 V DC Overhead lines
Route map

Riverside
East River
Ranura
Cement Plant
Crestmore
(Cedar Street)
Curtisolo
(Slover Street)
Bloomington
Pooele
Rialto
Cactus Avenue
Linden Avenue
Locust
Alder
Fontana
Muscat
Sansevain
Los Minos
Etiwanda
Milligan
(Grapeland)
Los Uvas
East Alta Loma
Alta Loma
Carnelian
Carillo
Upland
Euclid Avenue
Mountain Avenue
West Upland
Claremont
Baldy View
North Pomona
Fulton Road
La Verne
(Lordsburg)
San Dimas
Lone Hill
(San Dimas Junction)
Charter Oak
Ruddock
Masonic Home
Hayler
Barranca Street
Covina
Hollenbeck Avenue
Azusa Avenue
Lark Ellen
Vincent
Irwindale
Orange Avenue
Meadowview
Vineland
Baldwin Park
La Rica
Vista Del Valle
Gravel Pit
San Gabriel River
Maxson
Cogswell
Hayes
El Monte
Niobe
Rosemead
San Gabriel Wash
Garvey
(Amarillo)
South San Gabriel
Alhambra Wash
Wilmar
Alhambra Avenue
(Gaston)
Garfield Avenue
(Ramona Park)
Ynez Street
Ramona Convent
Campbell Avenue
Granada Park
Floral Park
City Terrace
(La Borde)  B   E 
Wallace Park
1200 V
600 V
multiple lines
Valley Junction
Echandia
Northern Division
 P 
 P 
 B   F   O 
 9 
 D   U   3 
6th/Main Terminal
multiple lines

History

The line was initially constructed in 1907 by the Riverside Portland Cement Company to link their new plant to the national rail network at Riverside. Operating as The Crescent City Railway Company, service was contracted out to The Riverside & Arlington Railway Company who began regular operations on May 18, 1908.[1] The line primarily served plant workers. Riverside & Arlington would go on to be absorbed into Pacific Electric as a result of the Great Merger.[2] The line was opened to Bloomington on March 11, 1911,[3] and finally to Rialto on March 25, 1914.[4] Initially only local service was provided, and passengers from Los Angeles continuing to Riverside were encouraged to take the longer trip and change at San Bernardino.[5]

On March 15, 1915, most local service was replaced with through trips to the Pacific Electric Building in Downtown Los Angeles. Cars were connected to San Bernardino Line trains.[5] Between May 1921 and 1929, local cars made trips as far north as Foothill Boulevard in Rialto — the only scheduled trips to that point.[5] All trips became through-routed to Los Angeles on November 2, 1931 as service to the cement plant was discontinued. This was short lived, as by 1935 all but one trip had been reverted to local with through routing ending entirely in 1938. Service was reduced to a single trip between Riverside and Rialto by June 9, 1940 and discontinued outright on November 18.[5]

List of major stations

Lordsburg station (later La Verne), 1922
Station Major connections Service began Date discontinued City
Riverside Arlington–Corona, San Bernardino–Riverside 1908 1940 Riverside
Rialto Upland–San Bernardino 1914 1940 Rialto
Upland Upland–San Bernardino 1915 1940 Upland
Claremont Pomona–Claremont, Upland–San Bernardino 1915 1940 Claremont
San Dimas Pomona, Upland–San Bernardino 1915 1940 San Dimas
Covina Pomona, Upland–San Bernardino 1915 1940 Covina
El Monte Pomona, Upland–San Bernardino 1915 1940 El Monte
Covina Junction Alhambra–San Gabriel, Monrovia–Glendora, Mount Lowe, Pasadena Short Line, Pasadena via Oak Knoll, Pomona, Sierra Madre, Upland–San Bernardino 1915 1940 Los Angeles
Echandia Junction Alhambra–San Gabriel, Annandale, Monrovia–Glendora, Mount Lowe, Pasadena Short Line, Pasadena via Oak Knoll, Pomona, Sierra Madre, South Pasadena Local, Upland–San Bernardino 1915 1940
Pacific Electric Building Alhambra–San Gabriel, Annandale, Balboa, Fullerton, Hawthorne–El Segundo, La Habra–Yorba Linda, Long Beach, Monrovia–Glendora, Mount Lowe, Pasadena Short Line, Pasadena via Oak Knoll, Pomona, San Pedro via Dominguez, San Pedro via Gardena, Santa Ana, Santa Monica Air Line, Sierra Madre, Soldiers' Home, South Pasadena Local, Upland–San Bernardino, Whittier
Los Angeles Railway B, H, J, R, 7, and 8
1915 1940

References

  1. "New Trolley Line". The Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles Times. May 17, 1908. p. 11. Retrieved February 6, 2022 via Newspapers.com. icon of an open green padlock
  2. "R&A Riverside & Arlington". Electric Railway Historical Association of Southern California. Retrieved January 16, 2021.
  3. "Town Holds Reception". The Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles Times. March 13, 1911. p. 17. Retrieved February 6, 2022 via Newspapers.com. icon of an open green padlock
  4. "Rialto Trolley Line". The Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles Times. March 26, 1914. p. 24. Retrieved February 6, 2022 via Newspapers.com. icon of an open green padlock
  5. Veysey, Laurence R. (June 1958). A History Of The Rail Passenger Service Operated By The Pacific Electric Railway Company Since 1911 And By Its Successors Since 1953 (PDF). LACMTA (Report). Los Angeles, California: Interurbans. p. 60. ASIN B0007F8D84. OCLC 6565577.


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