Novato Downtown station

Novato Downtown station is a train station in Novato, California. It opened as an infill station for the Sonoma–Marin Area Rail Transit (SMART) service in December 2019. Prior to that, it was in operation from 1879 to 1958 by the Northwestern Pacific Railroad.

Novato Downtown
A green train at a railway platform
A southbound train at Novato Downtown in December 2019
General information
LocationGrant Avenue at Railroad Avenue
Novato, California
Coordinates38.1063°N 122.5647°W / 38.1063; -122.5647
Elevation19.7 ft (6 m)
Line(s)SMART Mainline Subdivision[1]
Platforms1 side platform
Tracks1 (with gauntlet)
ConnectionsAt Novato Transit Center:
Bus transport Golden Gate Transit
Bus transport Marin Transit
Construction
AccessibleYes
History
Opened1879 (1879) (NWP)
December 14, 2019 (SMART)[2]
ClosedNovember 10, 1958 (1958-11-10) (NWP)
Rebuilt1903 (1903), 1916 (1916),[3] 2019 (2019)
Services
Preceding station SMART Following station
Novato San Marin
toward Sonoma County Airport
 SMART Novato Hamilton
toward Larkspur
Former services
Preceding station Northwestern Pacific Railroad Following station
Petaluma
toward Eureka
 Main Line Ignacio
toward Sausalito
Location

History
The former station building in 2018

The original Northwestern Pacific (NWP) depot was built out of redwood on the site in 1879;[4] that building was moved nearby and a new one constructed in 1903.[5] The second station was destroyed in a fire in 1916,[3] and the current station building was built as its replacement. Increased automobile ownership and highway construction led to a decline of rail travel in Marin County, thus leading to disuse of the facility as a passenger terminal after November 10, 1958.[6]

Not part of the design for the original ten stations from SMART's Initial Opening Segment, funding and construction of the station was undertaken by the City of Novato.[3] Station plans were finalized in 2016 and the platform was built at a cost of $2.4 million[7] by the time trains began operation.[8] The Metropolitan Transportation Commission provided $1.5 million toward finishing the station, leaving $1.6 million to be financed via an additional source or via the city's Hamilton Trust.

By May 2018, the Phase 2 cost of construction had increased to $5.2 million.[9] The SMART Board approved the station plan in July 2018.[10] Station equipment was expected to be installed in the summer, and testing done in the fall.[11] By September 2019, the total cost was over $7 million.[12]

Original plans called for the station to only have limited service due to its proximity to the Novato San Marin station.[3][13] However, the SMART Board voted in June 2019 to instate regular, full-time service to the station;[11] testing commenced on November 8, 2019.[14] The station opened on December 14, 2019, for weekend and holiday service; weekday service began on January 1, 2020.[2]

References
  1. SMA Rail Consulting (April 2016). "California Passenger Rail Network Schematics" (PDF). California Department of Transportation. p. 1.
  2. Pieschke, Erica (14 December 2019). "SMART Train service to Larkspur, Novato begins". KRON. Retrieved 14 December 2019.
  3. Prado, Mark (17 August 2016). "Downtown Novato train station comes to life". Digital First Media. Marin Independent Journal. Retrieved 22 August 2016.
  4. Novato Buildings and Train Depot, Novato History Museum, retrieved 2022-08-24
  5. Weldy, Stephanie (28 September 2017). "Novato kicks off revitalization efforts for historic downtown depot". Marin Independent Journal. Retrieved 29 September 2017.
  6. "Train makes last run". San Francisco Examiner. November 11, 1958. p. 13. Retrieved 12 September 2023 – via Newspapers.com. icon of an open green padlock
  7. Prado, Mark (24 May 2017). "Novato approves plan for downtown rail stop". Marin Independent Journal. Retrieved 24 May 2017.
  8. Weldy, Stephanie (28 January 2016). "Novato approves partial construction of downtown SMART station". Marin Independent Journal. Retrieved 25 April 2017.
  9. Prado, Mark (28 May 2018). "Novato $2M short for downtown SMART station". Marin Independent Journal. Retrieved 30 May 2018.
  10. Prado, Mark (July 18, 2018). "SMART board approves downtown Novato station plan". Marin Independent Journal.
  11. "SMART Announces Full Service to Downtown Novato Station" (Press release). City of Novato. June 12, 2019.
  12. Fixler, Kevin (10 September 2019). "Supervisors at odds over location of proposed 3rd Santa Rosa SMART station". Press Democrat. Retrieved 17 September 2019.
  13. Moore, Derek (12 April 2016). "SMART seeking funding to extend rail line to Windsor". Sonoma Media Investments. The Press Democrat. Retrieved 15 June 2016.
  14. Houston, Will (7 November 2019). "SMART to close stations, sound train horn for Novato testing". Marin Independent Journal. Retrieved 8 November 2019.

Media related to Novato Downtown station at Wikimedia Commons


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