91/Perris Valley Line

The Metrolink 91/Perris Valley Line service begin October 19, 2019 is between Perris-South Metrolink Station and Los Angeles Union Station for 2 round trip trains is one-way to L.A. in the morning and one-way back to Perris in the afternoon and evening.

The Perris Valley Line is a 24-mile-long extension of the original 91 Line into the Perris Valley. The extension runs on the San Jacinto Branch Line, which parallels Interstate 215.[6]

The Riverside County Transportation Commission (RCTC) purchased the BNSF San Jacinto Branch Line in 1993, soon after Metrolink began operating.[7] Planning for the extension formally began in 2002. After studying the service alternatives available for the Perris Valley, RCTC selected commuter rail service in 2004. The Federal Transit Administration provided funding for the extension in 2007. In 2009, both the Federal Transit Administration and RCTC decided to conduct further studies into the project. The Federal Transit Administration decided to require a Supplemental Environmental Assessment (SEA) to refresh the 2004 information and to obtain new public comment. RCTC had decided to prepare a full draft environmental impact report (EIR) to clarify concerns and address new station site options. The draft EIR was released for public comment on April 5, 2010, with the public comment period closing on May 24, 2010. The draft SEA was completed and the comment period for the SEA ended on January 6, 2011. As of October 2012, comments received on both the EIR and the SEA were under review.[7]

Seven stations were originally planned by RCTC—five to open along with the extension, and two to be built in the future. In the April 2010 CEQA-mandated environmental impact report,[8] three stations were dropped: the two future stations, one on the Cajalco Expressway near its junction with Interstate 215 in Perris and one in Box Springs within Riverside; and a station adjacent to UC Riverside, which was removed due to complaints by local residents.[9] In response to these removals, RCTC officials stated that more stations could be built in the future if necessary.[9] A local community group filed a CEQA lawsuit against the extension in 2011;[10] the group and RCTC settled the suit in 2013.[11]

Led by RCTC, construction on the extension began in October 2013.[7] Originally planned to start in December 2015,[7][12][13] public service on the extension was delayed to February 2016, then March 2016, then scheduled for sometime in the spring.[14][15] The delay had been attributed to construction of the Perris–South station.[16] After numerous delays, the extension opened June 6, 2016.[17][18] Metrolink inconsistently uses the terms "91/Perris Valley Line" and "91 Line" to refer to both the extension and the entire rail line.[19]

The extension was projected to cost $248 million with funding coming from the state, a $75 million grant from the Federal Transit Administration, and Measure A, Riverside County's special sales tax for transportation projects.[20][21]