Upland–San Bernardino Line

The Upland–San Bernardino Line was an interurban line operated by the Pacific Electric Railway between Downtown Los Angeles and San Bernardino, California. This line also had shorter service that terminated before the end of the line at Baldwin Park, Covina, and San Dimas. Though service along this line in its entirety was discontinued in November 1941, it stands as the fourth-longest rapid transit line in American history, after the Sacramento Northern Chico and Colusa services, and the Pacific Electric's own Riverside–Rialto Line.

Upland–San Bernardino
A San Bernardino Line interurban train, 1916
Overview
OwnerSouthern Pacific Railroad
LocaleSouthern California
Termini
Service
TypeInterurban
SystemPacific Electric
Operator(s)Pacific Electric
History
OpenedJuly 11, 1914 (full line)
ClosedMarch 28, 1947 (past Baldwin Park)
October 15, 1950 (final)
Technical
Line length57.78 mi (92.99 km)
Number of tracks1–4
Track gauge1,435 mm (4 ft 8+12 in) standard gauge
Electrification600–1200 V DC overhead catenary
Route map

San Bernardino
Bench
Lytle Creek
Pepper
Acacia
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
Pomona
Pomona Junction
L.A. County Fairgrounds
Fulton Road
Lordsburg cutoff
La Verne
(Lordsburg)
San Dimas (SP)
Lone Hill
(San Dimas Junction)
Charter Oak
Ruddock
Masonic Home
Hayler
Barranca Street
Covina
terminus
after 1941
Hollenbeck Avenue
Azusa Avenue
Lark Ellen
Vincent
Irwindale
Orange Avenue
Meadowview
Vineland
UpperLeft arrow rush-hour service
Baldwin Park
terminus
after 1947
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
State Street
Echandia
Brooklyn Avenue
 P 
Southern Division
6th/Main Terminal
 F 

History

Pacific Electric trains reached Covina in 1907[1][2] and San Dimas on October 26, 1910 as the San Dimas Line.[3] The route between Pomona and Upland was constructed by the Ontario and San Antonio Heights Railroad Company, which was acquired by Pacific Electric in 1912.[4] Trains began running from the Pacific Electric Building to Pomona starting on August 31, 1912 as the Pomona Line. Finally on July 11, 1914 service to San Bernardino was commenced,[5][6][7] providing interchanges with the San Bernardino Valley Traction Company. Pacific Electric spent $1,424,000 ($41.6 million in 2022 adjusted for inflation) to bring service to San Bernardino.[7] A cutoff bypassing Pomona was completed on November 4, 1914.[6][8] A branch line to Azusa was built in 1917,[9] though the commencement of San Bernardino trains relegated other endpoints to secondary status along the line. The San Dimas Line was relegated almost entirely to shuttle service between Lone Hill after July 11, 1914, though some through-service to Los Angeles remained until 1916.[10] Passenger trips to San Dimas was discontinued by July 3, 1924, though tracks were retained for farm freight.[10]

In November 1920, two named trains were introduced on the line: the Citrus Belt Limited which traveled east in the afternoon and the Angel City Limited which made the reverse journey in the afternoon.[6] Two more limited named trains were added in 1930: the Orange Empire Limited and Metropolitan Limited.[11] (Pacific Electric only ran six named trains over its history, with five of them being on the San Bernardino Line.[6]) All named trains were discontinued in 1931 along with other cuts made in response to decreased patronage due to the Great Depression.[11]

Through service to Redlands was discontinued in 1936,[11] while Pomona and San Bernardino trains began operating independently the following year (they had predominantly operated connected and split at Lordsburg this time). Most passenger service was truncated to Baldwin Park on November 1, 1941.[11] Rush hour trains continued to serve Covina, and were even rerouted onto new tracks east of Baldwin Park obtained from the Southern Pacific in 1946.[12] In 1947 all passenger trips were cut back to Baldwin Park. Unscheduled troop trains ran in World War II, though these trips were not open to civilians.[13] On October 15, 1950, the Baldwin Park Line service was abandoned.[12][8] Even after closure, the line remained popular with railfanning groups — the last passenger excursion under electric power on the line ran on August 25, 1951.[13]

After abandonment

The former right of way was converted to a rail trail for part of its length.

The western portion of the right of way was partially integrated into the San Bernardino Freeway. Metrolink San Bernardino Line trains utilize the same section in the freeway's median strip; this locomotive-hauled commuter rail service began in 1992. Between the cities of Claremont and Rialto, the line was converted to a rail trail: the Pacific Electric Trail.[14]

Route

Originating from the 6th and Main Street station in Downtown Los Angeles, the San Bernardino Line exited to the east via an elevated structure over downtown streets to reach San Pedro Street at grade. The dual-tracks, running in the pavement of the city streets, proceeded north on San Pedro Street, east on Aliso Street (past its connection to Union Station) to cross the Los Angeles River and Mission Road on the Aliso Street Viaduct.

Directly east of Mission Road the tracks entered a private right of way which ran easterly and then northerly under the Brooklyn Avenue (Macy Street) Bridge. Paralleling Ramona Boulevard (since obliterated by construction of the I-10 Freeway), the line continued northerly, past the Macy Carhouse, to Enchandia Junction, where the South Pasadena Line branched north. From the junction, the tracks headed easterly, still paralleling Ramona Boulevard on the right, through the State Street Yard to Valley Junction, where the Pasadena Short Line and Monrovia–Glendora Lines also branched to the north. From Valley Junction (Soto Street and I-10 Freeway), the dual tracks on private way continued east along Ramona Boulevard, through City Terrace, Monterey Park, Alhambra, San Gabriel, and Rosemead to Baldwin Avenue in El Monte.

From that point, the line proceeded east on private way to cross the Rio Hondo on a single track steel girder bridge. The line then returned to dual tracks and continued east, still on private way paralleling Ramona Boulevard, crossing Valley Boulevard and Peck Road to reach the east city limits of El Monte at the San Gabriel River. Again, the line reduced to single track to cross the river on a long wood-pile bridge before returning to dual tracks on the east bank.

From the San Gabriel River, the line continued east, on private way paralleling Ramona Boulevard, to Badillo Street in Baldwin Park. Continuing, the double tracks ran along Badillo Street as far as Grand Avenue in Covina.

At Grand Avenue, the line became single track and ran on private way along the north side of Badillo Street as far as Banna Avenue in Covina. Here, the line turned in a northeasterly direction and ran on private way (intermittently paved by Ruddock Street, Badillo Street and Stratford Lane as of 1981). At Stratford Lane and Lone Hill Avenue (San Dimas Junction) the main line turned and proceeded east toward Pomona while a branch line continued on private way northeasterly into San Dimas on a single track. The main line continued on private way east from Lone Hill passing streets such as Cataract Avenue and Walnut Avenue and, turning gently southeast by Puddingstone Channel, proceeded parallel to Orange Street as far as E Street in Pomona. At E Street, a Pomona local branch line branched south and continued on private way. This diversion from the nearly continuous straight track to the east and west was the result of ranchers and farmers in Alta Vista donating right of way and funding to build the track further north.[5][14]

The San Bernardino Line continued east, on single track on private way, paralleling the Santa Fe Railway north of Arrow Highway, and passing Towne Avenue and Indian Hill Boulevard in Claremont. Then turning northeasterly the line proceeded to Benson Avenue in Upland where it turned east again to run between Arrow Highway and 9th street. At 13th Avenue, a northeasterly course took the line to Alta Lorna, along private way, as far as Grande street and Archibald Avenue. Proceeding east from Alta Lorna in open country north of Base-line Road, the line passed Etiwanda Avenue and then turned southeasterly at East Etiwanda Creek into Fontana. It turned east again at Citrus Avenue in Fontana and proceeded north of Arrow Route Boulevard, paralleling it through Rialto toward San Bernardino. The line entered San Bernardino in the pavement of Rialto Avenue and proceeded east to a point between "E" and "F" Streets. Here, the San Bernardino Line turned north to follow a private way to its terminus at the joint Pacific Electric and Southern Pacific station on 3rd Street.

List of major stations

The former Rialto Depot, 2008
Etiwanda Depot was added to the National Register of Historic Places on March 21, 2011
Lordsburg station (later La Verne), 1922
Pacific Electric Building elevated concourse
Station Mile[15] Major connections Service began Service ended City
San Bernardino 57.78 Arrowhead, Colton, Redlands, San Bernardino–Riverside
Southern Pacific
1914 1940 San Bernardino
Rialto 53.18 Riverside–Rialto 1914 1940 Rialto
Fontana 49.44 1914 1940
Etiwanda 43.98 Riverside–Rialto 1914 1940 Etiwanda
Upland 35.95 Riverside–Rialto 1914 1940 Upland
Upland–Euclid Ave. Riverside–Rialto, Upland–Ontario, Upland–San Antonio Heights 1914 1940
Claremont 32.59 Pomona–Claremont, Riverside–Rialto, Upland–Ontario
Santa Fe Railroad
1914 1940 Claremont
North Pomona 30.06 1912 1940
La Verne 29.03 1912 1940
San Dimas (SP) 26.58 Pomona, Riverside–Rialto
Southern Pacific
1910 1940 San Dimas
Covina 22.03 Pomona, Riverside–Rialto 1907 1947 Covina
Baldwin Park 17.84 1907
El Monte 13.36 Pomona, Riverside–Rialto 1907 1950 El Monte
Wilmar 9.77 1907
Garfield Avenue 8.41 1907
Covina Junction 3.37 Alhambra–San Gabriel, Monrovia–Glendora, Mount Lowe, Pasadena Short Line, Pasadena via Oak Knoll, Pomona, Riverside–Rialto, Sierra Madre 1902 1951 Los Angeles
Echandia Junction Alhambra–San Gabriel, Annandale, Monrovia–Glendora, Mount Lowe, Pasadena Short Line, Pasadena via Oak Knoll, Pomona, Riverside–Rialto, Sierra Madre, South Pasadena Local 1895 1951
Pacific Electric Building 0.0 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, Riverside–Rialto, San Pedro via Dominguez, San Pedro via Gardena, Santa Ana, Santa Monica Air Line, Sierra Madre, Soldiers' Home, South Pasadena Local, Whittier
Los Angeles Railway B, H, J, R, 7, and 8
1905 1961

Infrastructure

The line operated a unique railway electrification system among Pacific Electric routes: overhead line was primarily electrified at 1200 volts direct current with 600 volt sections within town and city limits where the line shared tracks with local streetcars.[8][16][17] Electrical substations providing high voltage power were located at Campbell Avenue, Baldwin Park, Baldy View, Etiwanda, and San Bernardino.[18] Cars operated at both voltages.

Rolling stock

By 1924 the line was utilizing 1200 class rolling stock.[19]

References

 This article incorporates text from a free content work. Licensed under the public domain as a work of the State of California. (license statement/permission). Text taken from 1981 Inventory of Pacific Electric Routes, California Department of Transportation, . Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority.

  1. "Pacific Electric Line to Covina is Opened". Los Angeles Evening Express. July 1, 1907. p. 7. Retrieved February 14, 2022 via Newspapers.com.
  2. Crump 1977, p. 87
  3. Crump 1977, p. 100
  4. Hilton & Due 2000, p. 410
  5. Blackstock, Joe (July 7, 2014). "Pacific Electric rail system connected Inland Empire with coast". Inland Valley Daily Bulletin. Retrieved September 12, 2020.
  6. Veysey 1958, p. 66
  7. Landis, Mark (July 7, 2014). "The Great Silver Spike Celebration marked a new link with L.A." The San Bernardino Sun. Retrieved February 7, 2021.
  8. "San Bernardino Line". Electric Railway Historical Association of Southern California. Retrieved September 11, 2020.
  9. Castrejon, Aaron (March 4, 2016). "BLAST FROM THE PAST: Electric Rail Has Deep Roots In SoCal". Glendora City News. Retrieved February 8, 2021.
  10. Veysey 1958, p. 69
  11. Veysey 1958, p. 67
  12. Veysey 1958, p. 53
  13. Veysey 1958, p. 68
  14. Blackstock, Joe (January 20, 2014). "Etiwanda to celebrate 100 years of its Pacific Electric station". Inland Valley Daily Bulletin. Retrieved February 7, 2021.
  15. "Pacific Electric Time Tables" (PDF). wx4's Dome of Foam. Pacific Electric. September 1, 1934. p. 16. Retrieved September 1, 2021.
  16. Central Electric Light and Power Stations and Street and Electric Railways with Summary of the Electrical Industries. U.S. Government Printing Office. 1915. p. 406. Retrieved February 7, 2021.
  17. Crump 1977, p. 100
  18. Anderson, S. H. (October 10, 1926). "Automatic Substations on P. E. System" (PDF). Vol. 11, no. 5. Pacific Electric Railway. Pacific Electric Magazine. pp. 3–4. Retrieved February 7, 2021. {{cite magazine}}: Cite magazine requires |magazine= (help)
  19. Crump 1977, p. 181

Bibliography

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