GOLETA, Calif. — A 16-day project to replace a Union Pacific bridge beginning Aug. 1 will shut down the route used by two Pacific Surfliner round trips that extend to San Luis Obispo, Calif., as well as Amtrak’s Los Angeles-Seattle Coast Starlight.
Replacement of the 127-year-old La Cañada Honda Bridge over Honda Creek in northern Santa Barbara County will run through Aug. 16. The project is funded by state grants with support from UP, according to a Surfliner press release. Thruway buses to and from Santa Barbara will replace Surfliner train nos. 761 and 779 northbound and nos. 774 and 794 southbound; all trains will terminate and originate at Goleta, Calif., as other round trips do now.
During the track outage, the Coast Starlight will only operate between Seattle and Emeryville, Calif. Southern California travelers headed to or from the Pacific Northwest can only connect with the Oakland-Bakersfield San Joaquins at Martinez, Calif., or utilize a Stockton-Sacramento bus transfers. The only direct Bakersfield-Sacramento San Joaquin round trip misses connections with the Starlight in both directions.
