Officials celebrate South San Francisco station improvements

The station now features a 700-foot center-boarding platform and pedestrian underpass to ensure passengers don’t have to cross the tracks to board the train. Safety considerations previously created an operational bottleneck on the railroad, forcing passengers to cross tracks to board trains at a center boarding platform. The improvements ensure more than one train can use the station at a time. Multiple trains can now enter or pass through the station at once, allowing for more flexible scheduling for future increased electrified service. Caltrain is moving to an electric train fleet that will increase trains and speed while lowering greenhouse gas emissions.

The improvements make the station fully compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act. Other upgrades include more ticket vending machines and Clipper card readers, multiple shelters, 24 bike racks, upgraded lighting, and a new shuttle pick-up and drop-off area.

Speier touted the improved accessibility for bikers and pedestrians and its role in reducing traffic and increasing options for nearby residents. The station was first put into service in 1909, with the improvements ensuring its readiness for the 21st century.

“Making the station accessible and adding modern electrification means we will have a first-rate station here,” Speier said.

Assembly Speaker pro Tem Kevin Mullin, D-South San Francisco, noted station improvement discussions have been ongoing since his time on the South San Francisco City Council. He thanked everyone for their work in ensuring a brighter transit future for the city and region.

“South City is doing exactly what the state of California wants cities to be doing. Just look around, and you can see a model right here,” Mullin said.

The downtown area surrounding the train station will see significant changes in the coming years, with development coming for more housing and retail. South San Francisco officials redesigned the downtown station area within a half-mile of the Caltrain station on and around Grand Avenue. The train station can also help in revitalizing the shopping and dining downtown corridor and anchoring housing nearby. Over the next 20 years, South San Francisco is calling for around 1,400 new housing units, 800,000 square feet of commercial space, 21,000 square feet for industrial use and 1.2 million square feet of new office space.

“The enhancements made to this Caltrain station are a game-changer for South San Francisco residents and visitors in terms of connectivity and walkability,” South San Francisco Mayor Mark Nagales said.

“I view this as part of a continuum. We are electrifying Caltrain, which is going to be an incredible effort to make Caltrain even more of a crown jewel it needs to be for this Peninsula,” state Sen. Josh Becker, D-San Mateo, said.

Caltrain Vice Chair Charles Stone, also a Belmont councilmember, praised its proximity to downtown and increasing accessibility.

“These significant changes we are seeing at the South San Francisco Station are the ones we need to make this system accessible to all in an equitable way in the years to come,” Stone said.

Funding for the $96.6 million project came from the San Mateo County Transportation Authority, South San Francisco and the Federal Transit Administration. The San Mateo County Transportation Authority provided around $44 million to help rebuild the train station, according to Caltrain spokesperson Dan Lieberman. Federal funding provided $39 million, about a third of the project. South San Francisco provided around $12 million, Lieberman said. The Transportation Authority allocates the county’s half-cent sales tax dedicated to transit needs.

Nagales announced the plaza area near the Caltrain station would be named after Karyl Matsumoto, former South San Francisco mayor and Transportation Authority chair, whose instrumental work helped ensure the project occurred. The naming was done to recognize women who made significant impacts in South San Francisco. The plaza will be constructed in 2023 with a lawn and planting area.

“We have officially moved from a train stop to a bona fide train station for our community and riders,” Matsumoto said.

curtis@smdailyjournal.com

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