First Train Crosses New Batiquitos Lagoon Rail Bridge: $166 Million Double-Track Project Reaches 75 Percent
At about 5 a.m. on November 9, a northbound Amtrak Pacific Surfliner train crossed the new concrete double-track bridge over Batiquitos Lagoon in Carlsbad, San Diego County, California, the first train to use the structure replacing a 1940s wooden trestle. Amtrak and COASTER trains have since shifted to the new bridge.
The $166 million Batiquitos Lagoon Double Track project spans 0.6 miles, from La Costa Avenue in Encinitas to just north of Avenida Encinas in Carlsbad, led by the San Diego Association of Governments (SANDAG) and Caltrans, and is now about 75 percent complete. The new bridge's wider spans improve tidal flow in the lagoon, support eelgrass growth and benefit the endangered California least tern. Crews will next remove the old wooden trestle and lay the second track.
Construction began in August 2024, pausing each year from April 15 to July 31 for the California least tern nesting season, with full completion expected in 2028. The Los Angeles–San Diego–San Luis Obispo (LOSSAN) corridor is shared by the North County Transit District (NCTD), Amtrak and BNSF freight trains; once the second track is in, the corridor will have 5.5 miles of continuous double track through the area. (Source: San Diego Association of Governments)
Source: San Diego Association of Governments
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图片来源：Wikimedia Commons（Joe Mabel 摄，CC BY-SA 4.0，本图经裁剪），图中为 Batiquitos Lagoon 与 Carlsbad 海岸航拍 Image: Wikimedia Commons (Joe Mabel, CC BY-SA 4.0, cropped); aerial view of Batiquitos Lagoon and the Carlsbad coast
