The Escondido Sub is a

branch A branch, also called a ramus in botany, is a stem that grows off from another stem, or when structures like veins in leaves are divided into smaller veins. History and etymology In Old English, there are numerous words for branch, includ ...

railway Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport using wheeled vehicles running in railway track, tracks, which usually consist of two parallel steel railway track, rails. Rail transport is one of the two primary means of ...

line between

Oceanside, California Oceanside is a beach city in the North County (San Diego area), North County area of San Diego County, California, United States. The city had a population of 174,068 at the 2020 United States census, making it the most populous city in the Nort ...

, and

Escondido, California Escondido (Spanish language, Spanish for "Hidden") is a city in San Diego County, California, United States. Located in the North County (San Diego area), North County region, it was incorporated in 1888, and is one of the oldest cities in San ...

, in the

North County North County is a region in the northern area of San Diego County, California. It is the second-most populous region in the county (after San Diego), with an estimated population of 869,322. North County is well known for its affluence, especially ...

region of

San Diego County San Diego County (), officially the County of San Diego, is a county in the southwest corner of the U.S. state of California, north to its border with Mexico. As of the 2020 census, the population was 3,298,634; it is the second-most populous ...

. It is primarily used today by the Sprinter hybrid rail and local freight trains serving Escondido industries late at night, after the last Sprinter train of the day is taken out of service.

History

The line was built in 1888, along with the

Surf Line The Surf Line is a railroad line that runs from San Diego to Orange County along California's Pacific coast. It was so named because much of the line is near the Pacific Ocean, within less than in some places. It is the second busiest passeng ...

, which is the main line it connects to on its western end and serves as the only rail connection between

San Diego San Diego ( , ) is a city on the Pacific coast of Southern California, adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a population of over 1.4 million, it is the List of United States cities by population, eighth-most populous city in t ...

and

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

. The line formerly served Santa Fe trains, with passenger trains operating until 1946. The

North County Transit District The North County Transit - San Diego Railroad (NCTD) is the agency responsible for public transportation in Northern San Diego County, California. The agency manages the COASTER commuter rail service between Oceanside and San Diego, the SPRIN ...

, which operates local public transit services, purchased the line from the

Santa Fe Railroad The Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway , often referred to as the Santa Fe or AT&SF, was one of the largest Class 1 railroads in the United States between 1859 and 1996. The Santa Fe was a pioneer in intermodal freight transport; at variou ...

in 1992, to operate passenger rail service, which started on December 28, 2007. Before passenger service could start, the tracks of the branch were re-laid with new stations and an elevated loop constructed to Cal State San Marcos station, in preparation for the Sprinter. Local Santa Fe (later BNSF) freight trains continued to operate over the line until 2008, when the service was contracted out to

Pacific Sun Railroad Pacific Sun Railroad was a shortline railroad in San Diego County, California, that worked on the Escondido Subdivision, the Miramar Branch, and in Stuart Mesa Yard. It was based out of Stuart Mesa Yard in Oceanside. It was owned by Watco. Hist ...

; this practice ended on October 1, 2020, when PSRR's contract with BNSF expired. For a very short amount of time, NCTD used Coaster Equipment for track repairs. In 2020, the Pacific Sun railroad stopped service, and freight operations on the line were given back to the

BNSF Railway BNSF Railway is the largest freight railroad in the United States. One of six North American Class I railroads, BNSF has 36,000 employees, of track in 28 states, and over 8,000 locomotives. It has three Transcontinental railroad, transcontine ...

, which also operates freight service on the connecting

Historic station stops

References

Rail lines in California BNSF Railway lines {{US-rail-transport-stub