Batiquitos Lagoon Double Track
The project will add .75 miles of second mainline rail track from Avenida Encinas in Carlsbad to La Costa Avenue in Encinitas across the Batiquitos Lagoon. The project also includes replacing a wooden trestle bridge, built in the 1930s, with a modern, double-track concrete rail bridge. As a result of the bridge replacement, lagoon tidal flow will be improved due to a wider channel underneath the bridge.
The primary purpose of this project is to replace the wooden trestle bridge, which will improve overall lagoon health, and provide a mid-corridor location for passenger trains to pass the slower freight trains. This will alleviate passenger train delays that would occur. Additionally, the double tracking in this segment directly supports the objectives of SANDAG, North County Transit District (NCTD), Amtrak, and BNSF Railway to increase the efficiency and reliability of the Los Angeles-San Diego-San Luis Obispo (LOSSAN) coastal rail corridor, not only to accommodate existing train volumes, but also to provide for future passenger and freight demand.
The project is also a critical component of the first phase of the North Coast Corridor (NCC) Program, known as Build NCC. Build NCC includes rail double tracking projects over the Batiquitos and San Elijo lagoons, extending the carpool lanes on Interstate 5, and environmental protection, lagoon restoration, and coastal access improvements.
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