List of Pacific Electric lines

Last updated February 10, 2024

The following passenger rail lines were operated by the Pacific Electric Railway and its successors from the time of its merger in 1911 until the last line was abandoned in 1961. One count indicated that the company and its successors operated as many as 143 different routes in that time.^[1]

List of lines

There were three primary terminals in downtown Los Angeles:

6th & Main Station, opened 1905 on the south side of 6th Street between Main and Los Angeles Streets; served the Northern and Southern Divisions via several approaches including an elevated line from Santa Fe Street. This elevated station was not built until about 1916.
Hill Street Station, opened 1908 on the west side of Hill Street between 4th and 5th Streets; moved to the south side of the Subway Terminal in 1926; served the Western Division via both directions on Hill Street
Subway Terminal, opened 1925 on the west side of Hill Street south of 4th Street; served the Western Division via the Hollywood Subway

Division	Name	From	Via	To	Abandoned	Post-rail history
S	Walker	6th & Main	Long Beach Avenue, Randolph Street	Walker (west shore of the Los Angeles River)	March 6, 1938	N/A
S	Whittier	6th & Main	Long Beach Avenue, Randolph Street, private ROW, Philadelphia Street	Whittier	September 1, 1935 (cut back to Walker)	MTA Line 18, Montebello Bus Lines Line 10 (part of MTA Line 18 until 2004)
S	La Habra–Fullerton–Yorba Linda	6th & Main	Long Beach Avenue, Randolph Street, private ROW	Yorba Linda	July 10, 1930	MTA Line 18, Montebello Bus Lines Line 10 (part of MTA Line 18 until 2004), Foothill Transit Line 285 (MTA Line 471 until 2004), Orange County Transportation Authority Line 29 (replacement buses only went to Brea)
S	Fullerton	6th & Main	Long Beach Avenue, Randolph Street, private ROW	Fullerton	November 13, 1930	MTA Line 18, Montebello Bus Lines Line 10 (part of MTA Line 18 until 2004), Foothill Transit Line 285 (MTA Line 471 until 2004), Orange County Transportation Authority Lines 29, 47
S	Bellflower	6th & Main	Long Beach Avenue, Santa Ana Boulevard, private ROW	Bellflower	May 25, 1958	N/A
S	Santa Ana	6th & Main	Long Beach Avenue, Santa Ana Boulevard, private ROW, Fourth Street	Santa Ana	July 2, 1950 (cut back to Bellflower)	MTA Line 460, Orange County Transportation Authority Line 83
S	Santa Ana–Orange	Santa Ana		Orange	September 14, 1930	Orange County Transportation Authority Line 53
S	Santa Ana–Huntington Beach	Santa Ana		Huntington Beach	October 27, 1918	N/A
S	Huntington Beach–La Bolsa	Huntington Beach		La Bolsa	November 9, 1928	N/A
S	Seal Beach–Huntington Beach–Newport Beach	6th & Main	Long Beach Avenue, Willowbrook Avenue, private ROW, Electric Avenue, Pacific Coast Highway	Newport Beach	June 30, 1950	Orange County Transportation Authority Line 1
S	Balboa	6th & Main	Long Beach Avenue, Willowbrook Avenue, private ROW, Electric Avenue, Pacific Coast Highway, Balboa Boulevard	Balboa	June 9, 1940 (cut back to Newport Beach)	Orange County Transportation Authority Lines 1, 71
S	Long Beach	6th & Main	Long Beach Avenue, Willowbrook Avenue, private ROW, Long Beach Boulevard	Long Beach	April 9, 1961	MTA Line 60 and Blue Line
S	Watts Local	6th & Main	Long Beach Avenue	Watts	April 9, 1961	MTA Line 56 (discontinued in 2003)
S	Long Beach–San Pedro	Long Beach	Private ROW	San Pedro	January 2, 1949	MTA Line 232
S	Terminal Island	6th & Main; Long Beach	Long Beach Avenue, Willowbrook Avenue, private ROW, Henry Ford Avenue	Terminal Island	September 16, 1945	N/A
S	San Pedro via Dominguez	6th & Main	Long Beach Avenue, Willowbrook Avenue, private ROW	San Pedro	December 7, 1958	MTA Line 202
S	Catalina Dock	6th & Main	Long Beach Avenue, Willowbrook Avenue, private ROW	Catalina Dock	October 12, 1958 (also had service from Long Beach via the Long Beach-San Pedro Line until 1949-04-30)	N/A
S	Torrance	6th & Main	Long Beach Avenue, Lanzit Avenue, Vermont Avenue, 166th Street, Normandie Avenue, Torrance Boulevard	Torrance	January 14, 1940	N/A
S	San Pedro via Gardena	6th & Main	Long Beach Avenue, Lanzit Avenue, Vermont Avenue, 166th Street, Normandie Avenue, Torrance Boulevard, Cabrillo Avenue, Plaza del Amo, Normandie Avenue, Gaffey Street, private ROW	San Pedro	February 26, 1939 (cut back to Torrance; Carson Cutoff along Normandie Avenue had been abandoned on 1927-10-19, taking all trips through Torrance)	N/A
S	Redondo via Gardena	6th & Main	Long Beach Avenue, Lanzit Avenue, Athens Way, private ROW, Vermont Avenue, 166th Street, private ROW, 182nd Street, private ROW, Diamond Street, Catalina Avenue	Clifton	January 14, 1940	N/A
S	Hawthorne–El Segundo	6th & Main	Long Beach Avenue, Lanzit Avenue, private ROW, Grand Avenue	El Segundo	October 31, 1930	N/A
S	Hawthorne–El Nido	Hawthorne	Hawthorne Boulevard	El Nido	October 25, 1933	N/A
N	South Pasadena Local	6th & Main	Aliso Street, private ROW, Daly Street, Pasadena Avenue, Figueroa Street, Pasadena Avenue, Mission Street, Fair Oaks Avenue	Pasadena	January 2, 1935 (remained south of Mission Road until 1942-10-17)	MTA Line 176
N	Annandale	6th & Main	Aliso Street, private ROW, Daly Street, Pasadena Avenue, Figueroa Street, Avenue 64	Annandale	April 3, 1928 (1926-11-13 north of Adelaide Place)	MTA Line 256
N	Pasadena Short Line	6th & Main	Aliso Street, private ROW, Soto Street, Huntington Drive, Fair Oaks Avenue	Pasadena	September 30, 1951	MTA Line 260
N	Pasadena via Oak Knoll	6th & Main	Aliso Street, private ROW, Soto Street, Huntington Drive, Oak Knoll Avenue, Lake Avenue	Pasadena	October 8, 1950	MTA Line 485
N	Mount Lowe	6th & Main	Aliso Street, private ROW, Soto Street, Huntington Drive, Fair Oaks Avenue, Colorado Boulevard, Lake Avenue, Mount Lowe Drive	Rubio Canyon (connecting with the Mount Lowe Railway)	September 15, 1936	N/A
N	Sierra Vista Line	6th & Main	Aliso Street, private ROW, Soto Street, Huntington Drive	Sierra Vista	September 30, 1951	MTA Lines 78 and 79
N	Lamanda Park	Pasadena	Colorado Boulevard	Lamanda Park	January 19, 1941 (cut back several blocks from Lamanda Park on 1936-03-01)	MTA Line 181
N	Sierra Madre	6th & Main	Aliso Street, private ROW, Soto Street, Huntington Drive, Sierra Madre Boulevard	Sierra Madre	October 6, 1950	MTA Line 487
N	Monrovia–Glendora	6th & Main	Aliso Street, private ROW, Soto Street, Huntington Drive, Olive Avenue, Royal Oaks Drive, private ROW, 9th Street, private ROW	Glendora	September 30, 1951	MTA Line 79, Foothill Transit Line 494
N	Alhambra–San Gabriel	6th & Main	Aliso Street, private ROW, Soto Street, Huntington Drive, Main Street, Las Tunas Drive; loop through San Gabriel via Mission Drive, Junipero Serra Drive	Temple City	November 30, 1941	MTA Line 78
N	Shorb	Pasadena	Fair Oaks Avenue, Huntington Drive, Main Street, Palm Avenue	Shorb	April 16, 1924	N/A
N	El Monte–Baldwin Park	6th & Main	Aliso Street, private ROW, Ramona Boulevard	Baldwin Park	October 15, 1950	MTA Line 490
N	Covina	6th & Main	Aliso Street, private ROW, Ramona Boulevard, Badillo Street	Covina	March 28, 1947 (cut back to Baldwin Park)	MTA Line 490
N	San Dimas	6th & Main	Aliso Street, private ROW, Ramona Boulevard, Badillo Street	Lone Hill	November 1, 1941 (cut back to Covina)	MTA Line 490, Foothill Transit Line 492
N	San Dimas Local	Lone Hill	Private ROW	San Dimas	July 4, 1924	N/A
N	Pomona	6th & Main	Aliso Street, private ROW, Ramona Boulevard, Badillo Street, private ROW, White Avenue	Pomona	November 1, 1941 (cut back to Covina)	MTA Line 490, Foothill Transit Line 492
N	Pomona–Claremont	Pomona	Garey Avenue, private ROW, 1st Street	Claremont	January 1, 1933	Foothill Transit Line 492
N	Upland–Ontario	Ontario		Upland	October 6, 1928	Omnitrans Line 83
N	Ontario–San Antonio Heights	Ontario		San Antonio Heights	November 1, 1924 (cut back from San Antonio Heights to La Cima on 1924-07-03)	N/A
N	Upland–San Bernardino	6th & Main		San Bernardino	November 1, 1941	MTA Line 190, Foothill Transit Line 492, Omnitrans Lines 66, 14
N	Redlands	6th & Main		Redlands	July 20, 1936	MTA Line 190, Foothill Transit Line 492, Omnitrans Lines 66, 14, 8
N	Highland	San Bernardino		Highland	September 1, 1933 (branch to Patton on 1924-06-01)	N/A
N	Arrowhead	San Bernardino		Arrowhead Springs	September 1, 1932	N/A
N	San Bernardino–Riverside	San Bernardino		Riverside	February 1, 1938	Omnitrans Line 215
N	Riverside–Rialto Line	6th & Main		Riverside	June 9, 1940	N/A
N	Riverside–Arlington	Riverside		Arlington	January 10, 1943	Riverside Transit Agency Line 1
N	Arlington–Corona	Arlington		Corona	August 11, 1931	Riverside Transit Agency Line 1
W	Redondo Beach via Playa del Rey	Hill Street	Hill Street, Venice Boulevard, Culver Boulevard, Vista del Mar Avenue, The Strand, Hermosa Avenue, Harbor Drive, Catalina Avenue	Clifton	May 12, 1940	Culver CityBus Line 7 (MTA Line 220 until 2006)
W	West 16th Street	Hill Street	Hill Street, Venice Boulevard (16th Street), San Vicente Boulevard	Vineyard (extended 1940-07-07 to Genesee Street)	September 17, 1950 (Vineyard-Genesee Street shuttle remained until 1950-10-01)	MTA Line 733
W	Venice Short Line	Hill Street	Hill Street, Venice Boulevard, Pacific Avenue, Neilson Way, Ocean Avenue	Santa Monica	September 17, 1950	MTA Line 733
W	Sawtelle	Hill Street	Hill Street, Venice Boulevard, San Vicente Boulevard, Burton Way, Santa Monica Boulevard	Santa Monica	July 7, 1940	MTA Line 4; also Line 27 (Burton Way) until 2002
W	Venice–Inglewood	Ocean Park	Private ROW, Ballona Street	Inglewood	September 13, 1919	N/A
W	Venice–Playa del Rey	Venice	Pacific Avenue	Playa del Rey	July 13, 1936	N/A
W	Westgate	Hill Street	Hill Street, Venice Boulevard, San Vicente Boulevard, Burton Way, Santa Monica Boulevard, private ROW, San Vicente Boulevard, Ocean Avenue	Santa Monica	June 30, 1940	Big Blue Bus Line 4 (MTA Line 22 until 2003)
W	Santa Monica Air Line	6th & Main	Long Beach Avenue, private ROW, Exposition Boulevard, private ROW	Santa Monica	November 26, 1953	Expo Line in 2016-5-20
W	Beverly Hills	Subway Terminal or Hill Street	Glendale Boulevard or Hill Street, Sunset Boulevard, Hollywood Boulevard, Marshfield Way, private ROW, Santa Monica Boulevard	Beverly Hills	September 26, 1954	MTA Line 217
W	Venice via Hollywood	Subway Terminal	Glendale Boulevard, Sunset Boulevard, Hollywood Boulevard, Marshfield Way, private ROW, Santa Monica Boulevard, Ocean Avenue, Neilson Way, Pacific Avenue	Venice	August 23, 1941	N/A
W	Laurel Canyon	Hill Street	Hill Street, Sunset Boulevard, Hollywood Boulevard, Marshfield Way, private ROW, Sunset Boulevard	Laurel Canyon	March 10, 1924	N/A
W	Soldiers' Home	Sawtelle	Private ROW	Soldiers' Home	1920	N/A
W	Coldwater Canyon	Beverly Hills	Rodeo Drive	Coldwater Canyon (Beverly Hills Hotel)	January 15, 1923	N/A
W	South Hollywood–Sherman	Subway Terminal	Glendale Boulevard, Sunset Boulevard, Santa Monica Boulevard	Sherman	May 31, 1953	MTA Line 4
W	Western and Franklin Avenue	Hill Street	Hill Street, Sunset Boulevard, Santa Monica Boulevard, Western Avenue, Franklin Avenue	Hollywood (Hollywood and Vine)	March 17, 1940	MTA Line 26 (removed from Franklin Avenue in 2006)
W	Brush Canyon	Hollywood	Bronson Avenue, Canyon Drive	Brush Canyon	August 6, 1918	N/A
W	Lankershim–Van Nuys	Subway Terminal	Glendale Boulevard, Sunset Boulevard, Santa Monica Boulevard, Highland Avenue, Hollywood Freeway, Vineland Avenue, Chandler Boulevard, Van Nuys Boulevard	Van Nuys	December 28, 1952	MTA Line 156
W	Owensmouth	Subway Terminal	Glendale Boulevard, Sunset Boulevard, Santa Monica Boulevard, Highland Avenue, Hollywood Freeway, Vineland Avenue, Chandler Boulevard, Van Nuys Boulevard, Sherman Way	Canoga Park (Owensmouth)	May 30, 1938	MTA Line 163
W	San Fernando	Subway Terminal	Glendale Boulevard, Sunset Boulevard, Santa Monica Boulevard, Highland Avenue, Hollywood Freeway, Vineland Avenue, Chandler Boulevard, Van Nuys Boulevard, Parthenia Street, Sepulveda Boulevard, Brand Boulevard	San Fernando	May 30, 1938	MTA Line 234
W	Echo Park Avenue	Hill Street	Hill Street, Sunset Boulevard, Echo Park Avenue	Elysian Heights	October 1, 1950	Downtown Area Short Hop Pico Union/Echo Park
W	Edendale Local	Subway Terminal	Glendale Boulevard	Edendale	June 17, 1955 (served Arcade Station via 6th Street, Figueroa Street, 2nd Street rather than Subway Terminal until 1940-09-08)	MTA Line 92
W	Glendale	Subway Terminal	Glendale Boulevard, Brand Boulevard	North Glendale	June 19, 1955	MTA Line 92
W	Burbank	Subway Terminal	Glendale Boulevard, Brand Boulevard, Glenoaks Boulevard	Burbank	June 19, 1955 (cut back from Eton Drive on 1940-11-24)	MTA Line 92
W	East Broadway	Subway Terminal	Glendale Boulevard, Brand Boulevard, Broadway	Glendale	December 24, 1946	N/A

Local lines

The Los Angeles Railway operated most local lines in central Los Angeles, but the Pacific Electric had local systems in a number of other areas:

East Washington
Long Beach
Pasadena
Pomona
Redlands
Riverside^[2]
San Bernardino
San Pedro
Santa Monica

Dual gauge track

The PE and the Los Angeles Railway shared some dual gauge 4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm)/3 ft 6 in (1,067 mm) track along Hawthorne Boulevard, on Main Street and on 4th Street.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pacific Electric</span> Southern California transit company

The Pacific Electric Railway Company, nicknamed the Red Cars, was a privately owned mass transit system in Southern California consisting of electrically powered streetcars, interurban cars, and buses and was the largest electric railway system in the world in the 1920s. Organized around the city centers of Los Angeles and San Bernardino, it connected cities in Los Angeles County, Orange County, San Bernardino County and Riverside County.

The historic Pacific Electric Building, opened in 1905 in the core of Los Angeles as the main train station for the Pacific Electric Railway, as well as the company's headquarters; Main Street Station served passengers boarding trains for the south and east of Southern California. The building was designed by architect Thornton Fitzhugh. Though not the tallest in Los Angeles, its ten floors enclosed the greatest number of square feet in any building west of Chicago for many decades. Above the train station, covering the lower floors, were five floors of offices; and in the top three was the Jonathan Club, one of the city's leading businessmen's clubs introduced by magnates from the Northeast. After the “Great Merger” of Pacific Electric into Southern Pacific Railroad in 1911, the PE Building became the home of Southern Pacific in Los Angeles. In 1925, a second electric rail hub, the Subway Terminal, was opened near Pershing Square to serve the north and west.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Subway Terminal Building</span> Building in California, United States

The historic Subway Terminal, now Metro 417, opened in 1925 at 417 South Hill Street near Pershing Square, in the core of Los Angeles as the second, main train station of the Pacific Electric Railway; it served passengers boarding trains for the west and north of Southern California through a mile-long shortcut under Bunker Hill popularly called the "Hollywood Subway," but officially known as the Belmont Tunnel. The station served alongside the Pacific Electric Building at 6th & Main, which opened in 1905 to serve lines to the south and east. The Subway Terminal was designed by Schultze and Weaver in an Italian Renaissance Revival style, and the station itself lay underground below offices of the upper floors, since repurposed into the Metro 417 luxury apartments. When the underground Red Line was built, the new Pershing Square station was cut north under Hill Street alongside the Terminal building, divided from the Subway's east end by just a retaining wall. At its peak in the 20th century, the Subway Terminal served upwards of 20 million passengers a year.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Monrovia–Glendora Line</span> Pacific Electric streetcar route (1902–1951)

The Monrovia–Glendora Line was a route on the Pacific Electric Railway serving the San Gabriel Valley. It operated from 1902 to 1951, supporting nearby real estate development.

Glendale–Burbank is a defunct Pacific Electric railway line that was operational from 1904 to 1955 in Southern California, running from Downtown Los Angeles to Burbank via Glendale. Short lines terminated Downtown and in North Glendale, including the popular Edendale Local.

The Pasadena Short Line was a passenger railway line of the Pacific Electric Railway. It ran between Downtown Los Angeles and Downtown Pasadena, California, through Eastside Los Angeles along the foot of the eastern San Rafael Hills to the western San Gabriel Valley. It was in service under the company between 1902 until 1951, though it had operated under different companies back to its beginnings as a horsecar line. The route, designated by the company as line 2, was the key component of the company's Northern Subdivision.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Redondo Beach via Gardena Line</span> Pacific Electric streetcar line (1911–1940)

Redondo via Gardena was a line of the Pacific Electric Railway. One of two routes to Redondo Beach, this one was faster than the Redondo Beach via Playa del Rey Line as a result of its routing along the quadruple-tracked Watts main line.

The Hollywood Line was a local streetcar line of the Pacific Electric Railway. It primarily operated between Downtown Los Angeles and Hollywood, with some trips as far away as Beverly Hills and West Los Angeles. It was the company's busiest route prior to the opening of the Hollywood Subway. Designated as route 32, the line operated from 1909 until 1954.

The Long Beach Line was a major interurban railway operated by the Pacific Electric Railway between Los Angeles and Long Beach, California via Florence, Watts, and Compton. Service began in 1902 and lasted until 1961, the last line of the system to be replaced by buses.

F was a streetcar line in Los Angeles, California. It was operated by the Los Angeles Railway from 1911 to 1955.

The Venice Short Line was a Pacific Electric (PE) interurban railway line in Los Angeles which traveled from downtown Los Angeles to Venice, Ocean Park, and Santa Monica via Venice Boulevard. The route was especially busy on Sundays, as Venice was PE's most popular beachfront destination.

The Los Angeles Pacific Railroad (1896−1911) (LAP) was an electric public transit and freight railway system in Los Angeles County, California. At its peak it had 230 miles (370 km) of track extending from Downtown Los Angeles to the Westside, Santa Monica, and the South Bay towns along Santa Monica Bay.

Central Station was the Southern Pacific Railroad's main passenger terminal in Los Angeles, California. It was formerly on Central Avenue at Fifth Street, in eastern Downtown Los Angeles. The primary hub for Southern Pacific's passenger operations in Southern California, it was served by the Sunset Limited, Coast Daylight, Golden State, and other named trains. The station replaced the company's previous Los Angeles terminal, Arcade Depot, and was often referred to by the name of the older facility.

The Western and Franklin Avenue Line was a Pacific Electric streetcar line which traveled from Los Angeles to Hollywood. It operated from 11th and Hill Streets via Hill, Sunset, Santa Monica Boulevard, Western Avenue, Franklin Avenue, Argyle Avenue, Yucca Street, and Vine Street to end at Hollywood and Vine Boulevards. It operated from 1908 to 1940. The Brush Canyon Line branched from this line at Bronson.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Echo Park Avenue Line</span> Pacific Electric streetcar line (1899–1950)

The Echo Park Avenue Line was a Pacific Electric streetcar line in Los Angeles. The railway traveled from 11th and Hill Streets in downtown Los Angeles along the Hollywood Line to Sunset Boulevard where it turned right and proceeded north along Echo Park Avenue to terminate at Cerro Gordo Street in the Echo Park neighborhood.

The San Bernardino–Riverside is a former Pacific Electric (PE) interurban railway line in the Inland Empire. Unlike most of the company's services, trains did not travel to Downtown Los Angeles and instead provided a suburban service between San Bernardino and Riverside.

The Redlands Line is a former Pacific Electric interurban railway line in the Inland Empire. The route provided suburban service between San Bernardino and Redlands.

The Colton Line was a local streetcar line, mostly known as being a service of the Pacific Electric. It operated between Colton and San Bernardino, one of two lines in service between the two cities.

The Riverside–Arlington Line is a former Pacific Electric interurban railway line in the Inland Empire. The route provided suburban service between San Bernardino and Arlington with a later extension to Corona. It operated between 1893 and 1943.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Venice Boulevard Line</span> Pacific Electric streetcar route (1896–1950)

The Venice Boulevard Line was a local streetcar line of the Pacific Electric. It operated between Downtown Los Angeles and Vineyard Junction, where riders could transfer to interurban cars. Nearly all Venice Short Line cars did not accept local passengers, leaving this as the primary streetcar service along its namesake boulevard.

References

↑ Veysey, Laurence R. (June 1958). A History Of The Rail Passenger Service Operated By The Pacific Electric Railway Company Since 1911 And By Its Successors Since 1953 (PDF). LACMTA (Report). Los Angeles, California: Interurbans. p. 6. ASIN B0007F8D84. OCLC 6565577.
↑ "(Pacific Electric Railway Lines in Riverside, California)" (Map). Barry Lawrence Ruderman Antique Maps Inc. Pacific Electric. June 20, 1911. Retrieved 19 January 2021.

"Pacific Electric". Electric Railway Historical Association of Southern California. Retrieved January 20, 2008.
"A Chronology of Changes in Rail Passenger Operations of the Pacific Electric Railway Company". Electric Railway Historical Association of Southern California. Retrieved January 20, 2008.
McGraw Electric Railway Directory. McGraw-Hill Publishing Company. 1920. p. 11.

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[1] Veysey, Laurence R. (June 1958). A History Of The Rail Passenger Service Operated By The Pacific Electric Railway Company Since 1911 And By Its Successors Since 1953 (PDF). LACMTA (Report). Los Angeles, California: Interurbans. p. 6. ASIN B0007F8D84. OCLC 6565577.

[2] "(Pacific Electric Railway Lines in Riverside, California)" (Map). Barry Lawrence Ruderman Antique Maps Inc. Pacific Electric. June 20, 1911. Retrieved 19 January 2021.

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