San Rafael is a city and the county seat of Marin County, California, United States. The city is located in the North Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area. As of the 2020 U.S. census, the city's population was 61,271, up from 57,713 in 2010.
The Richmond–San Rafael Bridge is the northernmost of the east–west crossings of the San Francisco Bay in California, USA. Officially named after California State Senator John F. McCarthy, it bridges Interstate 580 from Richmond on the east to San Rafael on the west. It opened in 1956, replacing ferry service by the Richmond–San Rafael Ferry Company.
The California Western Railroad, AKA Mendocino Railway popularly called the Skunk Train, is a rail freight and heritage railroad transport railway in Mendocino County, California, United States, running from the railroad's headquarters in the coastal town of Fort Bragg to the interchange with the Northwestern Pacific Railroad at Willits.
Sonoma–Marin Area Rail Transit (SMART) is a rail line and bicycle-pedestrian pathway project in Sonoma and Marin counties of the U.S. state of California. When completed, the entire system will serve a 70-mile (110 km) corridor between Cloverdale in northern Sonoma County and Larkspur Landing in Marin County. In 2022, the system had a ridership of 474,500, or about 2,200 per weekday as of the fourth quarter of 2022.
The “Northwestern Pacific Railroad” was a 271 mile mainline railroad from the ferry connections in Sausalito north to Eureka with a connection to the national railroad system at Schellville. The railroad has gone through a history of different ownership and operators but has maintained a generic name of reference as “The Northwestern Pacific.” Currently, only a 62-mile (100 km) stretch of mainline on the “South End” is operated by Sonoma-Marin Area Rail Transit (SMART), which operates both commuter and freight trains with plans for future extension north to Cloverdale. The “North End,” from Willits to Eureka which includes connections to the California Western Railroad] is currently out of service but saved by 2018 legislation to be converted into the Great Redwood Trail.
The North Pacific Coast Railroad (NPC) was a common carrier 3 ft (914 mm) narrow-gauge steam railroad begun in 1874 and sold in 1902 to new owners who renamed it the North Shore Railroad (California) (NSR) and which rebuilt the southern section into a standard-gauge electric railway.
California Park is an unincorporated community in Marin County, California, United States, and a suburb of San Rafael. It lies north of San Quentin State Prison. Marin Sanitary Service is the largest tenant in the area.
The San Rafael Transportation Center is an intermodal transportation center located in downtown San Rafael, California. It is a primary transfer point for several local and regional bus operators, and a commuter rail station on the Sonoma–Marin Area Rail Transit (SMART) system.
The Tiburon Ferry Terminal is a ferry landing for Golden Gate Ferry and Angel Island–Tiburon Ferry Company passenger ferries in Tiburon, California in the San Francisco Bay Area's North Bay. It connects commuters from Marin County with job centers in San Francisco across the San Francisco Bay to the Ferry Building. The terminal also provides tourist and recreational passenger service to the Ayala Cove Ferry Terminal on Angel Island State Park.
Marin Civic Center station is a Sonoma–Marin Area Rail Transit station in San Rafael, California, located adjacent to the Marin County Civic Center.
Novato San Marin is a Sonoma–Marin Area Rail Transit station in Novato, California. It opened to preview service on June 29, 2017; full commuter service commenced on August 25, 2017. It is located on the north side of the city near where San Marin Drive becomes Atherton Avenue at Redwood Avenue. This was one of two stations planned for Novato in the Initial Operating Segment of SMART service until a third was announced to be partially built for opening at a later date.
Petaluma Downtown station is a Sonoma–Marin Area Rail Transit station in Petaluma. It opened to preview service on June 29, 2017; full commuter service commenced on August 25, 2017. A new platform and facilities were constructed adjacent to the historic Northwestern Pacific Railroad station building, which opened in 1914. It is the system's first station to open in the city, with Petaluma North station set to open later.
Windsor is a bus station and future Sonoma–Marin Area Rail Transit (SMART) train station in Windsor, California. The station served Sonoma County Transit and Mendocino Transit Authority, with service to Sonoma County Airport station provided by Sonoma County Transit under contract by SMART.
Novato Downtown station is a train station in Novato, California. It opened as an infill station for the Sonoma–Marin Area Rail Transit (SMART) service in December 2019.
Haystack Landing is a historic property in Sonoma County, California, now owned by Dutra Materials. Haystack Landing was a passenger and freight connection on San Francisco Bay via the Petaluma River and San Pablo Bay. The landing is currently the site of a historic steamer dock, a railroad bridge, and of a planned asphalt production and storage facility. Haystack Landing was featured in then-congressman Frank Riggs' election campaign in the 1996 California First Congressional District race, when his ties to the property drew criticism.
Larkspur station is a Sonoma–Marin Area Rail Transit (SMART) station in Larkspur, California. The terminal station opened to revenue service on December 14, 2019. It is located 1⁄3 mile (0.5 km) from the Larkspur Landing ferry terminal, across Sir Francis Drake Boulevard.
The Northwestern Pacific Railroad operated a network of electric interurban lines in Marin County, California from 1903 to 1941. The lines ran to Sausalito at the southern tip of the county, where connecting ferries ran to San Francisco. Trains consisted of electric multiple units powered by third rail electrification. The lines were the first third-rail electrification in California, and the first major railroad to use alternating current signals.
