LA-to-San Francisco Night Train Closer to Reality

A train operator has entered into formal negotiations with Union Pacific to move the project forward with a projected launch date of 2025.

1 minute read

March 27, 2024, 12:00 PM PDT

By Diana Ionescu @aworkoffiction


Amtrak train passing over tall trestle bridge on California coast at Gaviota Beach.

Train passing through Gaviota Beach in central California. | htrnr / Adobe Stock

According to an article by Bill Buchanan in SFGate, Dreamstar Lines of Newport Beach signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Union Pacific, paving the way for the first Los Angeles-to-San Francisco night train since 1983. “Most U.S. travelers abandoned trains for driving or flying decades ago, but Dreamstar believes congested roads and the hassles and environmental cost of air travel create an opening for its service.” 

As Buchanan explains, “Union Pacific owns most of the 470-mile route. To complete the link between San Francisco and Los Angeles, Dreamstar also needs agreements to use tracks owned by regional transit operators Caltrain and Metrolink.”

Union Pacific acknowledged that it “entered into formal negotiations” regarding the line. Currently, the only rail service between the Bay Area and Los Angeles is Amtrak’s daytime Coast Starlight service.

Monday, March 25, 2024 in SFGate

portrait of professional woman

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching. Mary G., Urban Planner

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching.

Mary G., Urban Planner

Get top-rated, practical training

Wastewater pouring out from a pipe.

Alabama: Trump Terminates Settlements for Black Communities Harmed By Raw Sewage

Trump deemed the landmark civil rights agreement “illegal DEI and environmental justice policy.”

April 13, 2025 - Inside Climate News

Logo for Planetizen Federal Action Tracker with black and white image of U.S. Capitol with water ripple overlay.

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker

A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.

April 16, 2025 - Diana Ionescu

Black and white photos of camp made up of small 'earthquake shacks' in Dolores Park in 1906 after the San Francisco earthquake.

The 120 Year Old Tiny Home Villages That Sheltered San Francisco’s Earthquake Refugees

More than a century ago, San Francisco mobilized to house thousands of residents displaced by the 1906 earthquake. Could their strategy offer a model for the present?

April 15, 2025 - Charles F. Bloszies

People walking up and down stairs in New York City subway station.

In Both Crashes and Crime, Public Transportation is Far Safer than Driving

Contrary to popular assumptions, public transportation has far lower crash and crime rates than automobile travel. For safer communities, improve and encourage transit travel.

April 18 - Scientific American

White public transit bus with bike on front bike rack in Nashville, Tennessee.

Report: Zoning Reforms Should Complement Nashville’s Ambitious Transit Plan

Without reform, restrictive zoning codes will limit the impact of the city’s planned transit expansion and could exclude some of the residents who depend on transit the most.

April 18 - Bloomberg CityLab

An engineer controlling a quality of water ,aerated activated sludge tank at a waste water treatment plant.

Judge Orders Release of Frozen IRA, IIJA Funding

The decision is a victory for environmental groups who charged that freezing funds for critical infrastructure and disaster response programs caused “real and irreparable harm” to communities.

April 18 - Smart Cities Dive