San Rafael Transit Center

San Rafael Transit Center
Intermodal station
The San Rafael Transit Center, waiting and loading area
Location 3rd Street and Hetherton Street
San Rafael, California
Coordinates 37°58′15″N 122°31′21″W / 37.97083°N 122.52250°W / 37.97083; -122.52250Coordinates: 37°58′15″N 122°31′21″W / 37.97083°N 122.52250°W / 37.97083; -122.52250
Platforms 2 side platforms
Tracks 2
Train operators Sonoma–Marin Area Rail Transit (2017)
Bus operators Golden Gate Transit
Marin Transit
Marin Airporter[1]
Sonoma County Airport Express[2]
Sonoma County Transit
Greyhound Bus Lines
Construction
Structure type at grade
Parking Yes
Bicycle facilities Yes
Disabled access Yes
Other information
Fare zone 1 (SMART)
History
Opened 1991 (1991)[3]
July 8, 2017 (2017-07-08) (SMART preview)[4]
August 25, 2017 (2017-08-25) (SMART service)
Traffic
Passengers approx. 9000 daily (2016)[3]
Services
Preceding station   Sonoma–Marin Area Rail Transit   Following station
SMARTTerminus
  Future services  
toward Cloverdale
Future
Terminus
  Former services  
Preceding station   Northwestern Pacific Railroad   Following station
Terminus   Interurban   Cal Park
toward Tiburon Ferry Terminal
    Cal Park
toward Sausalito Ferry Terminal
B St.
toward Sausalito Ferry Terminal		     Terminus
B St.
toward Manor		    
Ignacio
toward Eureka
Flag stop at Hamilton Field		   Redwood[5]  
Hamilton Field
toward Eureka		   San Francisco to Eureka[6]   Green Brae
toward Sausalito Ferry Terminal

The San Rafael Transportation Center in San Rafael, California, also called the C. Paul Bettini Transportation Center,[3] is the main passenger transit terminal for Marin County. From here, passengers can make transfers throughout Marin County, to San Francisco, Contra Costa, and Sonoma Counties. It is also an important station for buses serving San Francisco International Airport, Oakland International Airport, and the rest of the country. The Transit Center is planned to be re-configured or moved in the coming years as Sonoma–Marin Area Rail Transit trains pass through the transit center.[7]

The San Rafael Transit Center, as seen from Tamalpais Avenue

History

The original San Rafael railway depot that served the Northwestern Pacific Railroad was located at what is now a cafe north of the station. As rail use fell into decline and was discontinued in the mid 20th century, busses came to prominence with the expansion of the road and highway system. The current transportation center was constructed in 1991.[3]

SMART service began with preview rides on July 8, 2017[4] and full service commenced on August 25, 2017; the station acts as the southern terminus of the line, pending expansion to Larkspur Landing.

Description

The San Rafael Transit Center hosts to a number of bus agencies, including:

In addition to bus services, there is a double-track railway and two side platform in service as part of the Sonoma–Marin Area Rail Transit system. Commuter trains arrived in Santa Rosa for testing in March 2016 after a fifty seven-year absence of such services.[12].

Location

The San Rafael Transit Center[13] is located at the corner of 3rd and Hetherton Streets, bounded by Tamalpais Avenue to the west and 2nd Street to the south. Its proximity to Downtown San Rafael and U.S. Highway 101 makes the SRTC an important transfer point for services within Marin County and beyond, aside from being the main hub for Golden Gate Transit services.

Transfers and Features

A Van Hool A330 bus modified as a Zero-Emissions Bus at the SRTC (taken in 2007)
A Golden Gate Transit bus operating as a Route 22 at the SRTC
A Marin Transit shuttle operating as a Route 233 at the SRTC
A Greyhound bus stopping at the SRTC for a local trip

With most of Marin Transit's and many of Golden Gate Transit's routes meeting at the San Rafael Transit Center, it provides a transfer point for passengers from San Rafael going towards the rest of Marin County and throughout the Bay Area. As the main stop for Greyhound for the county, SRTC provides connections for its passengers from within Marin County to intra- and inter-regional bus service. It is also one of the main stops of two Airport Bus companies (Marin Airporter and Sonoma County Airport Express), allowing passengers to travel to either San Francisco International Airport or Oakland International Airport without the need of driving.

Routes Starting and Ending at SRTC

Routes listed below current as of May 2017

Route Number Origin/Destination Operated by
17 Sausalito via Mill Valley Marin Transit
22 Marin City via College of Marin Marin Transit
27
Weekday midday and reverse commute trips only		 San Francisco Financial District Golden Gate Transit
38
Weekday commute periods only		 Sonoma Valley Sonoma County Transit
40, 40X*
* - Weekday peaks only		 Del Norte BART
Route 40 only: via Point Richmond		 Golden Gate Transit
49 Novato via Northgate Mall Marin Transit
68 Inverness via Point Reyes Station West Marin Stagecoach
101
Select trips		 San Francisco Civic Center Golden Gate Transit
122
School days only		 College of Marin Kentfield Campus Marin Transit
125
School days only		 Lagunitas Marin Transit
228 Fairfax Manor via Sir Francis Drake Marin Transit
233
Santa Venetia Marin Transit
245
Smith Ranch & Yosemite via Kaiser Hospital Marin Transit
257
Ignacio via Northgate Mall Marin Transit

Routes Stopping at San Rafael Transit Center

Route Number Terminals Operated by
North/East South/West
23 San Rafael
(Shoreline Parkway at Target)		 Downtown Fairfax
Most trips
Fairfax Manor
Select evening trips		 Marin Transit
23X
Weekday peaks only		 Canal District
(Kerner & Larkspur)		 Fairfax Manor Marin Transit
27
Weekday peaks only		 San Anselmo
Most trips
Sleepy Hollow
One round trip		 San Francisco Financial District Golden Gate Transit
29
Weekday peaks only		 Canal District
(Kerner & Larkspur)		 Marin General Hospital Marin Transit
30 San Rafael GGT
(Andersen Drive)		 San Francisco Civic Center Golden Gate Transit
35 Novato
(Redwood & Olive)		 Canal District
(Kerner & Larkspur)		 Marin Transit
36 Canal District
(Kerner & Larkspur)		 Marin City
(Donahue & Terners)		 Marin Transit
44
Weekday commute periods only		 Lucas Valley
(Lucas Valley & Las Gallinas)		 San Francisco Financial District Golden Gate Transit
70 Novato
(Redwood & Olive)		 Transbay Terminal Golden Gate Transit
71X
Weekdays only		 Novato
(Redwood & Olive)		 Marin City
(Donahue & Terners)		 Marin Transit
101 Santa Rosa
(Piner & Industrial)		 San Francisco Civic Center Golden Gate Transit
Marin Airporter
Ticketed passengers only (pick up only to SFO, drop off only to Novato)		 Novato San Francisco International Airport Marin Airporter
Airport Express
Ticketed passengers only (pick up only to OAK, drop off only to Santa Rosa)		 Santa Rosa Oakland International Airport Sonoma County Airport Express
Greyhound
Ticketed passengers only		 Various Greyhound, Inc.
Valley of the Moon Commute Club - DISCONTINUED[14]
Sonoma
Riverside Dr. and La Mancha Dr.
Santa Rosa
Santa Rosa Transit Mall		 San Francisco
Van Ness/Hayes St. and Market St.

Notes:

  • Golden Gate and Marin Transit buses may board at a different side of the same platform.
  • For service to Highway 101 bus pads north of San Rafael, board either Routes 35, 49, 70, or 71X.
  • For service to Highway 101 bus pads south of San Rafael, board either Routes 17, 30, 36, 70, or 71X.
  • For service to Northgate Mall, board either Routes 35, 49, 245, or 257.
  • For service to Marin County Civic Center, board either Routes 35, 49, or 233.
  • Routes 23X and 29 interline in the Canal District, with eastbound Route 23X trips continuing as southbound Route 29, and northbound Route 29 trips continuing as westbound Route 23X.
  • Route 35 trips after 10:30pm operate between San Rafael Transit Center and Canal District only.
  • Route 23X operates as a limited-stop service, with no stops between San Rafael Transit Center and San Anselmo Hub.
  • Route 71X operates as a limited-stop service, with the next northbound stop at Ignacio Blvd. bus pad and the next southbound stop at Tiburon Wye bus pad.

Golden Gate's Route 80 used to operate through San Rafael Transit en route to San Francisco and Santa Rosa via Highway 101 bus pads and West Petaluma. It was subsequently discontinued in 2012 in favor of Route 101, a limited-stop version of the old Route 80.[15]

Features

San Rafael Transit Center, facing east

The San Rafael Transit Center has the following amenities for its passengers:

  • Saluté Cafe, a coffee shop which also carries Golden Gate Transit and Marin Transit value tickets.
  • A shop that hosts ticketing offices for Greyhound Bus Lines and Sonoma County Airport Express (for Oakland Airport)
  • Clipper ticketing machines on all platforms
  • Disabled () access throughout the Transit Center
  • Taxi stand

Near the Transit Center are full-service restaurants, especially along Fourth Street (Downtown San Rafael) and Second Street, grocery stores, and other businesses. Also nearby are three park-and-ride lots within walking distance of the SRTC, all located under the Highway 101 overpass, that allow commuter parking.

See also

References

  1. ↑ Marin Airporter Website
  2. ↑ Sonoma County Airport Express Website
  3. 1 2 3 4 Prado, Mark (11 March 2016). "San Rafael Transit Center to undergo major changes with SMART's arrival". Digital First Media. Marin Independent Journal. Retrieved 11 June 2016.
  4. 1 2 "SMART Public Preview Rides". SMART. Retrieved 9 July 2017.
  5. ↑ "Northwestern Pacific Railroad Timetable". Northwestern Pacific Railroad Network. Northwestern Pacific Railroad. Retrieved 1 June 2017.
  6. ↑ "San Francisco, Petaluma, Santa Rosa, Healdsburg, Cloverdale, Ukiah, Willits, Longvale, Dos Rios, Island Mountain, Fort Seward and Eureka – Via Sausalito". Northwestern Pacific Railroad Network. Northwestern Pacific Railroad. Retrieved 1 June 2017.
  7. ↑ Prado, Mark (4 February 2017). "San Rafael wants a delay in SMART trains to Larkspur". Marin Independent Journal. Retrieved 5 February 2017.
  8. ↑ "Marin Airporter". Marin Airporter. 2007-09-10. Archived from the original on 2007-10-24. Retrieved 2007-11-02.
  9. ↑ "Sonoma County Airport Express Schedules and Fares". Sonoma County Airport Express. Retrieved 2018-04-21.
  10. ↑ Sonoma County Transit (2007-08-14). "Sonoma County Transit Route 38 (San Rafael to Sonoma Valley)" (PDF). Sonoma County Transit. Archived from the original (PDF) on August 21, 2008. Retrieved 2007-11-02.
  11. ↑ Greyhound (2007-08-14). "Greyhound.com : Locations : San Rafael, California". Greyhound Transit. Retrieved 2007-11-02.
  12. ↑ Prado, Mark (4 March 2016). "Commuter train rolls into San Rafael for the first time in 50 years". Marin Independent Journal. Retrieved 24 April 2016.
  13. ↑ GGBHTD (2007-09-10). "San Rafael Transit Center" (PDF). Golden Gate Bridge, Highway, and Transportation District. Retrieved 2007-11-02.
  14. ↑ http://sonomasun.com/2011/02/24/end-of-line-for-valley-commuter-bus/
  15. ↑ servicechanges_jun09


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