The plan to connect Ceres and Turlock with passenger rail service to Sacramento and the Bay Area is one step closer to reality.

The San Joaquin Regional Rail Commission was recently awarded $40 million from the Trade Corridor Enhancement Program for the Union Pacific Railroad line from Ceres to Turlock.

The double-tracking project includes both freight and passenger rail. Initiating Altamont Corridor Express (ACE) passenger rail service between Ceres and Turlock is a part of the overall Valley Rail Program. The Valley Rail Program is a project that will expand and increase passenger rail in the Northern San Joaquin Valley to Sacramento and the Bay Area.

“We would like to thank the CTC for continuing to support expanding sustainable transportation in the San Joaquin Valley,” says Leo Zuber, chairman of the San Joaquin Regional Rail Commission. “The $40 million TCEP award continues SJRRC’s commitment to working with our state and federal partners to fully fund the Valley Rail Program which will connect so many new communities to rail transportation.”

The $40 million TCEP award will be added to the $57 million from the Transit and Intercity Rail Capital Program received in 2022 for the Ceres to Turlock segment of the Valley Rail Program. The Ceres to Turlock double-tracking project was estimated at $133.4 million. SJRRC is submitting applications for federal and state programs to fully fund the segment.

UPRR Ceres to Turlock double tracking will construct a new, second mainline track along an approximately 10-mile portion of the UPRR Fresno Subdivision between Ceres and Turlock. Following the same alignment as the existing mainline track, the project will also include the extension of two culverts, modification of the undercrossing at State Route 99 (SR 99), and improvements to 11 at-grade crossing locations. These improvements will enhance current freight mobility and allow for passenger service as a part of the larger Valley Rail service plan.

The southward extension was decided after the passage of Measure L, the half-cent sales tax approved by Stanislaus County voters in 2016, and the state’s passage of SB 1 in 2017. Then-state Senator Anthony Cannella’s vote was key in passing the $52 billion transportation plan, and managed to wrestle a pledge of $400 million to fund the ACE extension to Merced. Turlock’s station alone will cost $26,023,143, with the cost of the expansion project totaling nearly $481.5 million.

The Turlock station will see a new parking lot constructed at the Roger K. Fall Transit Center on the corner of North Golden State Boulevard and West Hawkeye Avenue.

A pedestrian foot bridge will stretch across North Golden State Boulevard, providing access to more parking along North Front Street and leading to the new station platform along the tracks adjacent to The Grand Oak event center on the south end of the fairgrounds parking lot. While the ACE route will utilize current UPRR tracks, double tracks will be added at the Turlock station to minimize interference with freight trains. 

The latest funding means ACE service will reach Turlock several or so years ahead of 2030, possibly within a few years of trains starting to serve Ceres.

Ultimately, ACE will be extended to Merced to connect with the California High Speed Rail system. 

Initially, three trains will depart Ceres weekdays, all making stops in Modesto, Ripon and downtown Manteca. Two trains will continue north to Lathrop-Manteca, Stockton, Elk Grove, Sacramento, and Natomas north of the American River ending several miles from Sacramento International Airport.

Another train will head toward San Jose with stops at Lathrop-Manteca, Tracy, Vasco Road, Livermore, Pleasanton, Fremont, Great America, Santa Clara and San Jose.

The state funding will get ACE service to Merced ahead of high-speed rail.

The Ceres platform will be located west of Highway 99 and between the new track and existing railroad tracks. ACE train passengers will park on the east side of the freeway and walk beneath the freeway overpass to access a pedestrian tunnel that will lead to the platform. 

In February, the Valley Rail Project received $142 million for the Valley Rail Program and ACE corridor improvements through the Transit and Intercity Passenger Rail Capital Program. Those funds will go to the completion of three project areas, encompassing nine individual components, including: (1) Natomas, Elk Grove, North Lathrop, Manteca, Modesto, Ceres, and Madera Valley Rail stations; (2) the Stockton Diamond Grade Separation; and (3) ACE platform extensions at Lathrop/Manteca, Tracy, Vasco Rd, Livermore, and Pleasanton stations.

— Jeff Benziger and Dennis Wyatt contributed to this report.