The Santa Ana Line was an interurban route connecting Los Angeles and Santa Ana in Orange County. It ran between 1905 and 1958 (with the southern end truncated to Bellflower in 1950) and was predominantly operated by the Pacific Electric Railway for its history.
History The route began operation on November 6, 1905 under the Los Angeles Inter-Urban Electric Railway; Pacific Electric leased the line starting in 1908 and fully acquired it in 1911 under terms of the Great Merger. At the time of the merger, running times between termini was 75 minutes. Short turns at Artesia began in 1917, though these were cut back to Bellflower in November 1927. Santa Ana's status as the county seat and largest city in Orange County at the time allowed for high ridership. The railway built a new station in the city in late 1927, and cars were rerouted to serve it.
Cars ceased running to the Santa Ana Southern Pacific Depot in November 1945. By 1950, service had halved from its peak only five years earlier and the line was cut back to the minor station in Bellflower on July 2, becoming the Bellflower Line. (PE continued to serve the Bellflower to Santa Ana segment with motor coaches. ) The service was then disposed of by Pacific Electric, being taken over first by Metropolitan Coach Lines as its line 11 in 1953 before being commuted to the Los Angeles Metropolitan Transit Authority in 1958, the same year it was discontinued; the last train ran on May 24, 1958. Bellflower Line service was briefly designated as line 34 for just over a month prior to discontinuance.
Modern services
The Los Angeles Metro Rail operates a few light rail lines over the former route. The A Line runs over the former Watts Line as far as Watts, and the C Line and Century Freeway were built through Lynwood on the old Pacific Electric right of way.
The Southeast Gateway Line is a plan to reactivate part of the line in Los Angeles County for expanded light rail service. The section between Bellflower station and former Paramount station will be rehabilitated and connected to a new service eventually terminating downtown, though via a different routing than the former Santa Ana Line.
The OC Streetcar is expected to open in 2026 and run on the southern section of the former Santa Ana Line between Santa Ana and Garden Grove.
Route
The Santa Ana Line ran from the Pacific Electric Building in Los Angeles to the Southern Pacific depot in Santa Ana, California via the Watts Line and West Santa Ana Branch. The latter segment's diagonal running was a stark contrast to the cardinally-aligned road grid of Los Angeles and Orange Counties.
The route was quadruple-tracked through the Watts trunk line, while the Santa Ana Branch was double-tracked except at single-track bridges.
List of major stations
Station Mile Major connections Date opened Date discontinued City Pacific Electric Building 0.00 Alhambra–San Gabriel, Annandale, Balboa, Fullerton, Hawthorne–El Segundo, La Habra–Yorba Linda, Long Beach, Monrovia–Glendora, Mount Lowe, Pasadena Short Line, Pasadena via Oak Knoll, Pomona, Redlands, Redondo Beach via Gardena, Riverside–Rialto, San Pedro via Dominguez, San Pedro via Gardena, Santa Monica Air Line, Sierra Madre, Soldiers' Home, South Pasadena Local, Upland–San Bernardino, Watts, WhittierLos Angeles Railway B, H, J, R, 7, and 8 1905 1958 Los Angeles Slauson Junction 4.27 Balboa, Fullerton, Hawthorne–El Segundo, La Habra–Yorba Linda, Long Beach, Redondo Beach via Gardena, San Pedro via Dominguez, San Pedro via Gardena, Watts, Whittier 1902 1958 Watts 7.45 Balboa, Hawthorne–El Segundo, Long Beach, Redondo Beach via Gardena, San Pedro via Dominguez, San Pedro via Gardena, Watts 1902 1958 Lynwood 9.70 1958 Lynwood Morton 11.55 1958 Paramount (Clearwater) 13.06 1958 Paramount 15.40 1958 Bellflower Artesia 18.43 1911 1950 Artesia Cypress 21.70 1950Cypress Stanton 24.82 1950Stanton Garden Grove 28.56 1950 Garden Grove Santa Ana–Pacific Electric 33.61 Santa Ana–Huntington Beach, Santa Ana–Orange 1927 1950 Santa Ana Santa Ana–Southern Pacific 34.00 Southern Pacific 1945
Ridership +Passengers (Fare and transfer)YearPassengersCar milesRevenueInflation adjusted ()19141,143,675856,229$291,282$1916936,257578,574$225,501$19181,193,306735,322$243,536$19201,090,490638,275$268,927$1922888,531548,292$297,578$1924881,931566,542$313,478$1926734,529536.202$255,610$1928751,032502,058$230,200$1930852,268583,690$219,719$1932446,876460,756$132,1401934367,159404,580$104,1901936369,230360,656$106,8121938315,603339,949$95,3541940343,984348,885$81,612$1942750,758440,797$199,06119442,270,2011,001,143$590,80019452,479,2461,030,924$635,905$19462,231,655894,937$501,13919472,064,688795,527$492,84319501,046,974398,694$277,422$1952884,177258,293$235,566$1954704,078223,732$222,140$1956651,181221,658$240,198$1958181,16780,499$71,681$
References
External links