First Batch of Sand Arrives to Protect Vulnerable Rail Line in Orange County

Hundreds of loads of sand delivered to shore up rail line in San Clemente

An Amtrak Surfliner heads south. (File photo courtesy of SANDAG) Officials have marked a key milestone in the effort to protect a coastal rail line that stretches to downtown San Diego. The line connects Amtrak’s Pacific Surfliner – the route begins and ends in San Diego – with Orange and Los Angeles counties, but it has been hampered by closures due to the unstable ground that surrounds it. Ongoing work to stabilize the line now includes a sand…

First batch of sand arrives to protect vulnerable rail line in Orange County

Orange County crews have begun laying thousands of pounds of sand in San Clemente as part of an emergency project to protect a vulnerable passenger and freight rail line along the Pacific coast. On Friday, members of the Orange County Transportation Authority celebrated the delivery of the first round of sand to be placed along the coastal rail line in a "sand nourishment" effort meant to protect the vital train corridor from the elements. Over …

Sand trucked in from desert to help protect rail line, address beach erosion in San Clemente

Sand is being shipped from a quarry in Palm Springs to San Clemente’s North Beach, a test case to see how the desert grains hold up at the shore. The Orange County Transportation Authority’s initial deposit will be 3,400 cubic yards of sand hauled to North Beach as part of efforts to protect the coastal rail line that has been damaged in recent years by landslides and ocean erosion — a small amount compared to the 250,000 cubic yards it hopes to…