Tunnel Repairs Will Disrupt Rail Traffic

Plans to replace the railroad tracks in the tunnel linking Ventura and Los Angeles counties will shut down rail traffic through Simi Valley this fall.

During the first two weeks of October, Metrolink officials will bus the approximately 1,000 daily passengers from Simi Valley, Moorpark and three other west county stations directly to the Chatsworth station where passengers will continue to Los Angeles via rail. Passengers returning home will be bused from the Chatsworth station into Ventura County.

Lack of drainage in the tunnel leaves the tracks resting on mud and trains have to slow down to about 10 mph to safely get through, said Ginger Gherardi, director of the Ventura County Transportation Commission. After the planned repairs to the tracks, the trains could reach speeds of 40 mph, shaving several minutes off the one-hour commute from Simi Valley to Union Station in Los Angeles, she said.

Fourteen Metrolink trains pass through the tunnel five days a week, and six Amtrak trains.

The repairs will also affect Amtrak service. Amtrak will probably run buses between Chatsworth and Simi Valley for passengers traveling on the Pacific Surfliner and Coast Starlight routes, Amtrak spokeswoman Jennifer McMahon said.