SANTA BARBARA, Calif. — The Union Pacific-Norfolk Southern merger has, indirectly, ended a proposal to extend Metrolink commuter rail service from Ventura to Santa Barbara County.
In its place, those two counties are now looking at a proposal from the LOSSAN Rail Corridor Agency that would serve the same desire to create a commuter rail option from Ventura to Santa Barbara with additional Pacific Surfliner service that would also benefit the LOSSAN corridor as a whole.
The service involving Metrolink at one time had been projected to begin last October, but last summer was pushed back to early this year [see “Start of Metrolink service to Santa Barbara …,” Trains.com, Aug. 30, 2025]…