In the heart of Oakland’s bustling waterfront district, a sight both jarring and mesmerizing unfolds multiple times a day: massive freight and passenger trains rumble directly down the middle of a public road.
Unlike most urban rail lines that are elevated, tunneled, or fenced off, the tracks at Jack London Square are embedded in the asphalt of Embarcadero West, forcing locomotives to share the lane with cars, cyclists, and pedestrians.
This phenomenon, known as street running, is a relic of a bygone era that continues to shape the identity and logistics of Oakland today.
The Historical Blueprint of a Working Waterfront
The presence of these tracks is not a modern planning oversight but a preserved piece of 19th-century industrial design…