WE’RE WORKING ON TRANSIT SAFETY
The effects of coastal erosion on the Del Mar Bluffs are inescapable. It is a reality of our coastal geology, seasonal tidal patterns and sea level rise. The impacts of erosion are plainly visible from the shoreline. That is why, since the early 1990s, the North County Transit District and the San Diego Association of Governments have worked to study and stabilize the Bluffs, over which one of our region's most vital transportation assets passes. It is also why we must continue to be vigilant — ensuring the integrity of the bluffs today, furthering critical stabilization and state-of-good repair projects in the coming years, and planning for the eventual movement of the tracks off the bluffs in the decades ahead.
A mile and a half portion of San Diego's rail corridor passes over the Del Mar Bluffs. The corridor, which is owned and operated by NCTD, plays a central role in the region's multi-modal transportation network — moving over 2 million passengers last year, delivering $1 billion of goods annually into our supply chain, and supporting our national defense network. It is a part of the second-busiest passenger rail corridor in the nation, hosting the Coaster, Amtrak Pacific Surfliner and Metrolink passenger train services, as well as BNSF Railway freight services.
In recognition of the vital role the rail corridor plays, bluffs stabilization was studied as far back as 1993. Stabilization efforts began in 2003 with a slate of four bluff stabilization projects between Coast Boulevard and Torrey Pines State Beach in Del Mar. These projects included the installation of more than 230 support columns and critical drainage infrastructure to reinforce and protect the bluffs.
The initial four stabilization phases have been a success. While there have been some slides from erosion, the Del Mar Bluffs have remained intact and safe. These stabilization efforts are why we have not seen major failures in Del Mar like the dramatic footage of the recent bluff failure over Black's Beach in La Jolla, more than three miles south of where the tracks turn inland and the stabilization project area ends.
SANDAG expects to start the fifth stabilization project, Del Mar Bluffs phase 5, later this year. The project's importance cannot be overstated. Phase 5 will stabilize the track bed along the bluff segments most vulnerable to erosion and earthquakes for 30 years upon completion. A sixth phase, which would address the remaining segments necessary to stabilize the tracks for an additional 20 years, is in the planning stages. Planning for a sixth phase now is prudent due to the cost and complexity of implementing a realignment of the tracks into a tunnel.
While the stabilization efforts have proven effective, NCTD recognizes the potential still exists for impacts to the track bed caused by erosion. To address this potential, NCTD has policies in place to actively monitor the bluffs to ensure safe rail operations. NCTD performs inspections before, during and after rain events. This includes prestorm inspections of all Del Mar drainage facilities and other high priority drainage areas, 24-hour monitoring during rain events and post-storm inspections. These policies also include procedures for immediate inspections performed by engineers with the geotechnical expertise required to assess the stability of the track bed following erosion events.
Coastal bluffs are not the only portion of rail in Del Mar impacted by erosion. The rail bridge over the San Dieguito Lagoon is over 100 years old, is expensive to maintain, is susceptible to flooding at current sea level and is, perhaps, the portion of our region's rail infrastructure most vulnerable to a major service disruption. Any one of these factors would be reason enough to replace the bridge. The fact that all are true makes it an imperative.
The project would ensure the condition of the bridge continues to meet operational and safety requirements, enhance the rail corridor's resiliency to sea level rise by raising the elevation of the tracks, increase passenger and freight capacities, and add a special events platform at the Del Mar Fairgrounds. It is the initial step toward the realignment of the tracks off the bluffs. SANDAG's infrastructure development plan identifies the San Dieguito bridge replacement for completion by 2025, but the project is not yet funded.
Bluff stabilization efforts and the planned bridge replacement in Del Mar improve our rail infrastructure's resiliency to sea level rise; however, the region must also pursue a long-term solution. That is why the NCTD board of directors voted to support the realignment of the tracks off the bluffs in 2021. The region was fortunate to receive a $300 million allocation from the state of California to advance plans to move the tracks off the bluffs. These funds boosted the long-term proposal to respond to erosion through rail realignment and could further help additional projects, like the San Dieguito Bridge, that are necessary to realign the tracks and to safeguard our infrastructure against erosion.
Erosion is a geological reality of our coastal environment. Addressing this reality requires actively managing erosion impacts today, tomorrow and into the future by wisely investing the funding our region receives. That is exactly what the North County Transit District is doing to ensure our region's rail infrastructure remains safe, secure and operational.