ORANGE COUNTY, CALIFORNIA — Today, Orange County Supervisor Katrina Foley, who serves as a Director of the Orange County Transportation Authority (OCTA), announced today that Metrolink and Amtrak passenger rail service through San Clemente will resume beginning Monday, July 17, 2023. This follows the completion of the emergency soldier pile wall over the tracks beneath Casa Romantica to provide protection from falling debris.
“I am happy to share rail service through San Clemente will resume just in time for the peak of the summer season,” said Supervisor Foley. “Rail service has been suspended more days this year than not - our coastal economy relies on visitors, commuters, and tourists to support our local businesses. Orange County transit is back on track thanks to the OCTA staff, California Transportation Commission, Metrolink, Amtrak Pacific Surfliner, and the expedient efforts of our partners to build the soldier pile wall and protect our rail corridor.”
The Track Protection Project website can be found here. The final dimensions of the temporary barrier wall are 250 feet long and 12 feet high, with the piles set 32 feet beneath ground.
Following Supervisor Foley’s request, the OCTA Board approved an emergency resolution to protect the railroad tracks impacted by the latest landslide beneath Casa Romantica in San Clemente. Since June 5, 2023, passenger rail service into Oceanside halted due to debris landed on the tracks. The resolution authorized OCTA’s Chief Executive Officer to take all necessary actions to protect the rail track, including the construction of a soldier pile wall that will shield the railroad from any further debris.
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Orange County Supervisor Katrina Foley was elected to the Board of Supervisors in 2022 to represent the newly established District 5, which includes the cities of Aliso Viejo, Costa Mesa, Dana Point, a large portion of Irvine, Laguna Beach, Laguna Hills, Laguna Niguel, Laguna Woods, Newport Beach, San Clemente, San Juan Capistrano, as well as the unincorporated areas of Coto de Caza, Emerald Bay, Ladera Ranch, Las Flores, Rancho Mission Viejo, Stonecliffe and Wagon Wheel. This is her second term on the Board of Supervisors, where she previously served District 2.
Supervisor Foley’s Board appointments include the Orange County Fire Authority (OCFA), OCFA Legislation & Public Affairs Committee Chair, Orange County Transportation Authority (OCTA), Transportation Corridor Agency (TCA), TCA Joint Environmental Committee, Coastal Greenbelt Authority, Newport Bay and South Orange County Watershed Executive Committees, Ocean Institute, San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station (SONGS) Community Engagement Panel, Spent Fuel Solutions Coalition Co-Chair, Law Library Board of Trustees, Orange County Housing Finance Trust, Local Agency Formation Commission (alt), Orange County Juvenile Justice Coordinating Council, and OC Public Libraries Advisory Board.
