by Adam Pizante/photos by the author
Sacramento, the capital of California, has a long and rich railroad history dating all the way back to the mid-1800s. Sacramento Valley Railroad was formed in 1852, and by 1855 the first train ran from Sacramento to Folsom, Calif., some 23 miles to the east. The transcontinental railroad route that connected Sacramento with Chicago was completed in May 1869, and Sacramento served as the base of operations for the massive railroad infrastructure project over Donner Pass. Since that first Sacramento Valley Railroad trip to Folsom back in 1855, the city is still a major landmark on the U.S. railroad map to this day.
Finding the Action
The major railroads that run in and around Sacramento are Union Pacific, BNSF Railway, and Amtrak. Union Pacific has the biggest footprint in the area by far, due to the takeover of Western Pacific in 1982 and Southern Pacific in 1996. BNSF has trackage rights over a number of UP lines in and around the capital region, providing some variety. Amtrak runs trains 5 and 6, the California Zephyr, daily as well as multiple Capitol Corridor trains that are supported by the state.
ABOVE: A unit grain train picks up speed as it departs the massive yard in Roseville with a fresh crew on board on June 21, 2009. It will make its way to the Central Valley with its load of chicken feed behind AC4400CW 6699.
Today, Sacramento’s railroads are still hard at work and as vibrant as ever. Let’s start our tour at Elvas Wye, located just northeast of downtown and arguably the busiest railroad location around the capital city. This is the former location of Elvas tower, built by SP in 1910, and retired in late 1999. The wye hosts many Union Pacific, Amtrak, and BNSF trains. There are two subdivisions that split at Elvas — the UP Fresno Sub running north-south from Elvas to Fresno in the Central Valley, and the Martinez Sub running east-west from Roseville to Oakland. Both lines offer good traffic levels, but the Fresno Sub is the busier of the two. The wye is easily viewed from Lanatt Street, which dead-ends at the access gate to the tracks. Although views of the wye are limited for photography from the street, it is a great hot spot to visit while in the area.
Next up on our tour is Haggin Wye, which is west of Elvas and just off Highway 160 in downtown. Here you can view the UP Martinez Sub where it flies over the Sacramento Sub (former Western Pacific). Access to the wye area is off 20th Street, and you can get great photo angles of train movements of both lines. You will find that the Martinez Sub is the busier of the two lines at this location.
ABOVE: An Amtrak Capitol Corridor train completes its station stop in the quaint college town of Davis on a cool November 2017 evening. This train will now head west to the Bay Area with several stops along the way. Davis is located west of Sacramento on the opposite end of the Yolo Causeway.
A short 20-mile drive to the northeast on Interstate 80 will bring you to the famous Union Pacific J.R. Davis Yard in “old town” Roseville. The short drive is well worth it, as you can get great views of train movements in and out of the very busy yard from multiple public roads. The yard feeds the East Valley Line to the north, which heads to Oregon, and the Roseville Sub east to Reno. The other end of the yard feeds the Martinez Sub, which heads west to Sacramento and the Bay Area.
There is a railfan viewing platform on Pacific Street in old town — a must for your visit. Roseville is a safe and friendly city for railfans, and there are many great spots to get a bite to eat around old town. A fantastic place for lunch is the Railroad Cafe across the street from the railfan platform…
ABOVE: A BNSF run-through train behind C44-9W 4528 is just north of the Del Paso siding on UP’s Sacramento Sub on March 11, 2018. This train will make its way to the Feather River Canyon before hitting home rails at the famous Keddie Wye en route to the Pacific Northwest.
