The VTA light rail system serves San Jose and nearby cities in Santa Clara County, California. It is operated by the Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority (VTA) and has 42.2 miles (67.9 km) of network comprising three main lines on standard gauge tracks. Originally opened on December 11, 1987, the light rail system has expanded since then, and currently has 60 stations in operation.
All the lines and the corridors they run through are designed to move passengers from the suburban areas of Santa Clara Valley into the major business areas in Downtown, the Santa Clara County Civic Center, and northern Silicon Valley, site of many high-tech company offices.
Light Rail also serves to connect travelers to other transportation systems at several key points: Diridon station offers connections to Caltrain, ACE, Amtrak's Coast Starlight, the Capitol Corridor trains; Milpitas station offers a connection to the BART system; and Metro/Airport station offers a connection to the San Jose International Airport via VTA Bus route 60.
The system is mostly double-tracked with overhead catenary wires. It variously runs along the medians of former railroad rights of way, freeways and surface streets, and pedestrian malls.
The Green Line connects Old Ironsides station in Santa Clara with Winchester station in Campbell, and as it approaches the Amtrak/CalTrain/Altamont Express passenger station, the line drops below ground, effectively becoming a subway for a short distance so as to not interfere with the other commuter and long distance trains. VTA operates a fleet of Kinki Sharo low-floor Light Rail Vehicles, such as 909, seen entering the tunnel beneath the San Jose Diridon Station. (San Jose, California – June 14, 2024)
