The excursion to San Francisco from the North Bay area or to the wine country will soon be close to the reality. The country soon will have rail services, proper train schedule, ferry, and connecting shuttle including riders. Sonoma-Marin Rail travels released its last week shutter services with precise notes about the agency and ridership.
North Bay and the Golden Gate residents are expecting much from the Smart city plan. Matt Gustafson of Windsor said in an email responding to a Press Democrat query about the train schedule. “I’m excited about the SMART train for recreational outings, “I’d rather use the ferry and the train than drive in traffic, deal with SF parking, etc.”
SMART and Golden Gate Bridge officials said “The schedule has been set to allow riders enough time to make their connections, while not delaying them any longer than necessary,” said Priya Clemens, a spokeswoman for the Golden Gate Bridge Highway and Transportation District. “As a new service, we’ll be watching the connection carefully and will adjust as needed.”
Extension of rail service to the ferry terminal is slated for 2019, provided that federal funding comes through.
To begin with, there are 14 scheduled shuttle trips connecting the ferry and rail terminals, split evenly between the southbound morning commute and the evening return home. In the mornings, the shuttle will arrive at the ferry terminal between 5 and 20 minutes before the boat leaving for San Francisco.