Caltrain Gets Award, Holiday Train Goes Electric
Caltrain has enjoyed a 56 percent increase in ridership this year, earning it the title of the fastest-growing transit agency, according to the American Public Transportation Association. This, of course, corresponds with the rollout of more frequent schedules and its newly electrified service.
From a Caltrain release:
The increased ridership and satisfaction levels follow the launch of its new high-performance electric trains in September 2024 that offer a better experience for Caltrain riders and provide faster and more frequent service.
The spotlight of the agency’s increased ridership follows Caltrain’s own 2025 Customer Satisfaction Survey, unveiled in October, which revealed ridership had grown 57% year-over-year, with weekend ridership doubling and five consecutive months of over one million riders.
Alongside the growth in ridership, the rail agency has seen a dramatic increase in ridership satisfaction and the best ratings in the 27-year history of the survey. Surveyed riders reported a record high satisfaction rating of 4.41 out of 5, up from 4.02 in 2024.
And to celebrate, Caltrain unveiled its first-ever electrified holiday train in a sneak peek on Friday afternoon at its 4th and King Station. “Caltrain’s annual Holiday Train has been reinvented as a new on-board experience,” wrote the agency in a statement. Caltrain has run its holiday train since 2002, previously with its old diesel equipment.
Sadly, tickets for the holiday train, which will run on Saturday/tomorrow, sold out in 45 minutes. For lucky ticket holders, however, the train will stop at:
- San Mateo on Ice and Las Posadas in San Mateo
- Hometown Holidays in Redwood City
- GISSV’s German Holiday Market in Mountain View
- Christmas at the Depot in Santa Clara
- Christmas in the Park in San Jose
- And other lively downtowns along the Caltrain corridor
Even without tickets, families can still go look at the train and enjoy the station-side holiday events listed above. More info here. And a few more photos below:
