The OC Streetcar is a modern streetcar line currently under construction in Orange County, California, running through the cities of Santa Ana and Garden Grove. The electric-powered streetcar will be operated by the Orange County Transportation Authority (OCTA), and will serve ten stops in each direction along its route. With the exception of a short loop in downtown Santa Ana, the line will be double-tracked for its entire length. Most of the route follows the original path of the Pacific Electric Railway "Red Cars" that served Santa Ana in the early 20th century, before being abandoned in 1950. Construction on the streetcar broke ground on November 30, 2018. As of October 2023, the line's expected revenue service date has been pushed to August 2025, per OCTA staff, despite initial plans for a 2021 start.
The streetcar will operate between the Santa Ana Regional Transportation Center to a new Harbor Transit Center in Garden Grove, linking the Metrolink station and downtown Santa Ana.
Route
The streetcar's planned eastern terminus is the Santa Ana Regional Transportation Center, which is served by Metrolink commuter rail and the Amtrak Pacific Surfliner, as well as a number of bus routes.
From the train station, the streetcar route runs west along Santa Ana Boulevard to downtown Santa Ana and the Santa Ana Civic Center, the main administrative center for the City of Santa Ana and the County of Orange, where an estimated 38,000 jobs are located. The route will split at Mortimer Street onto existing one-way streets with westbound service continuing on Santa Ana Boulevard through Civic Center, while returning eastbound service will travel on 4th Street (two blocks south), through the Arts District.
After rejoining at Ross Street near the Santa Ana City Hall, the line will continue west along Santa Ana Boulevard to Raitt Street, where it will continue on the former Pacific Electric West Santa Ana Branch right-of-way along the north side of 4th Street. Turning northwest, the line will cross over the Santa Ana River and Westminster Avenue on bridges.
At the northwest end of the line, it will briefly enter the city of Garden Grove where an intermodal transit center will be constructed at the line's terminus at the intersection of Westminster Avenue and Harbor Boulevard. The transit center will connect streetcars to OCTA's Harbor Boulevard bus routes, which are the busiest in the county, accounting for about 8 percent of OCTA's ridership and Westminster Avenue bus routes.
Operations and infrastructure
The streetcar will operate as a curbside, street running system between the Santa Ana station and Raitt Street; west of there, it will operate in a dedicated right-of-way. The streetcar is proposed to operate from 6 a.m. to 11 p.m. Monday through Thursday; 6 a.m. to 1 a.m. on Fridays and Saturdays; and 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. on Sundays and holidays. Trains will run every 10 minutes between 6 a.m. and 6 p.m., and every 15 minutes at other hours. A single trip from end-to-end on the line is expected to take 22 minutes, an average speed of .
The route will include 10 stations in each direction, which will connect to 18 existing OCTA bus lines. Each station will include platforms near major cross streets. The route will be double-tracked for its entire length. The maintenance and storage facility will be located adjacent to 5th Street near the eastern terminus of the Pacific Electric right-of-way at Raitt Street. The Harbor and Raitt stops will include park and ride lots in addition to the existing parking structure at the Santa Ana train station.
Although the former Pacific Electric rail bridge over the Santa Ana River still exists, it is single-track and considered structurally inadequate due to its age. A new double-track bridge is being built parallel to the old bridge. In addition, the line will cross Westminster Avenue on an elevated bridge to reach the Harbor Transit Center in Garden Grove.
Eight Siemens S700 light rail vehicles will service the route, with six in operation at any one time. Overhead lines will deliver power to the trains at 750 volts, direct current. OCTA projects a daily ridership of between 6,000 and 7,300 passengers, and each streetcar's total capacity is up to 180 people.
The OC Streetcar will use a proof-of-payment system, requiring valid payment before boarding and lacking a turnstile barrier at stations. Fares will be purchased as paper tickets and passes at ticket vending machines at stations, or through a mobile ticketing app.
Fares will be the same as charged on OCTA's OC Bus service. Herzog Transit Services won the contract to operate the service in 2020.