Silicon Valley Archival Storymaps

The Dumbarton Rail Corridor is an historic bridge and rail line across the southern portion of the San Francisco Bay, once linking the Peninsula region to the lower East Bay. Ever since service on the 20-miles of track stopped in 1982, a variety of proposals and initiatives to restore it have been raised, most recently between 2017 and 2020 when interest from Facebook breathed some new light and hope for funding into the idea. The collapse of transit ridership during the Covid-19 pandemic, along with political difficulties Facebook reportedly had with other transit agencies, led the corporation to withdraw, but the decaying rail corridor remains an intriguing infrastructural case, from its fascinating history to its persistent potential. 

The history of the corridor and attempts to restore it as an active rail crossing was the subject of a study by Joe Romani, MUP, in 2023. In partnership with the SJSU Institute for Metropolitan Studies, Joe’s research and archival materials have now been collected in an online research portal. The Dumbarton Rail Corridor Archive documents the history of the corridor and regional efforts to restore passenger service over the past 30 years. The online archive collects in one place for the first time a wealth of information on the history of the corridor, the stakeholders involved, the permits required, and analysis of the implications of the project for Bay Area residents, the environment, and the economy. The result is a public resource of value to researchers, policymakers, and community members.

Visit the Dumbarton Rail Corridor Archive.