Whittier Line

Whittier Line
	The first Pacific Electric Car to Whittier, 1904
Overview
Owner	Southern Pacific Railroad
Locale	Southern California
Termini	Pacific Electric Building; Whittier, California
Service
Type	Interurban
System	Pacific Electric
Operator(s)	Pacific Electric
Daily ridership	1,139,480 (peak, 1923)[1]
History
Opened	Late 1903[1]
Closed	January 22, 1938 (to Whittier); March 6, 1938 (to Walker)
Technical
Line length	17.35 mi (27.92 km)
Track gauge	1,435 mm (4 ft 8 1⁄2 in) standard gauge
Electrification	600 V DC overhead lines
Route map
	Pacific Electric Building
	Edendale Local
	multiple
	lines
	multiple
	lines
	Fullerton &
	La Habra–Yorba Linda

The Whittier Line was a Pacific Electric interurban line which traveled between Los Angeles and Whittier via Huntington Park, Rivera, and Los Nietos.[2] Due to its indirect route, the line was eventually replaced by bus service on Whittier Boulevard.[3]

History

Construction began in March 1902, and the single track line opened to Whittier in late 1903.[1] The route was graded wide enough to lay a second set of tracks in the future.[4] Operations were undertaken by the Los Angeles Inter-Urban Electric Railway in 1904 and they had double tracked the line by September 1904. Southern Pacific assumed operation in 1908, and it was acquired by the new Southern Pacific in the 1911 Great Merger. By September 1935, the number of departures was reduced to one round trip daily and service to Walker was regarded a its own local line. The final train left Whittier on January 22, 1938[5] and Walker service ceased March 6.[1]

The West Santa Ana Branch Transit Corridor light rail project is expected to use a section of the line between Slauson and the former Los Angeles and Salt Lake Railroad right of way.

Unbuilt connection to Corona

Henry E. Huntington, owner of the Pacific Electric, intended to connect the Whittier Line to the Arlington–Corona Line via Stern and the Santa Ana Canyon. After the Great Merger of 1911, surveys were carried out to establish two routes through the canyon — one on each side of the Santa Ana River.[6]

Stations

Timetable as of 1931[2]

station	Mi. EB	Mi. WB	Time EB	Time WB
Los Angeles	0.00	17.35	0:00	0:45
Slauson Junction	4.27	13.08	0:16	0:33
Huntington Park	5.42	11.93	0:20	0:28
Bell (Maywood Ave.)	6.73	10.62
Bell (Gifford Ave)	7.20	10.15	0:23	0:21
Walker			0:28	0:19
Edgewater	9.20	8.15
Laguna	10.28	7.07
Rio Hondo	11.40	5.95
Rivera	12.58	4.77	0:35	0:10
Los Nietos	14.50	2.85	0:39	0:08
State School	16.71	0.94	0:43	0:02
Whittier	17.35	0.00	0:47	0:00

References

"Whittier Line". Electric Rail Heritage Association. Retrieved 17 September 2020.
Smith, O.A. (1931). Railway Time Table: Whittier Line, La Habra Line (August 26, 1931 ed.). Los Angeles: Pacific Electric. Retrieved 17 September 2020.
Walker, Jim (January 1, 1976). Lines of Pacific Electric: Southern & Western Districts (Special 60) (Second Printing ed.). Glendale, California: Interurban Press. p. 172.
Crump, Spencer (1962). Ride The Big Red Cars. Los Angeles: Crest Publications. p. 103. LCCN 62021885. OCLC 4784406.
Veysey, Laurence R. (June 1958). A History Of The Rail Passenger Service Operated By The Pacific Electric Railway Company Since 1911 And By Its Successors Since 1953 (PDF). LACMTA (Report). Retrieved 19 September 2020.
"Riverside Corona Line". Electric Rail Heritage Association. Retrieved 17 January 2021.

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[ERHA-1] "Whittier Line". Electric Rail Heritage Association. Retrieved 17 September 2020.

[Timetable-2] Smith, O.A. (1931). Railway Time Table: Whittier Line, La Habra Line (August 26, 1931 ed.). Los Angeles: Pacific Electric. Retrieved 17 September 2020.

[LinesSW-3] Walker, Jim (January 1, 1976). Lines of Pacific Electric: Southern & Western Districts (Special 60) (Second Printing ed.). Glendale, California: Interurban Press. p. 172.

[4] Crump, Spencer (1962). Ride The Big Red Cars. Los Angeles: Crest Publications. p. 103. LCCN 62021885. OCLC 4784406.

[1958History-5] Veysey, Laurence R. (June 1958). A History Of The Rail Passenger Service Operated By The Pacific Electric Railway Company Since 1911 And By Its Successors Since 1953 (PDF). LACMTA (Report). Retrieved 19 September 2020.

[erha-6] "Riverside Corona Line". Electric Rail Heritage Association. Retrieved 17 January 2021.