ACE Train Adds Additional Stockton-To-San Jose Trip As Collapsed Ridership Inches Back
SAN JOSE (BCN) -- The Altamont Corridor Express, a commuter rail service connecting Stockton and San Jose, announced the reactivation of ACE train 05 westbound and 06 eastbound that will begin operating again Monday.
The 05 westbound train leaves Stockton at 6:40 a.m. and arrives in San Jose at 8:52 a.m., while the 06 eastbound train leaves San Jose at 4:35 p.m. and arrives in Stockton at 6:47 p.m.
ACE train ridership was down 95 percent of normal at the start of the pandemic, causing the rail service to only run two roundtrip trains on weekdays instead of four, according to ACE marketing manager David Lipari. The change starting next week will increase that to three roundtrip trains.
With many types of businesses continuing to remain closed, ridership continues to be down 88 percent.
"We are a commuter-focused service, so with most of the offices in Santa Clara and Alameda County continuing to be closed, we still have pretty limited ridership," Lipari said.
ACE train user Lisa Chairez Vaerla Hermosillo said she was nervous in the beginning of the pandemic to take the train because of COVID-19, but she needed to use the train to get to work and her doctor appointments at Stanford Hospital.
"I was nervous in the beginning of the pandemic because of how it spread airborne. I'm undergoing cancer treatments ... sanitation and cleanliness is mandatory," Hermosillo said.
With ACE service continuing to be open throughout the pandemic, they quickly adapted to more extensive cleaning and safety measures in order to keep employees and passengers safe.
Lipari said the agency has doubled up on cleaning services to ensure all surfaces of the train are cleaned regularly and have passengers maintain a social distance from each other.
Since ridership continues to remain low, the ACE train has been able to make up their revenue with the help of federal funding.
"Though we are receiving federal funds, we are conservative with the drawdown of the funds so that we can make them last as long as possible to keep the trains operating," Lipari said.
ACE train fares and schedules can be found online at acerail.com.
