Gilroy station

The first Gilroy station, similar to the depot still extant at Santa Clara, opened on April 8, 1869 under the Santa Clara and Pajaro Valley Railroad.{{cite report |last1=Pearce |first1=Michael |title=Santa Clara Valley's Railroad Lines |url=http://www.sourisseauacademy.org/LADS/August2017LADS.pdf |access-date=7 December 2020 |publisher=Sourisseau Academy |date=August 2017}}{{rp|6}} A water tower, turntable, and three-stall engine house were built in 1882.

The original station was replaced with a two-story Italian Renaissance structure — framed with local redwood and covered in cement plaster — in 1918 by the Southern Pacific Railroad.{{cite news |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/121298718/oakland-tribune/ |title=New S.P. Station at Gilroy is Dedicated |newspaper=Oakland Tribune |date=May 1, 1918 |page=12 |via=Newspapers.com}} Service reductions began in 1929; the engine house was closed in 1934, though the turntable remained in use through the 1950s. The final service to the station was the Del Monte, which ran until April 30, 1971.{{cite web |url=https://monterey.org/library/About-Us/Blogs/Library-Blogs/the-del-monte-passenger-train |title=The Del Monte Passenger Train |publisher=Monterey Public Library |date=February 10, 2014 |access-date=August 10, 2018 |archive-date=August 10, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180810110800/https://monterey.org/library/About-Us/Blogs/Library-Blogs/the-del-monte-passenger-train |url-status=dead }}{{cite web |url=http://wx4.org/to/foam/sp/maps/perryETT/1970-03-29SP_Western13-SheldonPerry.pdf |title=Western Division Timetable #13 |publisher=Southern Pacific Company |date=March 29, 1970 |pages=2, 5}} Amtrak intercity service, including the Coast Starlight, passed through the station without stopping.

File:Garlic Train at Gilroy station (4), July 2018.JPG

On July 1, 1992, two daily Caltrain round trips were extended from San Jose Diridon station to Gilroy. This was increased to four daily round trips with the opening of a layover yard adjacent to the station in February 1994. In 1998, the city restored the station building as the centerpiece of the $2.8 million Gilroy Transit Center, which also included parking lots and a bus plaza. One waiting room was reopened for use by Greyhound. In July 2005, Caltrain reduced service to three daily round trips.

Even before 1992, Caltrain operated a special limited-stop train from San Francisco to Gilroy on the weekend of the Gilroy Garlic Festival, with shuttle buses between the station and the festival. This service ended in 2002 when Caltrain temporarily suspended all weekend train service for the CTX project, and was not resumed when weekend service was restored in 2004. The Golden Gate Railroad Museum chartered weekend trains to Gilroy during the festival for a few years, but those charters were later discontinued.{{cite news |last=Cohen |first=Gail |url=http://traveltips.usatoday.com/prepare-gilroy-garlic-festival-14821.html |title=How to Prepare for the Gilroy Garlic Festival |work=USA Today}} The "Garlic Train" resumed service beginning with the 2013 Garlic Festival.{{cite tweet |number=342694536646103040 |title=Garlic Train to roll to @gilroygarlicfes July 27 & 28. #yum |user=Caltrain |date=June 6, 2013}}

The station was named to the National Register of Historic Places in 2019 as Gilroy Southern Pacific Railroad Depot.{{cite web |url=https://www.nps.gov/subjects/nationalregister/upload/weekly-list-2019-national-register-of-historic-places.pdf |title=Weekly List 20190712 |publisher=National Park Service |date=July 12, 2019}} Gilroy service was increased to four weekday round trips on September 25, 2023.{{cite press release |url=https://www.caltrain.com/news/caltrain-operate-new-schedule-starting-fall |title=Caltrain to Operate New Schedule Starting this Fall |date=September 13, 2023 |publisher=Peninsula Corridor Joint Powers Board}}

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The Road Repair and Accountability Act provided funding for an extension of Caltrain service to Salinas Intermodal Transportation Center, followed by Amtrak Capitol Corridor service later.{{cite news |last1=Johnson |first1=Jim |title=Salinas commuter rail extension project gets $10 million SB 1 gas tax grant |url=http://www.montereyherald.com/article/NF/20180509/NEWS/180509827 |newspaper=Monterey Herald |date=May 9, 2018}} The dead-end platform track at Gilroy station will be extended south to reconnect with the mainline.{{cite web |url=https://www.tamcmonterey.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/Gilroy_Track_Ext.pdf |title=Gilroy Station Track Project |date=October 2016 |publisher=Transportation Agency for Monterey County |access-date=2018-08-10 |archive-date=2018-08-10 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180810142130/https://www.tamcmonterey.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/Gilroy_Track_Ext.pdf |url-status=dead }}

The planned California High-Speed Rail system will have a station in Gilroy. Two sites were under consideration: the existing Gilroy station, and a currently undeveloped area northeast of the city center (east of Gilroy Premium Outlets).{{cite press release |date=July 23, 2014 |url=http://www.hsr.ca.gov/docs/newsroom/newsroom_July2014_Auth_Awards_Station_Area_Planning_Grant_Gilroy.pdf |title=California High-Speed Rail Authority Awards Station-Area Planning Funds to the City of Gilroy |publisher=California High-Speed Rail Authority}} The High Speed Rail Authority identified an at-grade option at the existing station as their preferred alternative in 2020.{{cite news |last1=Soloaga |first1=Isabel |title=Huge California High-Speed Rail project raises local concerns |url=https://gilroylife.com/2020/06/19/huge-rail-project-raises-local-concerns/ |access-date=15 July 2020 |agency=Gilroy Life |date=19 June 2020}}

Gilroy station is a hub for local and intercity bus service:{{cite web |url=http://www.vta.org/sfc/servlet.shepherd/document/download/069A0000001csuHIAQ |title=VTA South County |publisher=Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority |date=January 1, 2018 |access-date=August 9, 2018 |archive-date=August 9, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180809153354/http://www.vta.org/sfc/servlet.shepherd/document/download/069A0000001csuHIAQ |url-status=dead }}

• Greyhound Lines
• San Benito County Transit: Intercounty
• VTA: {{VTA bus route|68}}, {{VTA bus route|84}}, {{VTA bus route|85}}, {{VTA bus route|86}}, Express {{VTA bus route|121}}, Rapid {{VTA bus route|568}}

{{reflist}}

{{Commons category}}

• [http://www.caltrain.com/stations/gilroystation.html Caltrain – Gilroy]
• [http://www.vta.org/getting-around/park-and-ride-lots-gilroy-caltrain-station VTA – Gilroy]
• [https://www.tamcmonterey.org/monterey-county-rail-extension Monterey County Rail Extension]

{{Caltrain}}

{{Amtrak California stations}}

{{Bay Area Rail Stations}}

{{Gilroy, California}}

Category:Caltrain stations in Santa Clara County, California

Category:Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority bus stations

Category:Former Southern Pacific Railroad stations in California

Category:Proposed California High-Speed Rail stations

Category:Future Amtrak stations in the United States

Category:Gilroy, California

Category:Railway stations in the United States opened in 1869

Category:Railway stations in the United States opened in 1992

Category:National Register of Historic Places in Santa Clara County, California

Category:Railway stations on the National Register of Historic Places in California

Category:Railway stations in the United States closed in 1971