Niles Canyon Railway
Sunol, Alameda County, California. Railroad museum where the exhibits come to life.
Details
- Where
- Sunol Station, 6 Kilkare Road, Niles Station, 37029 Mission Blvd., Fremont, Sunol, CA 94586. Directions
- When
- Niles departure 4:30 PM and Sunol departure 7:30 PM on weekends and select weekday evenings.
- Season
- November 20 through December 30, 2026 (Trains will not operate on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day).
- Getting there
- Departures are ONLY from our Sunol Depot unless noted above.
- Fees
- M200 East of Sunol $20.00 for Adults; $10.00 for Seniors (62+) and Children (3-12).
- Access
- A wheel chair lift is available for those needing it or for those where the steps entering and existing our historic cars are challenging.
- Walk-in or reserve
- Tickets are available online for all departures; tickets are not refundable.
- Phone
- (510) 996-8420
- Website
- ncry.org
- Managed by
- Pacific Locomotive Association, Inc., a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization.
- Established
- 1988 (passenger operations brought back to life on May 21, 1988).
The Niles Canyon Transcontinental Railroad Historic District is made up of the 11 mile-long section of the First Transcontinental Railroad that passes through Niles Canyon between the towns of Sunol and Fremont (Niles), north of San Jose, California.
Notable Events
- 1866The two railroad bridges over Alameda Creek, Dresser (or Rosewaren) and Farwell, were built of wood. museumoflocalhistory.org
- 1866The first Western Pacific's first passenger excursion entered the canyon; construction was halted shortly after over disagreements between the railroad's contractors and its financiers. ncry.org
- 1869Four months after the golden spike at Promontory Summit, the Central Pacific completed the rail link between Sacramento and the San Francisco Bay, finishing the track through the canyon. ncry.org
- 1869The CPRR, which had bought the WPCR, restarted work on the railroad through Alameda Canon, also using Chinese labor. nps.gov
- 1870The last section of the First Transcontinental Railroad, through Niles Canyon to the San Francisco Bay, was complete. nps.gov
- 1880The rail line through Niles Canyon became secondary to a new main line constructed through Benicia and Martinez. nps.gov
- 1900The bridges were converted to steel construction, but the original concrete abutments were used. museumoflocalhistory.org
- 1950sSteam locomotives pulled trains through Niles Canyon for eighty years before diesels took over. ncry.org
- 1984After twelve decades of railroading in the canyon, the Southern Pacific ceased operating trains on the right-of-way, pulled up the tracks, and deeded the land to Alameda County. ncry.org
- 1987The Pacific Locomotive Association entered into an agreement with the county and began rebuilding the rail line; volunteers worked for over a year on the first reconstruction between Sunol and Brightside. ncry.org
- 1988Almost 122 years after the first Western Pacific excursion, the Pacific Locomotive Association brought railroad passenger operations back to life in Niles Canyon. ncry.org
People
- Addison C. Niles, prominent judge and former railroad attorney for whom the town of Niles, at the Central Pacific freight terminal at the west end of the canyon, was named.