Running Bay to Breakers? Caltrain Offering Special Trains to Get There

Caltrain will expand its weekend service to help Peninsula and South Bay runners reach the starting line at the 101st Zazzle Bay to Breakers race in San Francisco.

The race begins at Howard and Spear streets in San Francisco at 7 a.m Sunday, an hour earlier than in previous years but the same time as last year.

Caltrain will make special early trips so that participants can arrive by the start time. These trains depart from a single location and do not make any stops until San Francisco. Regular weekend service, which make stops at each station including the Mountain View, San Antonio, California Street stations, leaves once an hour.

The special express trains include:

1. A Special A train will depart the Palo Alto Caltrain Station at 5:30 a.m. and express to San Francisco, arriving by 6:08 a.m.
2. A Special B train will leave the San Jose Diridon station at 5:20 a.m.
3. A Special C train will depart the Santa Clara station at 5:30 a.m.
4. A Special D train also will leave at 5:30 a.m. from the San Jose Diridon station

Authorities have encouraged participants to arrive early to make sure they have a ticket to board the trains. For the first year, Caltrain is offering One-way tickets and Day passes for pre-sale at all station ticket vending machines.

The San Francisco Caltrain Station is about 1.4 miles from the starting line at the Embarcadero. Riders can take the Muni T-Third light-rail line directly to the race, officials say.

To return after the race, three express trains will leave San Francisco for San Carlos at 1:10 p.m., 2:10 p.m., and 3:10 p.m. The rest will stop at each stop.

Those in Santa Cruz County are out of luck for taking public transit the whole way, as no buses leave early enough to connect to the San Jose Diridon Station early-bird Caltrains. Their best bet is to drive to the station.

Caltrain also will be live tweeting the morning of the event, with information available on Twitter @Caltrain_News or on the Caltrain website news page.

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