San Rafael Transit Center

San Rafael Transit Center
Intermodal station
The San Rafael Transit Center, waiting and loading area
Location	3rd Street and Hetherton Street San Rafael, California
Coordinates	37°58′15″N 122°31′21″W / 37.97083°N 122.52250°WCoordinates: 37°58′15″N 122°31′21″W / 37.97083°N 122.52250°W
Platforms	2 side platforms
Tracks	2
Train operators	Sonoma-Marin Area Rail Transit (2017)
Bus operators	Golden Gate Transit Marin Transit Marin Airporter Sonoma County Transit Greyhound Bus Lines
Construction
Structure type	at grade
Parking	Yes
Bicycle facilities	Yes
Disabled access	Yes
Other information
Fare zone	1 (SMART)
History
Opened	1991 [1]
Traffic
Passengers	approx. 9000 daily (2016)[1]
Services
Preceding station   SMART   Following station   Future services   Marin Civic Center toward Sonoma County Airport Phase 1 Terminus Marin Civic Center toward Cloverdale Depot Phase 2 Larkspur Landing Terminus

The San Rafael Transportation Center in San Rafael, California, also called the C. Paul Bettini Transportation Center,^[1] is the main passenger transit terminal for Marin County. From here, passengers can make transfers throughout Marin County, to San Francisco, Contra Costa, and Sonoma Counties. It is also an important station for buses serving San Francisco International Airport, Oakland International Airport, and the rest of the country.

The San Rafael Transit Center, as seen from Tamalpais Avenue

Description

The original San Rafael railway depot that served the Northwestern Pacific Railroad was located at what is now a cafe north of the station. As rail use fell into decline and was discontinued in the mid 20th century, busses came to prominence with the expansion of the road and highway system. The current transportation center was constructed in 1991.^[1]

The San Rafael Transit Center hosts to a number of bus agencies, including:

• Golden Gate Transit (the main bus agency) - serving Marin, Contra Costa, Sonoma, and San Francisco Counties.
• Marin Transit - serving Marin County (including Marin Transit Shuttle Route 233 and West Marin Stagecoach Route 68)
• Marin Airporter^[2] - serving the San Francisco International Airport from Marin County.
• Airport Express^[3] - serving the Oakland International Airport; serves as stopover for Marin County to Sonoma County.
• Sonoma County Transit^[4] - serving the Sonoma Valley (Kenwood, Glen Ellen, Agua Caliente, Sonoma, and Schellville) from San Rafael. One morning southbound and one afternoon northbound only, with timed connections to Golden Gate Transit buses to San Francisco.
• Greyhound Bus Lines^[5] - the main stop of Greyhound in Marin County, serving points in Northern California and the rest of the United States.

In addition to bus services, there is a double-track railway and two side platform that were built as part of the transit center in anticipation of the Sonoma-Marin Area Rail Transit service. Commuter trains arrived in Santa Rosa for testing in March 2016 after a fifty seven-year absence of such services.^[6] Rail operations have significantly disrupted service to bus stop locations.^[1]

Location

The San Rafael Transit Center^[7] is located at the corner of 3rd and Hetherton Streets, bounded by Tamalpais Avenue to the west and 2nd Street to the south. Its proximity to Downtown San Rafael and U.S. Highway 101 makes the SRTC an important transfer point for services within Marin County and beyond, aside from being the main hub for Golden Gate Transit services.

Transfers and Features

Overall layout of the platforms of San Rafael Transit Center prior to SMART service. Map is not to scale.

A Van Hool A330 bus modified as a Zero-Emissions Bus at the SRTC (taken in 2007)

A Golden Gate Transit bus operating as a Route 22 at the SRTC

A Marin Transit shuttle operating as a Route 233 at the SRTC

A Greyhound bus stopping at the SRTC for a local trip

With most of Marin Transit's and many of Golden Gate Transit's routes meeting at the San Rafael Transit Center, it provides a convenient transfer point for passengers from San Rafael going towards the rest of Marin County and throughout the Bay Area. Along with that, being the main stop for Greyhound for the county, SRTC provides connections for its passengers from within Marin County to intra- and inter-regional bus service. And being one of the main stops of two Airport Bus companies (namely Marin Airporter and Sonoma County Airport Express), it allows passengers to travel to either San Francisco International Airport or Oakland International Airport without the need of driving.

Routes Starting and Ending at SRTC

Route Number	Origin/Destination	Operated by	Platform
17	Sausalito via Mill Valley	Marin Transit	A
22	Marin City via College of Marin Most trips College of Marin Select morning trips	Marin Transit	B
23 School days only, one morning trip	White Hill Middle School	Marin Transit	B
28 Weekends only	Fairfax Manor via Sir Francis Drake	Marin Transit	A
29 Weekdays only	Fairfax Manor via Sir Francis Drake Most trips San Anselmo via Sir Francis Drake Select trips	Marin Transit	A
35	Canal District	Marin Transit	A
38 Weekday commute periods only	Sonoma Valley	Sonoma County Transit	D
40*, 42 * - Weekdays only	Del Norte BART Routes 40 & 42 Richmond BART Route 42 only	Golden Gate Transit	B
45, 45K* * - Weekdays only	Northgate Mall via Civic Center Routes 45 & 45K Kaiser Hospital Route 45K only	Marin Transit	B
49	Novato via Northgate Mall	Marin Transit	B
68	Inverness via Point Reyes Station	West Marin Stagecoach	D
70 Select trips	San Francisco Civic Center	Golden Gate Transit	C
122	College of Marin Kentfield and Indian Valley Campuses	Marin Transit
126 School days only	San Domenico via Brookside Schools	Marin Transit	B
233	Santa Venetia	Marin Transit	D
257	Ignacio via Northgate Mall	Marin Transit	D
259†	Novato via Northgate Mall/Kasier Hospital	Marin Transit	D

Note: † - Select Route 259 trips originate as Route 251 (San Marin-Ignacio)

Routes Stopping at San Rafael Transit Center

Route Number	Terminals		Operated by	Platform
	North/East	South/West		Northbound/ Eastbound	Southbound/ Westbound
23	San Rafael (Shoreline Parkway at Target)	Fairfax Manor Weekdays Fairfax Weekends	Marin Transit	A	B
27 Weekday commute periods only	San Anselmo Most trips Sleepy Hollow One round trip	San Francisco Financial District	Golden Gate Transit	A	B
36 Weekday commute periods only	Canal District	Marin City	Marin Transit	A	A
44 Weekday commute periods only	Lucas Valley	San Francisco Financial District	Golden Gate Transit	A	D
70	Novato	San Francisco Civic Center All trips Transbay Terminal Most trips	Golden Gate Transit	A	C
71	Novato	Marin City	Marin Transit	A	C
80 Weekdays (before 6am and after 7pm), weekends, and holidays	Santa Rosa	San Francisco Civic Center	Golden Gate Transit	A	C
101 Weekdays (except holidays, between 6am to 7pm) and Saturdays (several hourly trips)	Santa Rosa	San Francisco Civic Center	Golden Gate Transit	A	C
Marin Airporter Ticketed passengers only (pick up only to SFO, drop off only to Novato)	Novato	San Francisco International Airport	Marin Airporter	D	D
Airport Express Ticketed passengers only (pick up only to OAK, drop off only to Santa Rosa)	Santa Rosa	Oakland International Airport	Sonoma County Airport Express	D	D
Greyhound Ticketed passengers only	Various		Greyhound, Inc.	D	D
Valley of the Moon Commute Club	Sonoma Riverside Dr. and La Mancha Dr. Santa Rosa Santa Rosa Transit Mall	San Francisco Van Ness/Hayes St. and Market St.

Note: Golden Gate buses may board at a different side of the same platform.

Route 101, Golden Gate Transit's limited-stop service, serves the San Rafael Transit Center complementing the existing Route 80 on weekdays (except holidays) and Saturdays. For a description of this service, click here. Route 80 continues to serve the SRTC weeknights, weekends, and holidays when the Route 101 does not operate.^[8]

Features

San Rafael Transit Center, facing east

The San Rafael Transit Center has the following amenities for its passengers:

• Saluté Cafe, a coffee shop which also carries Golden Gate Transit and Marin Transit value tickets.
• A shop that hosts ticketing offices for Greyhound Bus Lines and Sonoma County Airport Express (for Oakland Airport)
• Clipper ticketing machines on all platforms
• Disabled () access throughout the Transit Center
• Taxi stand

Near the Transit Center are full-service restaurants, especially along Fourth Street (Downtown San Rafael) and Second Street, grocery stores, and other businesses. Also nearby are three park-and-ride lots within walking distance of the SRTC, all located under the Highway 101 overpass, that allow commuter parking.

See also

• Golden Gate Transit
• Marin Transit
• San Rafael
• Sonoma County Transit

Notes

1. Prado, Mark (11 March 2016). "San Rafael Transit Center to undergo major changes with SMART's arrival". Digital First Media. Marin Independent Journal. Retrieved 11 June 2016.
2. "Marin Airporter". Marin Airporter. 2007-09-10. Retrieved 2007-11-02.
3. "Sonoma County Airport Express Schedules and Fares" (PDF). Sonoma County Airport Express. 2007-10-29. Retrieved 2007-11-02.
4. Sonoma County Transit (2007-08-14). "Sonoma County Transit Route 38 (San Rafael to Sonoma Valley)" (PDF). Sonoma County Transit. Archived from the original (PDF) on August 21, 2008. Retrieved 2007-11-02.
5. Greyhound (2007-08-14). "Greyhound.com : Locations : San Rafael, California". Greyhound Transit. Retrieved 2007-11-02.
6. Prado, Mark (4 March 2016). "Commuter train rolls into San Rafael for the first time in 50 years". Marin Independent Journal. Retrieved 24 April 2016.
7. GGBHTD (2007-09-10). "San Rafael Transit Center" (PDF). Golden Gate Bridge, Highway, and Transportation District. Retrieved 2007-11-02.
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