Goleta station

Goleta station is a passenger rail station in the city of Goleta, California. It is served by the Amtrak Pacific Surfliner; it is the northern terminal for three of those round trips. Trains terminating in Goleta are stored on a storage track adjacent to the station.

Goleta, CA
Goleta station in January 2002
General information
Location	25 South La Patera Lane Goleta, California United States
Coordinates	34°26′16″N 119°50′35″W
Owned by	Amtrak
Line(s)	UP Santa Barbara Subdivision[1]
Platforms	1 side platform
Tracks	1
Construction
Parking	Yes
Accessible	Yes
Other information
Status	Unstaffed, platform with shelters
Station code	Amtrak: GTA
History
Opened	September 20, 1998; 26 years ago (September 20, 1998)
Passengers
FY 2024	85,300[2] (Amtrak)
Services
Preceding station Amtrak Following station Lompoc–Surf toward San Luis Obispo Pacific Surfliner Santa Barbara toward San Diego      Coast Starlight does not stop here
Future services Preceding station Metrolink Following station Terminus Ventura County Line Santa Barbara toward Moorpark or L.A. Union Station
Former services Preceding station Southern Pacific Railroad Following station Jalama toward San Francisco Coast Line Samarkand toward Los Angeles
Location

Goleta station is served by ten Amtrak Pacific Surfliner trains (five in each direction) evenly spaced throughout the day.^[3] The station is convenient for the Santa Barbara Airport and the University of California Santa Barbara.^[4]

In fiscal year 2024, 85,300 passengers boarded or detrained at Goleta station.^[2]

History

The original Goleta Depot, built in 1901, was moved to Lake Los Carneros County Park, half a mile northwest of the current location, in 1981. It is part of the South Coast Railroad Museum.

Opened with a concrete platform and open-air shelter in 1998,^[5] the station gained a restroom facility in 2008 that was installed through the joint effort of the city, California Department of Transportation (Caltrans), Amtrak and the Santa Barbara Council of Governments. The station also received bike racks and a new bus turning circle.^[6]

In 2018, the station was awarded a $13 million TIRCP grant to upgrade the station.^{[7][8][9][10][11]} As of 2024, the city of Goleta plans to build a new full-service multi-modal train station next to the existing station.^[12][4]

The Santa Barbara County Association of Governments (SBCAG) has announced plans for Metrolink service to/from Los Angeles Union Station to begin in Fall, 2025, starting with one daily trip in each direction.^[13]