Caltrain's electric trains have won over their riders. The question now is whether the Peninsula railroad can afford to keep running them at today's frequency.
The agency's 2026 Customer Satisfaction Survey, presented to the Caltrain Board of Directors on Oct. 1, found that 92% of riders are satisfied with the service. Overall satisfaction held at 4.40 out of 5, matching last year's record and well above the 4.02 recorded in 2024, the final survey before electrified service began, according to the Metropolitan Transportation Commission's Bay Link blog.
What riders liked, and what they didn't
Riders gave the onboard experience a 4.45 and stations a 4.32. Their sense of safety rose to 4.44 from 4.23 two years ago, and on-time arrival scored 4.40. Conductors got the best marks: 4.63 for politeness and helpfulness, the highest in the survey's history. The weak spot was restroom cleanliness, which scored 3.64 and was flagged as the biggest area needing improvement, the Burlingame-Hillsborough Times reported. The survey reached 2,631 riders on randomly chosen weekday and weekend trains in May.
The rider base looks different than it did before the pandemic. Caltrain estimates it serves about 49,000 unique riders a month, close to its 2019 total, but fewer of them commute five days a week; the typical rider now takes the train two or three times weekly. Special events have become a big draw, with one in five riders saying their first Caltrain trip was to a game, concert or festival. Ridership reached 12.6 million in fiscal year 2026, up 37.6% from the year before, and July set a single-month record of 1.32 million trips.
The money problem
None of that closes the agency's budget gap, which Caltrain puts at roughly $75 million a year. A one-time state loan is keeping trains running through fiscal year 2027, according to the Burlingame-Hillsborough Times. Executive Director Michelle Bouchard said the agency is doing "contingency planning to address our impending fiscal cliff, which may require a reduction in service."
The board's contingency framework includes closing more than a third of stations, cutting trains to once an hour, ending service at 9 p.m. and eliminating weekend service entirely. San José Spotlight reported that Palo Alto Councilmember Pat Burt, VTA's representative on the Caltrain board, said service south of San Jose to Morgan Hill and Gilroy "would very much be on the table" because of its low ridership.
Caltrain says the regional transit sales tax on the November ballot would fully cover its operating deficit for 14 years if voters approve it. That measure would raise about $980 million a year across five counties, but recent polling shows it short of the majority it needs.