Metrolink commuters traveling between Orange County and Oceanside may experience delays through Thursday, Sept. 10, depending on how potential high tides impact the tracks near San Clemente and the coastal corridor, authorities said on Monday, Sept. 7.
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Crews completed work to repair the tracks in San Clemente on Monday, which included using large boulders to help stabilize the track, Metrolink spokeswoman Sabrina Davis said.
But the agency kept the Orange County and Inland Empire-Orange County lines closed from the Laguna Niguel/Mission Viejo station to Oceanside for the day.
“We wanted to avoid having families and children stuck on trains for long periods of time or stranded,” Davis said.
Recent weekend delays, some for more than two hours, have occurred because of high tides.
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The repairs were not anticipated to cause scheduling changes Tuesday through Thursday, but the high tides could cause delays if they reach above 6 feet, Davis said.
“Whenever the tides exceed or hit around 6 feet, that’s when we’re getting salt water on our tracks, which causes issues,” Davis said.
The length of any delay would depend on how long it takes to resolve any issue with the tracks and how many trains are attempting to traverse the coastal corridor at that time.
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Crews were actively inspecting the tracks and checking in daily, Davis said.