This month the San Francisco Planning Department is poised to approve plans submitted by developer Prologis to remake Caltrain’s Fourth and King Street Station into a 20-acre community, with close to 2,500 residences and roughly four million square feet of commercial space, including an 850-foot mixed-use tower. Caltrain has a permanent easement at the spot for a station and railyard.
“The project is not proposing any changes to Caltrain service, although temporary schedule changes could be necessary to accommodate construction,” said Dan Lieberman, public information officer for Caltrain.
SF Railyards’ success is partially predicated on Caltrain continuing to offer at least the same amount of service it presently provides. Without a significant transportation component, the project wouldn’t be as attractive to prospective residential and commercial buyers and tenants.
The commuter rail line is considering service cuts due to fiscal challenges that emerged during the COVID-19 pandemic, when ridership dipped sharply. In March, the Peninsula Corridor Joint Powers – Caltrain’s – Board of Directors discussed possible actions to lower costs, including closing more than one-third of 31 stations, eliminating weekend service, reducing train frequency to once an hour, ending service by 9 p.m., and reducing the number of stops.
If approved by a majority of voters in November, California Senate Bill 63, the Connect Bay Area Act, would generate close to $980 million from a 14-year regional transportation sales tax of one percent in San Francisco County and 0.5 percent in Alameda, Contra Costa, San Mateo, and Santa Clara counties. If successful, almost two-thirds of sales tax revenues would be distributed to Bay Area Rapid Transit, San Francisco Municipal Railway, Caltrain, AC Transit, San Francisco Bay Ferry, East Bay bus agencies and Golden Gate Transit. About one-third would be sent to Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority, San Mateo County Transit District, Contra Costa Transportation Authority, and Alameda County Transportation Commission.
A small percentage would be used to improve the rider experience – making trains faster or improving signage – or for administration costs incurred by the Metropolitan Transportation Commission and the new Public Transit Revenue Measure District, as well as one-time expenses associated with the election.
According to Lieberman, Caltrain was the fastest growing transit agency in terms of ridership in the U.S. in 2025.
“(This was due) in no small part to half-hourly electrified service providing a new standard of comfort and convenience that riders appreciate. Having a major transit-oriented development like the SF Railyards offers gives riders one more reason to take advantage of our service,” said Lieberman.
“Yet we need about 10 of these projects. We want every project that creates more housing to move forward,” said Prodan Statev, a Dogpatch resident and San Francisco Yes In My Backyard member. “I want to stay in this neighborhood and raise kids here. But the Board of Supervisors doesn’t allow enough housing to be built, so I can’t afford to. They’ve effectively decided people like me don’t belong here.”
Sarah Davis, Mission Bay Citizen Advisory Committee chairperson and a Mission Creek Harbor resident, said the rail project “feels very ambitious,” like Mission Bay as a whole.
“Mission Bay has been an island for so long. Caltrans has been one of our borders. I would like to see this project bring residents from different neighborhoods together,” said Davis, who noted that the Prologis team has held two meetings with Mission Bay residents about the project.
Davis and other Mission Bay residents are concerned about maintaining street safety with the rise in vehicle and pedestrian traffic that SF Railyards will bring.
“For years, that area has been home to empty storefronts, paper over glass. There’s never been enough critical mass in this area for it to take off economically. SF Railyards could bring a transformation,” said Davis.
“We’re looking to knit communities together with community open space like parks and neighborhood serving retail,” said Mission Bay resident Bruce Agid, who believes it’s important to include a significant percentage of residences that are affordable to lower- and middle-income families. “These will close the gaps of what the community needs today. We want to build a community that’s child friendly. That’s part of Mission Bay’s character. People here tend to say “Yes” to development. But we want a developer to do it right. As to SF Railyards, we want Prologis to make the tower and the housing look amazing.”
According to Agid, the Downtown Rail Extension, also known as the Portal, also needs to be completed, extending Caltrain service from Fourth and King streets to Salesforce Transit Center at Beale and Howard streets.
“They may not have all of the funding to accomplish this right now. But encouraging that, showing City and Bay Area residents what’s possible, could motivate a lot of action,” said Agid.
Alice Finno 
Mark Steensland 