The Sacramento Regional Transit District light rail opened on March 12, 1987 is one of the key transportation systems in the city of Sacramento. Light rails are operated round the week with 14 trains running at an interval of 15 minutes during the day and 7 trains running at 30 minutes interval during evenings and weekends.

Eight more light rail stations are expected to be introduced. All these stations have wheelchair accessible platforms for the sake of disabled passengers. Majority of these stations have top of rail elevations and park and ride lots in them for the convenience of passengers.

The station platforms would be long enough to accommodate a four car light rail train without causing any interruption to traffic intersections. Passenger amenities provided at these stations would include covered shelter with comfortable seating, telephones, landscaping, drinking fountains, bicycle racks and lockers. Information kiosks are also set up here and there for the sake of disabled and elderly people.

In order to minimise the street traffic at light rail station crossings, a separate program is being implemented. The goal of this program is to minimize the time that rail crossing gates are down by using a time delay mechanism. This mechanism is used to close the gates only when the train is ready to depart the station and proceed through the intersection.

By identifying the crossing gate time of trains that would not stop at a particular station, crossing gate downtime would be lowered. In order to ensure that proper fares are collected from passengers, random train and stations checks are conducted at regular intervals. Passengers found to travel without proof of payment are imposed a fine of $56 to $250.

So ensure you board Sacramento trains with proper tickets and thus avoid being penalised.

One of the most simple and beautiful cities in the State of California is Sacramento. The railway station at Sacramento is run by the government-funded company Amtrak which is derived from the words "America" and "Track". This company runs the several corridors across 48 states and over 182 tracks which include trains with sleeper cars, coach, dining cars, business and baggage cars.

Official site of the Sacramento River Train

http://www.sacramentorivertrain.com/

The train tour at Sacramento's Amtrak Station is quite unique and covers magnificent landscapes of the country side and provides fine quality service. The famous Sacramento River Train is an experience worth noticing. The train journey begins at Woodland not far from Sacramento which lasts for about three hours and the train features a glistening golden interiors. The train also has two well furnished dining cars and even a dance floor.

Official Website for Skunk Train

http://www.skunktrain.com/

Another popular train tour from the Sacramento Amtrak Station is the Skunk Train trip. This is one of the famous scenic railroad trips in America and attracts a huge crowd yearly. The trip covers a tour of the Noyo River over 35 bridges and tunnels. There are several tour packages offered which generally includes a night at Fort Bragg. This service is also known to conduct special events like weddings, anniversaries and holiday picnics for family and friends.

One will also be entertained with the train singer and other exciting things of the tour. The train trip is usually busy in the peak months of May to July and reservations can be done at the Sacramento station or on the website.

Information on Totalescape.com

http://www.totalescape.com/tripez/transp/train.html

Information regarding booking of the River Train

http://www.vacationsbyrail.com/usa/rail_tours/trains/sac_river_train/index.html