  the coaster , is a commuter rail service that operates in the central and northern coastal regions of san diego county, california, united states. the service is operated by transitamerica services on contract with north county transit district (nctd). the service has eight stops and operates primarily during weekday peak periods, with additional weekend and holiday service. ==history== san diego northern railway (sdnr) purchased the tracks used by coaster from the atchison, topeka and santa fe railway in 1994. nctd created the subsidiary san diego northern railway corporation in 1994 and dissolved it in 2002. revenue coaster service began february 27, 1995. funding for right-of-way acquisition and construction costs came from transnet, a 1987 measure that imposed a 0.5% sales tax on san diego county residents for transportation projects. nctd originally contracted amtrak to provide personnel for coaster trains. on july 1, 2006, transitamerica took over the day-to-day operation of the commuter train, based on a five-year, $45 million contract with sdnr. transitamerica is a subsidiary of missouri-based herzog transit services. ==current service== nctd owns  of mainline track, including the  on which the coaster travels. traveling the entire coaster route takes about an hour. consumption of alcoholic beverages is allowed on board the coaster d
California_railroads North_County_Transit_District Passenger_rail_transportation_in_California Public_transportation_in_San_Diego_County,_California Railway_lines_opened_in_1995 Standard_gauge_railways_in_the_United_States Transportation_in_San_Diego,_California United_States_regional_rail_systems