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![]() Carrizo Gorge trestle | |||
Overview | |||
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Current operator | San Diego and Imperial Valley Railroad | ||
Parent company |
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Headquarters | James R. Mills Building 1255 Imperial Avenue San Diego, California | ||
Reporting mark | SDAE | ||
Locale | California and Mexico | ||
Dates of operation | 1932–present | ||
Predecessor | San Diego and Arizona Railway | ||
Technical | |||
Track gauge | 4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge | ||
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The San Diego and Arizona Eastern Railway Company (reporting mark SDAE) is a short-line American railroad founded in 1932 as the successor to the San Diego and Arizona Railway (SD&A), which was founded in 1906 by entrepreneur John D. Spreckels. Dubbed "The Impossible Railroad" by many engineers of its day due to the immense logistical challenges involved, the line was established in part to provide San Diego with a direct rail link to the east by connecting with the Southern Pacific Railroad lines in El Centro, California. Since 1979, the company has been owned by the San Diego Metropolitan Transit Development Board and its successor, the San Diego Metropolitan Transit System.