The Tehachapi Loop is a 0.73 miles (1.17 km) long spiral, or helix, on the Union Pacific Railroad Mojave Subdivision through Tehachapi Pass, of the Tehachapi Mountains in Kern County, south-central California. The line connects Bakersfield and the San Joaquin Valley to Mojave in the Mojave Desert.
Rising at a steady two percent grade, the track gains 77 feet (23 m) in elevation in the Loop.[1] Any train more than 4,000 feet (1,200 m) long passes over itself going around the loop. At the bottom of the loop, the track passes through Tunnel 9, the ninth tunnel built as the railroad worked from Bakersfield.
The line averages approximately 40 trains each day.[citation needed] Due to its frequent trains and scenic setting, the Tehachapi Loop is popular with railfans. In 1998 it was named a National Historic Civil Engineering Landmark and is designated as California Historical Landmark
Rising at a steady two percent grade, the track gains 77 feet (23 m) in elevation in the Loop.[1] Any train more than 4,000 feet (1,200 m) long passes over itself going around the loop. At the bottom of the loop, the track passes through Tunnel 9, the ninth tunnel built as the railroad worked from Bakersfield.
The line averages approximately 40 trains each day.[citation needed] Due to its frequent trains and scenic setting, the Tehachapi Loop is popular with railfans. In 1998 it was named a National Historic Civil Engineering Landmark and is designated as California Historical Landmark