A long, winding stretch of railroad cuts through southeastern San Diego County, traveling 70 miles from the Mexican border to Plaster City.
But no trains run on the tracks.
The defunct Desert Line, a leg of the 148-mile “Impossible Railroad” line from San Diego to El Centro, has been mired in troubles since its 1907 inception.
But many see possibility in the impossible. Leaders on both sides of the border say restoring the line, which runs through Mexico, will benefit cross-border trade. The current Desert Line lease owners, Pacific Imperial Railroad, promised to rebuild the line, but won’t say how they plan to pay for it.
READ MORE: Agency Says Business Plan for ‘Impossible Railroad’ Is None of Your Business
This week, NBC 7’s Catherine Garcia and Voice of San Diego’s Ari Bloomekatz check out the current complexities of plans to revive the Impossible Railroad.