Early stations , a tall redwood in the upper right. The
San Francisco and San Jose Railroad opened from San Francisco to
Mayfield in 1863, and to San Jose the next year. Several decades later,
Leland Stanford founded the new town of
Palo Alto to the north of Mayfield. Palo Alto station was opened in 1890 to serve the then-newly established
Stanford University. A
flag stop, the original structure had open sides supported by posts; it was enclosed in 1893 for use as a waiting room. Substantially larger than the previous depot, it had five wooden arches styled after the
Richardsonian Romanesque masonry arches of the university campus. The whole project cost $700,000 (), most of which was paid for by the federal government. Designed by SP architect
John H. Christie, the building's aesthetics were inspired by the railroad's
Daylight series of streamlined passenger trains. SP
Peninsula Commute local service (renamed
Caltrain in 1985) continued to stop at Palo Alto. In 1982, the station building was refurbished and landscaping was added. The station was added to the
National Register of Historic Places as an example of the Streamline Moderne style on April 18, 1996. The bicycle station reopened on February 27, 2007, as a paid and unstaffed facility with 96 spaces. From 2008 to 2009, Caltrain constructed the $35 million Palo Alto Stations Improvement Project at the Palo Alto and
California Avenue stations. At Palo Alto, the northern underpass was modified to make it accessible, allowing the nearby pedestrian level crossing to be closed. The platforms (shortened significantly since the station was built) were rebuilt and lengthened. New lighting, shelters, and message signs were installed. Palo Alto is the second-busiest Caltrain station after
San Francisco, averaging 7,764 weekday boardings by a 2018 count.
Future plans A 2007 city report called for additional expansion and renovation of the station area in conjunction with the
California High-Speed Rail project. The rail line would be widened to four tracks with two island platforms—an additional northbound track would be built east of the existing northbound platform, and a replacement southbound platform would be built between two southbound tracks. University Avenue would be split into a
one-way pair flanking a new city park. The bus plaza would gain a western entrance with direct access to
El Camino Real. In 2013, the
Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority proposed relocating the bus plaza onto both sides of University Avenue. Among the possibilities being considered for eliminating grade crossings in Palo Alto were a viaduct, a trench, and long tunnel under the downtown area. In April 2024, the town narrowed these to a vehicle underpass and a partial raising of the tracks. ==Bus connections==