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San Antonio station is easy to overlook. It is a simple two-platform stop with no historic depot, sitting beside the tracks in Mountain View just south of where Palo Alto ends. Yet for a large part of south Palo Alto it is the closest train station. It also puts riders within a short walk of San Antonio Center, one of the biggest shopping areas near Palo Alto.
This page covers how to get to the station, which trains stop, the unusual parking setup, bike parking, buses, accessibility and what is nearby. Station details come from Caltrain's San Antonio station page as of late October 2026.
Where it is and how to get there
Caltrain gives the address as 190 Showers Drive, Mountain View. Showers Drive runs north from El Camino Real through the San Antonio Center area toward the tracks. The station sits close to the Palo Alto border, so for many south Palo Alto households it is a walk or a short bike ride away.
Several Palo Alto neighborhoods are within a mile or so. Charleston Meadows and Monroe Park are the closest. Riders from Greenmeadow and Charleston Gardens often find San Antonio closer than California Avenue. If you are not sure which is nearer, compare walking times on a map before you set out. A bike usually makes the decision easy.
From the rest of Palo Alto, the simplest approach is by train. San Antonio is the next stop south of California Avenue on local and limited trains.
Which trains stop here
San Antonio is a local and limited stop. In the timetable published in October 2026, every weekday local and every limited stopped here. None of the express trains did. On Saturdays and Sundays every train is a local, so all of them stop.
- Northbound, limited trains call next at California Avenue, Palo Alto and Menlo Park on the way to San Francisco.
- Southbound, the next stop is Mountain View, an express station with VTA light rail.
- The weekday timetable repeats at the same minutes each hour.
If you need an express, ride one stop to Mountain View and change there, or start at Palo Alto. We do not print departure times because they change with each timetable revision. Use the official Caltrain schedules and check the last train of the evening before you head out.
San Antonio is in Zone 3, like Palo Alto, California Avenue and Mountain View. A ride to any of them costs the one zone fare. That was $4.00 for adults in October 2026, with a rise scheduled for January 1, 2027. A trip to San Francisco is three zones.
Shared parking
Parking here works differently from Caltrain's other stations near Palo Alto. Caltrain lists 199 spaces that are shared with the housing development across the street. Some spaces are reserved for Caltrain customers during specific hours. That means the signs matter. Read them before you leave your car, especially if you park outside commute hours.
Where Caltrain parking applies, pay through a ticket machine or the ParkMobile app with zone 99616. Caltrain's daily permit was $5.50 in October 2026 and lasts 24 hours from purchase. Monthly permits cost $82.50 and are sold only to riders with a Caltrain monthly pass or GoPass. Cars showing a California disabled person plate or placard are exempt from the Caltrain fee. Full rules are on Caltrain's parking page.
If you live within a mile or two, consider leaving the car at home. The shared lot is small for a station this close to a large shopping district.
Bike parking
Caltrain lists 18 bike racks plus on-demand BikeLink eLockers at San Antonio. Lockers are rented through the BikeLink app. Caltrain's own lockers charged 5 cents an hour, or 2 cents an hour on nights and weekends, in October 2026. First-time users get 100 free hours. There is no staffed or controlled-access bike room here. For all-day parking, a locker is the safer choice.
Palo Alto's bike boulevards help with the ride in. Quiet streets in south Palo Alto run toward the city line. Palo Alto's 2026 bike plan puts its emphasis on more of these low-stress routes. Our page on Palo Alto's bike boulevards explains the network and the plan. Bikes ride free on Caltrain in the two bike cars on each electric train.
Buses and shuttles
Caltrain lists one bus connection, VTA Route 21. Route 21 runs every day between Stanford Shopping Center and Santa Clara Transit Center. Its path takes it through the Palo Alto Transit Center, along Middlefield Road through Palo Alto, past the San Antonio area on Showers Drive and on to Mountain View station. That makes it a handy way to reach the station from Middlefield Road neighborhoods without a car.
VTA's stop list for Route 40 also shows stops on Showers Drive and California Street near the station. Route 40 runs between Mountain View station and Foothill College by way of North Bayshore and San Antonio Road. Check vta.org for exact stop locations and times.
Stanford's free Marguerite Shopping Express also serves the San Antonio Shopping Center from the Palo Alto Transit Center and campus. It runs on Fridays and weekends only. See our Marguerite guide for details.
Accessibility
Caltrain lists San Antonio as wheelchair accessible. Every electric train can be boarded by ramp or lift. Wait at the blue boarding assistance area at the north end of the platform and the conductor will help you on and ask your destination. Caltrain does not list an elevator or a restroom here. VTA buses are accessible. Our accessible travel guide covers discount fares and paratransit.
What is nearby
The station sits on the edge of a large mixed area of shops, apartments and offices. Within a 15 minute walk:
- San Antonio Center, the shopping district around San Antonio Road and El Camino Real. Its Village section includes the Alamo Drafthouse dine-in cinema, which opened in June 2025. See our guide to movie theaters.
- The Shockley lab site at 391 San Antonio Road. Shockley Semiconductor Laboratory opened here in 1956 and helped start Silicon Valley's chip industry. A historical marker stands at the site today.
- Hotels along San Antonio Road. Hotel Citrine, at 750 San Antonio Road on the Palo Alto side, is about a mile away by road. Our Hotel Citrine page has details.
For more on the chip pioneers who worked here, read our page on Shockley, Fairchild and the semiconductor boom. For the wider city, see our Mountain View guide.
Good to know
- An express will not stop here. Check the train type on the platform display before boarding.
- This is a Mountain View station, so Mountain View rather than Palo Alto rules apply to street parking nearby.
- Weekend track work can change service. Check Caltrain's service status page first.
Frequently asked questions
Do express trains stop at San Antonio?
No. In the current Caltrain timetable, weekday local and limited trains stop at San Antonio and express trains pass through. On weekends every train is a local and all of them stop. The nearest express stops are Palo Alto and Mountain View.
Is San Antonio Caltrain station in Palo Alto or Mountain View?
It is in Mountain View, at 190 Showers Drive, just south of the Palo Alto city line. It is in fare Zone 3, the same zone as both Palo Alto stations, so a ride to Palo Alto costs the one zone fare.
Is there parking at San Antonio Caltrain station?
Yes, but it is shared. Caltrain lists 199 spaces that are shared with a housing development across the street, with some spaces reserved for Caltrain riders during set hours. Pay at a ticket machine or with ParkMobile zone 99616 and read the signs carefully.
Which buses serve San Antonio Caltrain station?
Caltrain lists VTA Route 21, which runs every day between Stanford Shopping Center and Santa Clara Transit Center by way of the Palo Alto Transit Center, Middlefield Road and Mountain View station. VTA Route 40 also stops nearby on Showers Drive and California Street.