Pacific Imperial Railroad, a previous operator of the tracks, has battled lawsuits with its investors and others over fraud allegations and illegal financial practices, and went through a reorganization of leadership. As of mid-2016, Mexico-based Baja Rail became the newest leaseholder and operator of the "Desert Line" between Tecate and Plaster City, and began work on reopening the tracks for freight service. However, as of January 2017, rock slides and a tunnel collapse in Carrizo Gorge has made reopening the tracks much more challenging, and there has sadly been little to no progress since then with Baja Rail now backing out as of Summer 2021. However, San Diego MTS is undeterred and remains hopeful to have the "Desert Line" reopened someday. Click on the link to see the latest news.