Arizona and California Railroad
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| Reporting mark | ARZC |
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| Locale | Mojave Desert - Phoenix, Arizona and branch to Blythe, California |
| Dates of operation | May 9, 1991–present |
| Track gauge | 4 ft 8 1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge |
| Length | 297 miles (478 km) |
| Headquarters | Parker, Arizona |
| Website | Arizona & California Railroad |
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The Arizona and California Railroad (reporting mark ARZC) is a short line railroad that was a subdivision of the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway (ATSF). The ARZC began operations on May 9, 1991, when David Parkinson of the ParkSierra RailGroup purchased the line from the Santa Fe Railway. ParkSierra Railgroup was purchased in January 2002 by RailAmerica, the former owner of the ARZC. The Genesee & Wyoming railroad holding company became the current owner in December 2012. ARZC's main commodities are petroleum gas, steel and lumber; the railroad hauls around 12,000 carloads per year.
At Cadiz, California, the railroad begins in the interchange with the BNSF Railway and continues southeast across the Mojave Desert to Rice, then east to cross the Colorado River Arizona/California state line at Parker, Arizona. The railroad continues east to Matthie (near Wickenburg, Arizona). At Matthie, ARZC has trackage rights over the north-south BNSF line that connects Phoenix to BNSF's mainline at Williams. It also had a branch that runs from Rice south through Blythe, terminating at Ripley.
Arizona & California operates tracks that are 297 miles (478 km) long consisting of the following segments:
The mainline now used by ARZC was originally constructed between 1903 and 1910 by the Arizona and California Railway. The line between Matthie, AZ, and Parker opened in June 1907. The Colorado River bridge near Parker was completed in June 1908 and by 1910, the line had reached Cadiz, California. In 1909, the Arizona and Swansea Railroad that connects Swansea, Arizona from Bouse was completed.
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