People in one North Bay town were thrilled Sunday morning to hear a sound from the distant past: a train pulling into the station. 

It's been decades since rail service extended to the northern Sonoma County communities and the arrival of the SMART commuter train has the town abuzz with excitement.

The Airport Station in north Santa Rosa is currently the end of the line for the SMART commuter rail system. But shortly, it will be making its move north, to the town of Windsor, helping to fulfill an often-delayed promise to voters.  

However, there was a time, in the days of the horse and buggy, when people road a pair of steel rails to the North Bay communities, rather than a ribbon of asphalt.

"This town was literally built as a railroad stop. Like, where we are is classically where the railroad was, right here," said Windsor resident Tim Zahner.  

He rode his bike to the downtown roundabout to watch the SMART train as it rumbled in and out of the new station. While Zahner has looked forward to the return of the train to his town, it has required an unexpected amount of patience.

"Uh, yeah, I've lived in Windsor now for almost 19 years," he said, "and I've been waiting for the train about that long."

The system began operation in 2017, but it hasn't always been a smooth ride.  

Along the way, there's been a major lawsuit, a global pandemic and a rejection by voters of a sales tax extension.  

But now, Zahner isn't the only one excited to hear the clanging of the crossing gates and the blaring horn as the SMART trains rumble back and forth from Santa Rosa to Windsor, testing the system.  

"We're testing all the signals, the crossings, the positive train control," said SMART Communications Manager Julia Gonzalez. "This is a period of testing that's going to take the entire month of April. And what was special about this weekend is that, with the onset of systems testing, we are the first trains, the first SMART trains, rolling into the town of Windsor, through the roundabout, into the new station. It was very exciting."

The rail line was originally sold to voters as a way to connect workers to the Larkspur Ferry and on to San Franciso, but the farther north you go, the more people see it as a means of connecting the small towns, possibly for work, but also for entertainment.

"This is going to be really helpful, having the SMART train," said Windsor resident Susan Millan. "People from Santa Rosa, Petaluma, Rohnert Park can come up, come hear music, get on the train, go back home."

"It's going to be great for the small businesses downtown," said her husband, Mark. "We have a lot of shops, restaurants. They're going to benefit."

The new station is only a block from the Windsor Green, a spacious city park adjacent to a quaint downtown shopping and dining area. That's where Robert Nieto chose to open Fleur Savage, a shop featuring artistic truffles and gorgeous chocolate sculptures.

"Yeah, when we first moved in here, we saw all the construction and I was, like, when is this really happening?" said Nieto. "And, finally, we're like, 'Oh my God, it's here.' It was just, like, yesterday, the build of it.  And now it's just running, and so we're really excited about it."

SMART says testing and training will continue throughout the spring, with a few soft openings.  An official opening ceremony is currently planned for June 13. 

 There are high hopes about what the train may mean for Windsor, and those are shared by Healdsburg, the next city up the line waiting for ITS service. But Zahner has a word of advice for them.

"Don't hold your breath for that," he said, with a laugh. "That's the next step, we'll see what happens. Oh, it'll go to Healdsburg, but I just think, like I said, when I moved here 19 years ago, they said a train was coming. So, how much time do you want to wait, perhaps?"

The final stop in the line is supposed to be Cloverdale, and years ago they built a train station that has sat empty. SMART says it will eventually reach the town, but at its current pace, it may feel like a long time for anyone holding their breath.