The northern segment of the line is rural in character because it travels through the sparsely populated Soledad Canyon between Santa Clarita and Palmdale, serving the small community of Acton along the way.

The line along the Santa Clara River and into Los Angeles was completed by Southern Pacific in 1876 as the first railway to connect the city to the national network.

Emergency stations in Lancaster and Palmdale were both built in just three days and Metrolink started operating trains one week after the earthquake struck.

On April 30, 2015, Metrolink announced it will be offering discounted fares to riders on the Antelope Valley Line beginning July 1, 2015 as part of a pilot program.

[16] In September 2023, the Metro Board of Directors approved $1.6 million in funding to add more midday and evening round trips starting October 23, 2023.

[18] On January 9, 2022, a private Cessna 172 crashed onto the tracks of the Antelope Valley Line at Osborne Street in Pacoima after taking off from nearby Whiteman Airport and was then struck by a Metrolink train.

The Cessna's pilot was injured in the initial crash, but Los Angeles Police Department officers on the scene were able to help him out of the wreckage before it was hit by the train.

[19][20] As of October 23, 2023[update], the Antelope Valley Line is served by 30 Metrolink trains (15 in each direction) each weekday, evenly spaced throughout the day.

[22] On weekends, the Antelope Valley Line is served by 24 Metrolink trains (12 in each direction), evenly spaced throughout the day.

Metrolink was awarded $107 million in 2020 Intercity Rail Capital Program funds to begin a suite of upgrades to the line that would allow increasing frequencies to half-hourly between Santa Clarita and hourly to Lancaster.