Next Stop: UC San Diego
Route for trolley project being finalized

Ioana Patringenaru | March 14, 2011

Plans to bring a trolley line to UC San Diego are shaping up. After considering several options, the San Diego Association of Governments adopted a route for the project. A group of staff members, faculty and students is working on plans for two on-campus stations.

The line could be up and running by 2015 to 2017 and would serve close to 9,000 riders on campus. It will connect UCSD with Old Town, downtown and much of south San Diego County.

Deciding on a route was crucial to allow the campus to proceed with planning, said Vice Chancellor Gary Matthews, who oversees UCSD’s facilities management and planning.

“With greater knowledge of the route, we have a better ability to plan,” he said.

The trolley will come into campus on an elevated line, following Interstate 5 and crossing Gilman Drive, then cutting through campus at Pepper Canyon. The line will curve around the Matthews Apartments and Warren Field, then follow Voigt Drive to enter east campus. The route will then follow Genesee Avenue to a new transit center at the University City Towne mall.

One station will be located at Pepper Canyon and would serve about 5,700 riders a day. Another would be located near The Preuss School and Thornton Hospital. It would serve about 2,000 riders. Trains will come about every seven minutes.

Campus officials will now focus on minimizing any impact the trolley line could have on sport fields and academic facilities, Matthews said. Members of the campus working group shepherding the project already made a significant contribution, said Brian Gregory, assistant vice chancellor for strategic campus resource initiatives. The plan was to have the trolley run at street level and even below ground on campus.

Group members felt that would be too disruptive and result in some parts of the campus being cut off from others, Gregory said. They suggested that the trolley use an elevated route instead. SANDAG officials welcomed the input and incorporated it into their plans, he added.

The trolley will provide faculty, staff and students with sustainable transportation and greatly reduce the campus’ carbon footprint, Matthews said. It will also give members of the UCSD community transportation options in an era of fluctuating gas prices, he said.

Everyone also will have more options when they decide where to live, said Assistant Vice Chancellor Gregory. The new line will allow members of the UCSD community to reach downtown and Mission Valley in about 30 minutes, according to SANDAG estimates.

The project also will have a positive impact on The Preuss School, said Matthews, who sits on the charter school’s board. Transportation costs are Preuss’ second-biggest expense, after salaries, running at about $900,000 to $1 million a year. Many Preuss students live south of Interstate 8. Instead of riding school buses, high school students will be able to hop on at trolley stations and have more direct access to their school, said Matthews.

The new trolley line comes with a $1.2 billion price tag. Half of the money will come from a half-cent sales tax approved by voters in 1987. To finance the other half, SANDAG plans to apply for funds from the Federal Transit Administration, officials said.

This map shows the trolley's route through campus.

For more information about the trolley, go to trolley.ucsd.edu