Trolley Thursday 8/26/21 - The San Diego Metropolitan Transit System

After long delays and your patient understanding, we are now at the end of our San Diegan streetcar story! Before Los Angeles re-embraced its light rail, and so did the rest of the country, America's Finest City led the rallying cry for better light rail in defiance of filthy motor buses and car culture that choked city streets and the citizens that rolled upon them. However, unlike many of these stories, San Diego was not doing this to spark a revolution; rather they did it to fix a problem that had plagued them for 31 years after the last PCC pulled its pole off the wire and went into storage. Today, the San Diego Metropolitan Transit System (MTS) stands as a testament to what modern light rail can do to reinvigorate a city, and it is appropriate that a story started by John D. Spreckels deserves to have a sweet ending.

The End

PCC Car No. 503 stops at the Santa Fe Depot loop, 1948.
(Mitchell Libby)

The MTS' story begins at the end of the San Diego Electric Railway (SDERy) in 1948. Saddled with the debts of an underperforming transit system, the family of property and railroad magnate John D. Spreckels decided to sell the railway to Pacific City Lines, a division of National City Lines that was in charge of buying up almost all of the Western United States' streetcar lines. Under its president, Jesse L. Haugh (who later purchased the Pacific Electric Railway of Los Angeles in 1953), the SDERy quickly shuttered its streetcar lines by April 24, 1949, and motor buses took over all operations from the waterfront to Balboa Park.

San Diego's city streets in the 1950s, big, wide, and plied by a GM Old Look bus.
(WSBJ Radio)

The current logo for SANDAG.
(SANDAG)

Unfortunately, the buses were not the balm the city needed, as increased highway development following the ratification of the Federal Aid Highway Act of 1956 (better known as the Interstate Highway Act) and a rise in automobile ownership meant that the still-private San Diego Transit System was still losing money into the 1960s. By 1967, the city of San Diego had enough with its money-leaking mass transit system and took control under the San Diego Transit Corporation non-profit. At the same time, San Diego County also established the "Comprehensive Planning Committee" (now the San Diego Association of Governments, or SANDAG) in 1966 to link 13 cities across the county under a general mass transit system. Unfortunately, disagreements between stakeholders about alignments, technology, and costs shuttered this initial plan.

A San Diego Transit Corporation 1-Fare token, made
for San Diego's 200th Anniversary in 1969.
(Numista)

A Stormy Beginning

Two San Diego & Arizona Eastern steam locomotives
roar past the former SDG&E powerplant at Broadway
and E Street, 1945.
(R.P. Middlebrook, UC San Diego Library)

A decade later, in 1975, the San Diego Metropolitan Transit Development Board (MTDB) was established by the state for the express purpose of planning, constructing, and operating a mass transit system. In order to get this done, the MTDB's first order of business upon starting operations on January 1, 1976, was to resolve one of the many disagreements the stakeholder's had, and one that halted any initial construction: where to start building. Some were firmly in building new alignments through the city, but that came with the risk of over-development and possibly harming much of inner and outer San Diego; others thought it was more cost-effective to reuse old heavy-rail alignments and modify them for light rail or even interurban service. Thankfully, the choice was made for them by September 10, 1976.

One of the biggest victims of Tropical Storm Kathleen
was the SD&AE, whose Meyer Canyon Wash bridge was
one of many destroyed in 1976.
(Dave Leland)

That year, Tropical Storm Kathleen crossed the border between America and Mexico and struck both California and Arizona, causing 50-mile-an-hour gale force winds in Arizona and severe flash-flooding from Palm Desert to San Diego. One of the biggest victims was John D. Spreckels' own "Impossible Railway", as the San Diego & Arizona Eastern (SD&AE, now a Southern Pacific subsidiary) was completely destroyed due to washouts and destroyed trestles. Southern Pacific (SP) appealed to the Interstate Commerce Commission shortly after to abandon the line, but this was denied in 1978. The MTDB saw this as an opportunity and soon stepped in to purchase what remained of the SD&AE for $18.1 million (or $83.5 million today) if the SP fully repaired the line. The deal closed on August 20, 1979.

A borrowed GE 44-tonner from the Pacific Southwest 
Railway Museum hauls a test train through to Chula Vista
station at National City, May 1981.
(Mike Glikin, Headlights)

The refurbished SD&AE now gave the MTDB two possible right-of-ways that could do with rapid transit conversion: the main line from downtown San Diego to the border at San Ysidro, or the La Mesa Branch from Downtown to El Cajon (which would trace old SDERy tracks). This was the first time in America that heavy rail-light rail conversion was ever attempted, and it soon set the stage for other cities around the United States to convert old disused railway lines into light-rail services. Of course, San Diego had to get it from somewhere and that "somewhere" ended up being the German "Stadt Bahn" or "City Railway". The San Ysidro route was chosen first for conversion due to its usefulness connecting the city with the border, and in August 1980, the MTDB established San Diego Trolley, Inc. to operate and maintain this and any future lines.

The Return of San Diego's Light Rail

Siemens U2 No. 1013 does the honors of opening up the San Diego Trolley
by bursting through the banner on July 10, 1981.
(San Diego MTS)

San Diego Trolley No. 1002, bound for San Ysidro,
at the Santa Fe Depot Terminal in 1981.
(San Diego Electric Railway Association)

July 26, 1981 was a banner day for San Diego, as thirty-two years of bus-dominated transit was now coming to an end. City dignitaries and citizens alike waited with bated breaths on the new trolley platforms at the Santa Fe Union Depot for the arrival for the first train. And then... it happened. Streetcars returned to San Diego once again with the first train to San Ysidro on the former SD&AE tracks. Service intervals at opening were 20 minutes between trains, so timed to meet on the four passing tracks on the then-single track route. The service was so popular that six months after opening, the San Diego Trolley was carrying 10,000 passengers a day and double-tracking of the San Ysidro corridor began almost immediately. In all, the first phase of the San Diego Trolley cost $86 million in sales tax and gas tax revenues, with minor rehabilitation going to the former heavy-rail line.

Divided Lines

An MDTB drive along the "East" line before opening
in the early 1980s, along Commercial Street.
(San Diego MTS)

Following the opening of the San Ysidro Line (later the South Line), San Diego Trolley opened the Euclid Avenue Line on March 23, 1986 from Downtown to Euclid Avenue. This was the former SD&AE La Mesa Branch and, like the San Ysidro Line, only minor rehabilitation was needed to prepare the tracks for the new light-rail vehicles. Three years later, the line was extended to El Cajon and renamed the "East Line", and another extension followed to the Convention Center and Gaslamp Quarter the year after. Further extensions North reached Little Italy and Old Town between 1992 and 1996, with the Old Town route somewhat retracing the original San Diego & Old Town horsecar route. Due to the new reach of the East Line, plus the South Line now extending north of San Diego to Mission San Diego de Alcala thanks to the Mission Valley Line in 1997, the two lines shed their cardinal directions and became the "Blue" (South) and "Orange" (East) Lines that we know today.

San Diego Trolley development in the late 1980s, showing the two available lines.
(San Diego MTS)

Freight and passengers intersect along the San Diego & Imperial Valley
and the San Diego Trolley's El Cajon section, 2011.
(Dave N, Trainboard)

Now, before we move onto the more recent developments, you'll no doubt remember that the San Diego & Arizona Eastern was now wholly owned by the city of San Diego after purchasing it from Southern Pacific. Even after turning two of their lines into light-rail lines, the MTS continues to maintain their ownership of the SD&AE lines under their own freight subsidiary. Two modern freight shortlines operate on what remains of the "Impossible Railway", with the San Diego & Imperial Valley (now a Genessee & Wyoming subsidiary) maintaining trackage rights through downtown San Diego and out to San Ysidro and La Mesa on separate tracks paralleling the light rail. The Baja California Railroad operates on the "Desert Line" through Imperial Valley, interchanging with the San Diego & Imperial Valley past the border. Through this, the MTS is able to maintain a healthy freight income alongside their municipal transit operations, just like the old days of streetcar operations.

A Green Line car, with its low-floor design,
stops at the San Diego Convention Center in 2015.
(Cloverof4)

The last line to open on the San Diego Trolley is (currently) the Green Line, officially announced as the "Mission Valley East Extension" on July 10, 2005. Starting from Old Town South, it curved east to meet the Orange Line at Grossmont. From here, it parallels northeast until Arnele Avenue, by which point the Green Line goes two stations north to Santee. At 23.6 miles long and containing 27 stations, it was both the longest and most-populated line on the system, and would be considered an interurban if it had heavier railway equipment. Two of the Green Line's more unique features are its underground station at San Diego State University and it being (at the time) the only low-floor line with specialized vehicles provided compared to the Blue and Orange. The latter feature meant that passengers going from Mission Valley to Downtown had to change trains at Old Town with the Blue Line.

The San Diego Trolley Map up until that point, showing the Green-Blue transfer point
at Old Town San Diego and the loop line that used to be for the Orange Line.
(Progressive Railroading)

The Trolley Renewal Project

San Diego State University's underground station.
(Railway Track and Structures)

Eventually, San Diegans got tired of having to change trains to reach downtown from the 'Urbs and MTS knew it as well. By the turn of the century (that is, the 21st one), their first light rail vehicles were now pushing 20 years old and the system was beginning to look stale with its divided platforms and worn-out tracks. In 2008, after a successful election campaign, a new half-cent local sales tax and two transportation bond measures launched the "Trolley Renewal Project" that would bring the rest of the system up to the standards of the new Green Line. This meant changing all thirty-five stations to low-floor platforms, new signaling systems to allow multiple freight train operations at night, and brand-new pieces of rolling stock for better rush-hour transit capacity, but that's a story for another time.

Old-style and new-style LRVs run together at San Diego
State University's underground station.
(San Diego State University)

The biggest issues addressed by the "Trolley Renewal Project" was the replacement of all important pieces of infrastructure like ties, rails, wires, and substations. Due to the age of some of the sections of line, which reused old track instead of fresh ones, the ride was somewhat rough and so track had to be changed. Station work began in late 2010 starting at Old Town Transit Center and by 2012, the Green Line could now run south of Old Town to the Santa Fe depot alongside the Coaster/Amtrak tracks. This also had the consequence of truncating the Orange Line to the Santa Fe depot and cutting the Blue Line off at America Plaza, across the street. By January 2013, the Orange Line stations were all rebuilt to low-floor standards and two years later, the Blue Line followed suit so now the new cars on the Green Line could work everywhere.

San Diego welcomes the first of the Blue Line "Low-Floor" LRVS in January 2015.
(KPBS)

History on Modern Streets

The three Vienna Class N-1 cars, as preserved in National City
in October 2004, for original implementation on the Silver Line.
(San Diego Electric Railway Association)

As the Trolley Renewal Project wormed its way through the MTS system, the transit organization was also able to bring to life its own heritage streetcar loop and restore the glory of the old PCC cars. Consideration for what eventually became the Silver Line began in the 1990s when the old Downtown Loop was completed between America Plaza and 12th & Imperial Transit Center. Inspired by their German counterparts, MTS originally thought of using three Vienna Class N1 cars from Vienna's Stadtbahn, but they proved too small and weak for implementation. 

The in-progress interior of SDERy No. 529, which received
new electrics and AC systems through its nonprofit owner.
(MilanTram)

By 2005, it was decided that San Diego should return to the PCC car and MTS made arrangements to purchase six ex-MUNI F Market & Wharves PCC cars between 2005 and 2010. The San Diego Historic Streetcar Society, a local non-profit, was able to rig the PCCs up for modern operation while keeping the historic bits intact. This included bolting a new pantograph to the front of the car, while bolting down the original trolley pole to keep it as historically accurate as possible. The new cars were numbered as continuations of San Diego's PCC fleet, with the first completed being No. 529. 

SDERy No. 529 in service in 2011, next to a Siemens U-2 LRV
at 12th and Imperial Transit Center.
(Peter Ehrlich)

The Silver Line's Vintage Trolley Map,
showing where it meets up with every other line.
(San Diego MTS)

The historic service opened on August 27, 2011 and runs in a clockwise direction around what used to be the Orange Line's Martin Luther King Jr. Promenade alignment through the Gaslamp Quarter and Seaport Village, before turning left at the Santa Fe Depot to hit America Plaza and City College. Despite running a weekend service, the service proved incredibly popular that MTS kept the possibility of increased service headways as more streetcars come back in service. In 2015, as car No. 530 began operating, the Silver Line was renamed the "SDG&E Silver Line" after the power company provided a grant to restore the car. This coincided with the Blue Line being renamed the "UC San Diego Blue Line" and the Green Line becoming the "Sycuan Green Line", with the former providing service to the local college while the Green Line terminal at Santee services a shuttle to Sycuan Casino.

Future Development

SANDAG's progress at the future
La Jolla trolley station.
(SANDAG)

Construction on the Mid-Coast Corridor continues
as it reaches its halfway point in 2019.
(SANDAG)

Like any growing metropolitan transit system, the MTS is always open to future development. In brief, there are four potential plans floating around to give San Diegans better rides around the city. The first, under SANDAG, involves extending the Blue Line from Old Town Transit Center to University City, some eleven miles north or so. Under the "Mid-Coast Corridor Transit Project", this gives riders better access to UC San Diego and the University Towne Center shopping mall. Included in the extension are nine new stations, with the northern terminal, UTC, becoming part of the local Westfield Mall allotment. As of this writing, the new transit corridor is due to open to the public in November 2021, after beginning construction in October 2016. 

PCC No. 530 displays a special message for Balboa Park's
centennial in 2015, at 12th and Imperial.
(Peter Warner)

The next plan currently involves extending the Silver Line outside of its downtown loop to Balboa Park. This idea has been floated around since 2012 and has involved many factors in returning advertised rides to the park. Much of the burdened cost lies in closely following the original 7 "Park-University Avenue to East San Diego" and 11 "Park-Adams Avenue to Kensington" lines to the park without having to reconstruct the Park Blvd bridge over Interstate 5. Since the plan was formally proposed in October 2012, no other action has since been given, but more recent studies have contemplated whether to allow the vintage PCCs to run to Balboa Park or use the "Ultra-Short" Siemens S70 LRVs instead. Only time will tell, I suppose.

A fun little graphic showing off the importance of connecting
the San Diego Trolley to the local airport.
(Voice of San Diego)

The last two plans intend to fill in gaps many riders believe to be there in the MTS system. One of the biggest is the lack of any adequate connection to Charles Lindbergh Field, San Diego's local international airport. Currently, a connecting bus runs from the airport to Santa Fe Depot, and while the project is highly desired among residents, MTS has officially said the engineering challenges presented by the project would be "costly". As of April 2020, MTS decided not to pursue a potential transit tax initiative to provide funding to begin this project. 

A map showing both the in-progress Mid-Coast Trolley extension
and the proposed Purple Line, as well as the proposed Airport extension.
(San Diego Union-Tribune)

MTS' beauties at the Santa Fe Depot and American Plaza
with buses and light rail ruling the roost.
(Roman Eugeniusz)

The other line is the proposed Purple Line, which would run from San Ysidro to the outlying suburb of Kearny Mesa via San Diego's east side and Interstate 15. The plan was first drafted by SANDAG, to be accomplished by 2050, in 2011. Planned stations included a personal stop at the local Kaiser Permanente healthcare facility, an interchange with the Green Line at the now-destroyed San Diego Stadium, another at 47th Street with the Orange Line, and of course the San Ysidro Transit Center with the Blue Line. However, like the Airport Line, MTS decided not to pursue this project as of April 2020 when the half-cent countywide sales tax failed to get its support. Perhaps, after the opening of the Mid-Coast Corridor, only time will tell.

Thank you for reading today's Trolley post, and watch your step as you alight on the platform. My resources today included the newsletters and updates of the San Diego Metropolitan Transit System, as well as archived newspaper articles from the San Diego area and the photo credits listed. The trolley gifs in our posts are made by myself and can be found under “Motorman Reymond’s Railroad Gif Carhouse”, while the San Diego Trolley gifs were made by Alex Stroshane. On Tuesday, we look at the San Diego Trolley's modern rolling stock in greater detail. For now, you can follow myself or my editor on Twitter, buy a shirt or sticker from our Redbubble stand, or purchase my editor's self-developed board game! It's like Ticket to Ride, but cooler! (and you get to support him through it!) Until next time, ride safe!