Traffic Congestion

by Councilman Scott Peters
for the La Jolla Village News
November 2001

There is no bigger quality of life issue in District One than traffic and transportation, and none more challenging. As a member of the Mayor's Freeway Congestion Strike Team and one of the City's representatives on the Metropolitan Transportation Development Board ("MTDB"), I have been giving a lot of attention to maximizing the mobility bang we get for our transportation bucks.

We San Diegans have to recognize that growth will fundamentally change the way we get around in the future. Demographers agree that San Diego County will grow during the next 20 years by over a million people, to more than four million residents. At current usage patterns, that's 685,000 additional cars, requiring approximately 37 square miles of new parking spaces--an area equivalent to Lemon Grove, Encinitas, National City and three Del Mars combined. And to move those cars 30 miles an hour, we would need six new Interstate 805s. Clearly, our historical pattern of providing mobility is doomed in the future.

Certainly, the City will continue to build roads. We will complete Highway 56 and the widening of the Highway 5/805 merge. We will build Vista Sorrento Parkway east of I-805 and Judicial Drive in University City, and we will improve Ardath Road in La Jolla. But roads will never be the sole answer to our mobility problems.

Nor is our current approach to public transportation the solution, especially in northern San Diego. We are just now completing the extension of the San Diego Trolley to the east, through SDSU, but the cost of building the trolley has become staggering. Now, the only future rail project on the books heading north of Old Town is the "Mid-Coast Line," a 10.7-mile trolley line that will snake through UCSD and over to UTC shopping center by 2015. That's $700 million for a vehicle that will travel an average of 23 miles per hour, hugging Highway 5 while avoiding residents and businesses that might use transit. I doubt that's the best we can do for that kind of money.

As one of the City's representatives on MTDB, I have been urging implementation of a more creative approach to public transit that could provide relief sooner and for less money. It's called "Transit First," and it's been approved in concept by the MTDB Board. This strategy employs "flex-trolleys," trolley-like vehicles that travel on tires on lanes and bridges built and dedicated to transit use. The idea is to get people directly from where they are to where they're going with minimal waiting and transfers, to make it pleasant, and to build the system at a per-mile cost that is a fraction of a trolley line. The University City Planning Group enthusiastically supports the vision as a means to address traffic in North University City, and UCSD, Westfield Shopping Town UTC and a number of other businesses are also on board. We need to make sure MTDB follows through on this vision as well.

MTDB hopes to implement a pilot project to show what Transit First will mean, and is considering ten potential demonstration projects in the County. In the next few months, MTDB will evaluate and choose one or two projects using several criteria, including ridership potential, the extent of local support, the extent of existing intensive land uses, the existence of activity centers, the ability of the project to help alleviate traffic congestion, and the feasibility of employing "transit priority," such as signal priority for transit, dedicated transit lanes and transit guideways. One of the most promising potential demonstration projects would link UCSD, UTC and Sorrento Mesa, now the largest employment area in the region, with nearly twice as many jobs as downtown San Diego.

Imagine a quick way to get from UCSD to UTC, then across I-805 to Sorrento Mesa, with a far better experience than any car could provide today. Imagine a transit system built to compete for riders in the transportation market: new, enhanced vehicles; upgraded, modern stations; high-speed, frequent service; convenient fare payment; and low-level, easily accessible, multiple door boarding. It's an approach far more likely to produce results with our taxpayer money than spending $700 million on the light rail only Mid Coast Line.

The MTDB Board anticipates selecting a demonstration corridor during January of next year. I would appreciate your input and your support to help make the demonstration project a reality in the North University City and Sorrento Valley area. All MTDB Board members need to understand the need for a transit project in this area that will later be used as part of a larger, regional transit system. To find out more about Transit First, check the website at www.sdcommute.com. Then contact me with your input, or contact MTDB at 1255 Imperial Avenue, Suite 1000, San Diego, CA 9210.