Blue Line (San Diego Trolley)

Blue Line
Blue Line train at E Street station
Overview
Other name(s)UC San Diego Blue Line
OwnerSan Diego Metropolitan Transit System
LocaleSan Diego, California
Termini
Stations32
Websitesdmts.com
Service
TypeLight rail
SystemSan Diego Trolley
Route number510 (in internal documents only)[1][2]
Operator(s)San Diego Trolley, Inc.
Rolling stock3 car trains
Daily ridership77,000 (approx FY 2024)[3]
Ridership24,389,986 (FY 2024)[3]
History
OpenedJuly 19, 1981; 43 years ago (1981-07-19)[4]
Technical
Line length26.3 mi (42.3 km)[5][6]
Number of tracks2
Track gauge4 ft 8+12 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge
ElectrificationOverhead line600 V DC
Operating speed19 mph (31 km/h) (average)[Note 1]
55 mph (89 km/h) (max)
Route map
Map Blue Line highlighted in blue
UTC
Executive Drive
UC San Diego Health La Jolla
UC San Diego Central Campus
VA Medical Center
Nobel Drive
Balboa Avenue
Clairemont Drive
Tecolote Road
Old Town
Amtrak San Diego International Airport (via Old Town Transit Center)
Washington Street
Middletown
San Diego International Airport (via Middletown station (San Diego Trolley))
County Center/Little Italy
Santa Fe Depot
Amtrak
America Plaza
San Diego International Airport (via America Plaza station)
Columbia Street
closed
1991
Civic Center
Fifth Avenue
San Diego Square
closed
1986
City College
San Diego International Airport (via City College station (San Diego))
Park & Market
12th & Imperial
Storage &
Maintenance Yard
Orange Line
to El Cajon
Barrio Logan
Harborside
Pacific Fleet
8th Street
24th Street
E Street
H Street
Palomar Street
Palm Avenue
Iris Avenue
Beyer Blvd.
San Ysidro

Multiple
services
Handicapped/disabled access
All stations
are accessible

The Blue Line (officially the UC San Diego Blue Line for sponsorship purposes) is a 26.3-mile (42.3 km)[5][6] light rail line in the San Diego Trolley system, operated by San Diego Trolley, Inc., an operating division of the San Diego Metropolitan Transit System (MTS).[5] With an end-to-end travel time of one hour and twenty-three minutes, it operates between UTC Transit Center and San Ysidro Transit Center, the latter of which is at the Mexico–United States border directly adjacent to the San Ysidro Port of Entry, facilitating easy connections across the border.[7] The line serves La Jolla, downtown San Diego, National City, Chula Vista, and San Ysidro[8] and is the system's longest line.

The Blue Line is one of five lines in the trolley system, along with the Green Line, Orange Line, Copper Line, and heritage railway Silver Line.[5] Among them, the Blue Line has the highest ridership, transporting 24,389,986 total riders, or 75,160 per day, in fiscal year 2024.[3] Its sponsored name is due to a $30 million naming rights deal with UC San Diego Health.[9] An extension to its namesake campus of the University of California, San Diego, as well as nine other stations, opened to revenue service on November 21, 2021.[10][11]

  1. ^ "Appendix P: Travel and Tourism" (PDF). San Diego Association of Governments. Retrieved June 7, 2024. Trolley Route 510 (UC San Diego Blue Line): San Ysidro to University City
  2. ^ "Appendix A: Transportation Projects, Programs, and Phasing" (PDF). San Diego Association of Governments. p. 119. Retrieved June 7, 2024. LRT 510 Blue Line (San Ysidro to UTC)
  3. ^ a b c "Annual Service Performance Report" (PDF). San Diego Metropolitan Transit System . October 9, 2024. Retrieved October 24, 2024.
  4. ^ Cite error: The named reference SDMTS-timeline was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  5. ^ a b c d "San Diego Trolley, Inc" (PDF). San Diego Metropolitan Transit System. February 2013. Retrieved November 30, 2021 – via sdmts.com/about-mts.
  6. ^ a b c "Mid-Coast Corridor Transit Project" (PDF). San Diego Association of Governments (SANDAG). April 2015. Archived from the original (PDF) on November 12, 2023. Retrieved November 29, 2021 – via U.S. Department of Transportation.
  7. ^ a b "Trolley map & timetable" (PDF). San Diego Metropolitan Transit System. 2023. Archived from the original (PDF) on December 8, 2023. Retrieved December 7, 2023.
  8. ^ "SDMTS – Trolley". San Diego Metropolitan Transit System. 2015. Retrieved February 29, 2016.
  9. ^ "San Diego MTS teams with UC San Diego to rename Blue Line Trolley". Metro Magazine. July 17, 2015. Retrieved April 17, 2016.
  10. ^ Luczak, Marybeth (June 30, 2021). "San Diego's Mid-Coast Trolley Extension Project Advances". Railway Age. Retrieved July 9, 2021.
  11. ^ "It's finally here: Riders take first trips on trolley extension with 9 new stops". Fox 5 San Diego. San Diego. November 21, 2021. Retrieved November 21, 2021.


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