Special thanks to James Greenhalgh for creating all the content on this page.

SDTI operates 3 trolley routes - the Blue, Orange and Green lines for a total of 53 stations over 86 km. The first leg of the trolley opened in July 26, 1981, and operated on the Main Line of the San Diego and Arizona Eastern Railway (SD&AE). The initial line was a single track which was eventually double tracked in 1984. The next extension in March of 1986 operated along the La Mesa Branch of the SD&AE Railway.

U2 at San Ysidro Transit Center Station

Toronto Comparison:

The Siemens S70 vehicles are similar to the type of vehicle desired for Toronto's Transit City Light Rail system. The S70 is a similar length, has doors on both sides, has cabs at both ends and has wheelchair access. However, the S70 is only about 70% low-floor. Transit City vehicles will be 100% low floor.

The San Diego Trolley is a good example of LRT implementation with the following features:

• Interlining

• Downtown transit mall

• Fenced-in surface ROW

• Separated median in roadway

• ROW paralleling railway ROW

• Short tunnel section

Interior of the U2

Fare collection:

One-Way Trolley Tickets, available for $2.50 from ticket vending machines, are good for travel for two hours from the time of purchase on any MTS Trolley. Transfers between Trolleys are allowed to complete your one-way trip. Transfers between trolley and bus and Round trips are not allowed with a one-way ticket. Tickets must be purchased before boarding the Trolley from the ticket vending machines at each station.

Regional Day Passes are $5.00 and are available from ticket vending machines and bus operators. They are good for unlimited rides on most MTS Bus and Trolley routes (except Premium Express, Rural, ADA Paratransit, and Special Services) as well as NCTD BREEZE buses, SPRINTER and FAST.

Here is a run-down of the trips on each of the three lines:

U2 operators align the wheelchair door to this symbol:

Blue Line

This line starts out at the Old Town Transit Center Station which has connections to local buses, Amtrak and the Coaster Commuter Rail line. Trolleys proceed south in their own right of way, parallel to the railway line towards Downtown San Diego.

At Santa Fe Depot (which also has connections to Amtrak and the Coaster), the trolley turns east towards America Plaza Station, where interlining begins with the Orange Line. Trolleys travel along C Street which is partially a transit mall and partially shared with cars.

At City College Station, trains turn south along 12th street, also shared with cars. All intersections here are signalized. At 12th and Imperial Transit Center Station, the Orange line turns east while this line continues south. This station has bus connections and it is in close proximity to Petco Park. The station is also nearby the main MTS offices and the LRV Maintenance facility.

S70

S70 at Old Town Transit Center Station

After leaving 12th and Imperial, the trolley runs in its own right of way, roughly parallel to Interstate 5 for 23 kilometres to the San Ysidro/Tijuana Transit Center

Signage at Santa Fe Depot Station

From there it's a short walk to the International Border with Mexico. The portion of track from downtown to the Mexican Border was originally the main line of the San Diego and Arizona Eastern Railway. Trolleys share trackage with freight trains along this stretch and many stations do not even have a raised curb for boarding (see Beyer Blvd. photo). Trolleys can reach speeds of up to 80 km/h and stations are between 1 and 2 kilometres apart.

Cab of the S70

End of the line at San Ysidro Transit Center Station

Interior of the S70 - High floors at each end with a low floor and 8 doors in the middle section

Orange Line

This line starts out at 12th and Imperial Station in the southeast quadrant of downtown San Diego. The Orange line comes back to this station later on, after travelling around the downtown area in a loop.

The line heads northwest passing Petco Park and follows the Martin Luther King Jr. Promenade along its own right of way. Stops are located at Gaslamp Quarter, Convention Center and Seaport Village providing easy access to all three of these significant San Diego destinations.

Next, the line turns east towards America Plaza Station and interlines with the Blue Line. Trolleys travel east along C Street and then south along 12th Street back to 12th and Imperial.

After leaving this station the line turns east, on its way to the community of La Mesa, and runs down the centre of Imperial Avenue making stops at 25th and Commercial and 32nd and Commercial before leaving Imperial and moving onto its own right of way (the old La Mesa branch of the SD&AE Railway).

Stops along the way include 47th Street, Euclid Avenue, Encanto/62nd Street, Massachusetts Avenue, Lemon Grove Depot, Spring Street and La Mesa Blvd. At this point, the Orange line interlines with the Green line. The line continues northeast towards El Cajon stopping at Grossmont Transit Center, Amaya Drive, El Cajon Transit Center, and Arnele Ave. The line ends at Gillespie Field near Santee.

Green Line

This line starts out at the Old Town Transit Center Station which has connections to local buses, the Blue line, Amtrak and the Coaster Commuter Rail line. Trolleys proceed north in their own right of way for a short distance before turning east towards Mission Valley. The line roughly parallels Interstate 8 on the north side.

Stops along the way include Morena/Linda Vista, Fashion Valley Transit Center, Hazard Center, Mission Valley Center, Rio Vista, Fenton Parkway and Qualcomm Stadium. Much of this route is along an elevated guideway. Qualcomm Station features one center platform and two side platforms. It also has two pocket tracks on either side of the station.

The line continues, making stops at Mission San Diego and Grantville before crossing to the south side of Interstate 8. The line is cut into the side of a hill along this stretch for about 1 km before turning south and into a tunnel towards San Diego State University Station, the system's only underground station.

The trolley then leaves the tunnel, continuing along the south side of Interstate 8, making stops at Alvarado Medical Center and 70th Street before interlining with the Orange Line for the trip to Gillespie Field. The Green line continues north one more stop to Santee Town Center station. The line is single tracked for this short portion traveling along the median of Cuyamaca Street.

Right of way on the Green Line

Special Event Service

The San Diego Trolley also operates special event service during sporting events at Qualcomm Stadium and/or Petco Park, as well as other major events. The trolleys operate between Qualcomm Stadium and 12th and Imperial Station.

A future extension is planned from the Old Town Transit Center northward 17 kilometres to the University City community in December, 2015.

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This page last updated October 19, 2009