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Moderator: lensovet

 #1289873  by lpetrich
 
The Mid-Coast Corridor Transit Project, also SANDAG: Mid-Coast Corridor Transit Project

It's gradually advancing in the planning process, and it may be close to starting construction.

This extension of the San Diego Trolley goes north from the Old Town station along I-5 / Morena Blvd. / the BNSF/Surfliner tracks to the University of California at San Diego, where it will have 6 stations. It will first continue north along I-5, then east along Voigt Dr., then east and south along Genessee Ave. The tracks will be at surface level from Old Town to the university, and they will be elevated in the university.
 #1339641  by lpetrich
 
UC San Diego may name new trolley line | SanDiegoUnionTribune.com That's $30 million over 30 years for "UC San Diego Blue Line".
Besides rights to name the trolley, the station at Old Town will be called the “Old Town UC San Diego Health Campus South,” and the university will also get to name the two new trolley stations on its campus in La Jolla. The institution’s logo will appear on station signs, trolley maps, schedules, one-way tickets, and on major advertisements wrapped around trolley cars. It also gets to be the exclusive health care, research and education advertiser on the line.
Also,
Construction is expected to begin early next year, ... Rail service is expected to start four years after construction begins.
That's 2016 and 2020.
 #1536788  by lpetrich
 
Trolley extension disagreement could delay project in San Diego - 2020 Feb 19 - "Team 10 discovered the building permit for the Nobel Drive – La Jolla Village Square parking structure was not approved."

Week of Northbound I-5 Closures Begin Sunday for Trolley Construction - Times of San Diego - 2020 Feb 29 - for removing temporary support structures for the SDT viaduct over that freeway. From the article,

"Nine new stations will be constructed. Major construction work began in 2016, with service anticipated to begin in late 2021."
 #1575710  by lpetrich
 
Mid-Coast Trolley Extension | San Diego Metropolitan Transit System - now saying Fall 2021. Still this year, though more precise.

I decided to follow the route with Google Maps, Bing Maps, and MapQuest.

I started at the San Diego Santa Fe Depot, which is the end of the line for the Amtrak Pacific Surfliner and the San Diego Coaster. Their tracks continue southward as a single track, however. The San Diego Trolley's tracks are to the east of their tracks. A little south of where SR-52 meets I-5, the SDT line goes over the Amtrak-Coaster line and continues on the west side of the ACL.

The two lines separate at where Gilman Dr. becomes La Jolla Colony Dr., a little east of I-5. The road has a sharp bend, and the SDT line goes in an underpass underneath it. Google shows tracks in the line, while Bing shows bare ground, and MapQuest shows little or no evidence of construction. MapQuest also does not have the magnification that Google and Bing can have.

All the track seems to be in place, and there were several construction vehicles on the tracks near Medical Center Dr.

The track goes northward to Voigt Dr., the eastward to Genessee Ave. then southward to a little north of Nobel Dr. The track is all grade separated, and elevated above those two streets. The elevated trackway ends rather abruptly a little north of Nobel Dr.
 #1575795  by ExCon90
 
Versatility is often touted as one of the advantages of light rail; at the splendidly restored and maintained Santa Fe Depot (still so called and adorned with a giant Santa Fe sign on the roof, with the classic white lettering and blue background) passengers walk from the waiting room across the two SDT tracks to reach the Amtrak/Coaster platforms under the guidance of an Amtrak employee (usher?). No room to do it any other way, and it seems to work fine.

(If somebody has photos of the station and surroundings they can post it would be really nice to see them.)
 #1586413  by lpetrich
 
New trolley line to La Jolla, largest project in region's history, launches successfully - The San Diego Union-Tribune - on November 21
The most expensive infrastructure project in the region’s history at nearly $2.2 billion, the new 11-mile line brings light rail for the first time to La Jolla, UC San Diego, Mission Bay Park, Pacific Beach and Clairemont.

But perhaps more importantly, every stop on the city’s other trolley routes gets a big boost by becoming connected to those popular destinations and others like Westfield UTC and the VA Medical Center.

The nine-station line also fixes glaring flaws in local transit by connecting the trolley system to the region’s largest university — the University of California San Diego — and No. 1 employment center — University City and the Golden Triangle.
The route parallels I-5 from Old Town to Gilman Dr. / Medical Ctr. Dr. in La Jolla, where it turns west then north to its USCD Central Campus station, then east into Voigt Dr., then east and south in Genessee Ave., ending at UTC station. North of Gilman Dr., the trackway is entirely elevated.

UC San Diego Blue Line Trolley Extension | San Diego Metropolitan Transit System