List of San Diego Trolley stations

The San Diego Trolley system map as of 2020.

The San Diego Trolley is the light rail system that serves the metropolitan area of San Diego. The operator of the Trolley, San Diego Trolley, Inc. (SDTI),^[1] is a subsidiary of the San Diego Metropolitan Transit System (MTS). The San Diego Trolley opened for service on July 26, 1981,^[1] Today operates three main lines named the Blue Line, the Orange Line, and the Green Line, as well as a supplementary heritage streetcar downtown circulator known as the Silver Line that operates mid-days on Tuesdays & Thursdays, and on weekends and holidays.^[1]

History[]

The current operating company of the San Diego Trolley system, San Diego Trolley Incorporated (SDTI), was not founded until 1980^[2] when the Metropolitan Transit Development Board (now operating as San Diego's MTS) began to plan a light-rail service along the Main Line of the former San Diego and Arizona Eastern Railway (SD&AE Railway), which the MTDB purchased from the Southern Pacific Railroad in 1979.^[2] The Trolley began operations on July 19, 1981, with revenue service beginning on July 26, 1981.^[2] Trains at that time operated on a single line between Centre City or Downtown San Diego and San Ysidro, with stops in some San Diego neighborhoods, and in the cities of National City and Chula Vista.

In March 1986, SDTI opened an extension east from Centre City San Diego to Euclid Avenue, along the La Mesa Branch of the former SD&AE Railway – this new second line of the Trolley was then called the East Line, while the original line opened in 1981 became the South Line.^[2] Service was extended along the East Line to Spring Street on May 12, 1989^[2] serving Lemon Grove, and then to La Mesa and El Cajon on June 23, 1989.^[2] Service between El Cajon and Santee, which is not along the old SD&AE right-of-way, began on August 26, 1995.^[2]

The "Bayside" extension of the Trolley in San Diego, which operates near the waterfront, opened on June 30, 1990.^[3] The first phase of the extension to Old Town, from C Street to Little Italy in Downtown San Diego, opened on July 2, 1992.^[3] The second phase of the Old Town extension, running from Little Italy to Old Town, opened on June 16, 1996.^[3]

The "Mission Valley West" SDTI extension, which opened a new Trolley route between Old Town and Mission San Diego (which included the Qualcomm Stadium stop) commenced service on November 23, 1997,^[3] just before San Diego's hosting of Super Bowl XXXII in early 1998. It was at this time that the former South and East Trolley Lines were renamed the Blue Line and Orange Line, respectively.^[2][3] The "Mission Valley East" extension between Mission San Diego and La Mesa opened for service on July 10, 2005, coinciding with the inauguration of the Green Line.^[3]

Stations along the Blue and Orange lines were renovated during 2010–15 as part of the Trolley Renewal Project.^[4][5][6][7]

Current system[]

The San Diego Trolley system currently has 54 stations serving its four Trolley lines.^[1][8]

Fourteen of the Trolley system's stations operate as transfer stations, which allow passengers to transfer between lines. There is one universal transfer point (i.e. allowing for transfers among all four lines) in the system in downtown San Diego: the 12th & Imperial Transit Center station. The adjacent Santa Fe Depot/America Plaza/Courthouse stations, which are within walking distance of each other, also allow for transfer among the four lines. Six Trolley stations are end-of-line stations. Of the 53 stations, 37 of them are within the city limits of San Diego, serving various neighborhoods in San Diego; the other 16 stations are located in surrounding communities, such as El Cajon and National City.

Most stations in the San Diego Trolley system are 'at-grade' stations. There are 8 aerial stations in the system, mostly on the newer Green Line. Currently, there is just one station in the Trolley system that is underground (the SDSU Transit Center station), also on the Green Line.

About half of San Diego Trolley stations offer free park and ride lots.^[9] Most Trolley stations offer connections to MTS bus lines.

Renamed station[]

In 1986, the station on C Street, between Fifth and Sixth Avenues, originally named Gaslamp North or Centre City station, was renamed Fifth Avenue station and has been known as such ever since.

The Qualcomm Stadium stop was simply renamed "Stadium" after Qualcomm's naming rights to the stadium expired in June 2017.

Closed station[]

The San Diego Square station, opened in 1981 on C Street between Seventh & Eighth Avenues downtown, was closed on March 23, 1986, due to low ridership, its close proximity to the (then renamed) Fifth Avenue station, and the desire to eliminate a station in order to accommodate the soon-to-open infill station at E Street (which opened in October 1986) without adding to travel times along the line.

Remnants of this old station still remain on C Street between Seventh & Eighth Avenues.

Newest station[]

In April 2018, MTS opened its first new station since 2005. Courthouse station serves the Orange line only, and is used to access the redesigned downtown courthouse complex. Upon the station's opening, the Orange Line changed its western terminus from America Plaza to the new Courthouse station.

Lines[]

Trolley service currently operates on three main lines offering daily service: the Blue, Green, and Orange Lines, and travels through the 53 stations and 53.5 total miles of double-track rail.^[1] A fourth line, the heritage streetcar Silver Line, operates more limited weekday and weekend service, in a clockwise 'circle-loop' around downtown San Diego only.^[10]

Line	Opened[1]	Length[1]	Number of stations[1]	Termini	Operation
Blue Line	1981	15.4 mi (24.8 km)	18	America Plaza San Ysidro Transit Center	Daily
Green Line	2005	23.6 mi (38.0 km)	27	12th & Imperial Transit Center Santee Town Center	Daily
Orange Line	1986	18.0 mi (29.0 km)	19	Courthouse Arnele Avenue	Daily
Silver Line	2011	2.7 mi (4.3 km)	9	12th & Imperial Transit Center	Mid-day Friday, Saturday, and Sunday

Stations[]

The following table lists all stations currently served by the San Diego Trolley.

Station[8]	Line(s)	Location	Date opened[2]	Comments
8th Street	Blue Line	National City	July 19, 1981
12th & Imperial Transit Center	Blue Line  Green Line  Orange Line  Silver Line	San Diego, East Village	July 19, 1981	Universal transfer station for all lines: transfer for Blue, Green, Orange, and Silver lines. Serves Petco Park. Terminus for Green and Silver lines.
24th Street	Blue Line	National City	July 19, 1981
25th & Commercial	Orange Line	San Diego, Grant Hill	March 23, 1986
32nd & Commercial	Orange Line	San Diego, Stockton	March 23, 1986
47th Street	Orange Line	San Diego, Chollas View	March 23, 1986
70th Street	Green Line	La Mesa	July 10, 2005
Alvarado Medical Center	Green Line	San Diego, College Area	July 10, 2005	Serves the Alvarado Medical Center.
Amaya Drive	Green Line  Orange Line	La Mesa	June 23, 1989	Transfer station for Green and Orange lines.
America Plaza	Blue Line  Silver Line	San Diego, Downtown Core	November 14, 1991	Transfer station for Blue and Silver lines. Directly adjacent to Santa Fe Depot (i.e. short walking distance) – so is also an "indirect" transfer point for the Green Line. This was an infill station – added upon competition of the One America Plaza building in 1991. Terminus for Blue Line.
Arnele Avenue	Green Line	El Cajon	August 26, 1995	Serves Westfield Parkway.
Barrio Logan	Blue Line	San Diego, Logan Heights	July 19, 1981	Serves Chicano Park.
Bayfront/E Street	Blue Line	Chula Vista	October 1986	This was an infill station (it was added 5 years after the line's opening) – the first infill station on the current Blue Line.
Beyer Boulevard	Blue Line	San Diego, San Ysidro	July 19, 1981
City College	Blue Line  Orange Line  Silver Line	San Diego, East Village	July 19, 1981	Serves San Diego City College, San Diego High School.
Civic Center	Blue Line  Orange Line  Silver Line	San Diego, Downtown Core	July 19, 1981	Serves City Hall, Courthouse, and Horton Plaza.
Convention Center	Green Line  Silver Line	San Diego, Marina	June 30, 1990	Serves Convention Center.
County Center/Little Italy	Green Line	San Diego, Middletown	July 2, 1992	Serves San Diego County Administration Center.
Courthouse	Orange Line	San Diego, Downtown Core	April 29, 2018	Serves the San Diego County Courthouse complex. Terminus for Orange Line.
El Cajon Transit Center	Green Line  Orange Line	El Cajon	June 23, 1989	Terminus for Orange Line.
Encanto/62nd Street	Orange Line	San Diego, Encanto	May 12, 1989
Euclid Avenue	Orange Line	San Diego, Emerald Hills	March 23, 1986
Fashion Valley Transit Center	Green Line	San Diego, Mission Valley	November 23, 1997	Serves Fashion Valley Mall.
Fenton Parkway	Green Line	San Diego, Mission Valley	September 19, 2000	This was an infill station (it was added almost 3 years after the line's opening) – the only infill station on the current Green Line.
Fifth Avenue	Blue Line  Orange Line  Silver Line	San Diego, Downtown Core	July 19, 1981	Serves Downtown San Diego.
Gaslamp Quarter	Green Line  Silver Line	San Diego, Gaslamp Quarter	June 30, 1990	Serves Gaslamp Quarter; also Convention Center & Petco Park.
Gillespie Field	Green Line	El Cajon	August 26, 1995	Serves Gillespie Field (airport).
Grantville	Green Line	San Diego, Grantville	July 10, 2005
Grossmont Transit Center	Green Line  Orange Line	La Mesa	June 23, 1989
H Street	Blue Line	Chula Vista	July 19, 1981
Harborside	Blue Line	San Diego, Logan Heights	July 19, 1981
Hazard Center	Green Line	San Diego, Mission Valley	November 23, 1997	Serves the Hazard Center Shopping Center.
Iris Avenue	Blue Line	San Diego, Otay Mesa West	July 19, 1981
La Mesa Boulevard	Orange Line	La Mesa	June 23, 1989
Lemon Grove Depot	Orange Line	Lemon Grove	May 12, 1989
Massachusetts Avenue	Orange Line	Lemon Grove	May 12, 1989
Middletown	Green Line	San Diego, Mission Hills	June 16, 1996
Mission San Diego	Green Line	San Diego, Mission Valley	November 23, 1997	Serves Mission San Diego de Alcalá.
Mission Valley Center	Green Line	San Diego, Mission Valley	November 23, 1997	Serves Westfield Mission Valley.
Morena/Linda Vista	Green Line	San Diego, Morena	November 23, 1997	Serves University of San Diego.
Old Town Transit Center	Green Line	San Diego, Old Town	June 16, 1996	Serves Old Town Historic Park.
Pacific Fleet	Blue Line	San Diego, Logan Heights	July 19, 1981	Serves Naval Base San Diego.
Palm Avenue	Blue Line	San Diego, Palm City	July 19, 1981
Palomar Street	Blue Line	Chula Vista	July 19, 1981
Park & Market	Blue Line  Orange Line  Silver Line	San Diego, East Village	July 19, 1981
Rio Vista	Green Line	San Diego, Mission Valley	November 23, 1997
San Ysidro Transit Center	Blue Line	San Diego, San Ysidro	July 19, 1981	Serves U.S.-Mexico International Border. Terminus for Blue Line. This was the original terminus for the original Trolley line.
Santa Fe Depot	Green Line	San Diego, East Village	July 19, 1981	Directly adjacent to America Plaza (i.e. short walking distance) – so is also an "indirect" transfer point for Blue and Silver lines. This was the original terminus for the original Trolley line.
Santee Town Center	Green Line	Santee	August 26, 1995	Terminus for Green Line.
San Diego State University Transit Center	Green Line	San Diego, College Area	July 10, 2005	Serves San Diego State University. Only underground station in the San Diego Trolley system.
Seaport Village	Green Line  Silver Line	San Diego, Marina	June 30, 1990	Serves Seaport Village.
Spring Street	Orange Line	La Mesa	May 12, 1989
Stadium	Green Line	San Diego, Mission Valley	November 23, 1997	Temporarily closed (thru 2022)[11] Serves SDCCU Stadium.
Washington Street	Green Line	San Diego, Mission Hills	June 16, 1996

Future stations[]

Station	Line	Location	Planned opening	Notes
University Towne Center	Blue Line	University City, San Diego	November 21, 2021	Will serve Westfield UTC and Costa Verde Shopping Center. New terminus for Blue Line.
Executive Drive	Blue Line	University City, San Diego	November 21, 2021
UCSD East/Voigt Drive	Blue Line	La Jolla	November 21, 2021	Will serve Jacobs Medical Center and Scripps Memorial Hospital La Jolla.
UCSD West/Pepper Canyon	Blue Line	La Jolla	November 21, 2021	Will serve University of California, San Diego.
VA Medical Center	Blue Line	La Jolla	November 21, 2021	Will serve VA Medical Center (VAMC) of San Diego.
Nobel Drive	Blue Line	La Jolla Village, San Diego	November 21, 2021	Will serve La Jolla Village Square and The Shops at La Jolla.
Balboa Avenue	Blue Line	Clairemont, San Diego	November 21, 2021
Clairemont Drive	Blue Line	Clairemont, San Diego	November 21, 2021	Will serve Mission Bay.
Tecolote Road	Blue Line	Morena, San Diego	November 21, 2021	Will serve SeaWorld.

References[]