From low ridership to crumbling cliffs to staffing shortages, the North County Transit District (NCTD) is facing a slew of problems.
“It's pretty nice overall but there are a lot of crazy things that happen often,” said frequent NCTD rider Arnold Onyemah. “Like a lot of homeless people taking the transit for free and then they cause commotions around.”
KPBS spoke to him and other transit riders, like freshman Nikita Sharma, at the Cal State San Marcos Station.
“If I had an option between a car and public transportation, I would obviously go for a car,” Sharma said.
Decadeslong public transit rider Roger Cuadra said he wants expanded hours.
“They'll work if you have the time and patience to take them,” Cuadra said about the NCTD buses and train options.
The issues the riders bring up will be faced by the district's new CEO, Shawn Donaghy.
He said nothing is off the table in regards to expanding public transit options in North County.
“Have we expanded to the correct places? Do we have frequent service enough to get someone to the rail line to make some of those connections?” Donaghy asked about the current NCTD system.
He has worked in transportation for more than 25 years. Most recently, Donaghy was the CEO of C-TRAN in Vancouver, Washington.
It was twice named the North American Public Transit System of the Year during his time there.
“A lot of transit agencies suffer from the system they have in place now is the same system they've had in place for 25 or 30 years. And you'll see this population shift in cities or growth in outer county,” Donaghy said.
He plans to draw on his past efforts to accomplish some bold goals for a system that includes two rail lines and 32 bus lines throughout the North County.
“Maybe more frequent service on the rail,” Donaghy said. “On the bus side, it's definitely things like bus rapid transit or some type of express-type bus in corridors that need it.”
Vista City Councilmember Corinna Contreras is a member of the transit district board and a weekly user of the system.
“We don't have the frequency that we need in order to get people to use public transit at a higher level. But once we get that frequency we can continue to grow our ridership,” Contreras said.
She said increasing service is just one challenge.
“I don't want folks in my community to suffer the consequences of a public transit system that they rely on that is not reliable,” she said.
It’s a concern shared in other parts of North County too.
“Carlsbad is blessed with a lot of hospitality businesses, and a lot of those folks need reliable public transportation,” said Carlsbad Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Bret Schanzenbach.
He said if public transit options were improved it could help work commuters and benefit business districts.
Schanzenbach said it can sometimes take almost two hours on the bus system to get between North County cities.
“One of the challenges that we face is that first mile, last mile question that a lot of people deal with,” he said. “We have great trains going up and down with the coaster — two different stops in Carlsbad specifically. But then getting those folks all the way out to the business park where the biggest employment centers are has been a challenge.”
Donaghy had one word for what he sees as the biggest hurdle the transit district faces.
“It’s infrastructure," he said. "I think we have a very unique opportunity through the current presidential administration that there's more money available now for rail and bus."
Donaghy already has a few projects in mind for that money.
“I think North County specifically there's a lot of opportunity between double tracking of the sprinter and the coaster lines,” he said.
Double tracking means putting another set of tracks in areas where right now there's only one.
But there’s another issue with the tracks, particularly in Del Mar.
“Obviously the bluffs is an issue where there’s some erosion there,” he said.
A new study by LLC.org shows both Escondido and Oceanside residents are among some of earliest work commuters in the nation.
Regardless of his experience, Donaghy has his work cut out for him trying to provide an alterative for those commuters and boost ridership for the North County Transit District.
He officially starts as the organization's CEO on March 1.
