San Diego's Metropolitan Transit System is proposing a new trolley line — the Copper Line — that it hopes will reduce delays and improve reliability on the entire trolley network.
The problem officials are trying to fix is in Santee, where a single trolley track serves both directions of travel. That creates a pinch point where trolleys have to wait for each other to use the track, which can cause delays across the Green and Orange Lines.
MTS' proposed fix is to terminate the Green and Orange Lines at the El Cajon Transit Center. From there, the new Copper Line would take passengers back and forth between El Cajon and Santee.
Maxwell Gergen is a regular trolley rider who lives downtown and works in El Cajon. He said he's been stranded late at night on the Green Line because of train delays and cancellations. The proposed Copper Line, he said, would be a big improvement.
"You aren't going to be having cascading delays caused by the Orange Line or the Green Line," Gergen said. "Also you're going to be having faster, more efficient service that's more reliable, that you won't feel will strand you."
MTS spokesman Mark Olson said agency staffers will be out at the four trolley stations between El Cajon and Santee this month to gather input from passengers ahead of a vote at the MTS board of directors scheduled for June 20. Passengers can also submit comments online.
If approved by the board of directors, service on the Copper Line would start in September. Olson said service would be similar to what it is today — trains running from 5 a.m. to midnight with 15 minute frequencies during peak hours.
Gergen acknowledged some passengers going past El Cajon Transit Center could be inconvenienced by having to transfer. But he said MTS has to find ways to cut back on delays and cancellations if it hopes to attract more ridership.
"These are things that would prevent people from using the trolley or the buses ever again," Gergen said.
