Every day, Interstate 15 is packed with commuters traveling between Southwest Riverside County and San Diego for school or work — a drive that can sometimes take hours.
The San Diego Association of Governments (SANDAG) is looking into providing some relief through a Rapid Bus route from Temecula to San Marcos.
"The idea is reducing congestion on the freeways and the roads by offering alternatives to solo driving," said SANDAG senior transit planner Brian Lane. "So a Rapid route like this ideally — for those who can use it, and would be able to use it — would help meet those (climate) goals by reducing vehicle miles traveled."
SANDAG is under a state mandate to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by at least 85% below 1990 levels by 2045.
The proposed Rapid 483 route is specifically planned for commuters who attend California State University, San Marcos or work in the surrounding area.
“Or even riders who may be going the other way up to Temecula or Riverside area to get the jobs up in that area,” Lane said.
Riverside Transit Authority used to offer a similar bus route before COVID-19, but it was discontinued when ridership dropped during the pandemic.
About a year after the route was discontinued, Lane said, CSU San Marcos and Palomar College approached SANDAG and the North County Transit District asking how to bring the route back to help their students commuting from Temecula.
"We had some good talks with them a couple of years ago, and then our regional plan includes a ton of routes like this that we're really trying to help provide a Rapid network throughout the county to provide people with those options," he said.
Lane noted that freeways are becoming more congested than they were during the pandemic lockdown and the long return to on-site work. "People are starting to go back to work full-time. (The) federal workforce is being required to come back to work as well, so we're already seeing that congestion even increasing."
Matt Brown, who lives in Temecula and works in Rancho Bernardo, experiences that congestion first-hand. His 40-mile one-way commute takes about 40 minutes on a good day, but if there's traffic, it could take up to an hour.
He welcomes the idea of a Rapid Bus route from Riverside County to San Diego.
“If it all really worked out, I'd take it every day," he said. "It's so relaxing to sit down and read a book, have a coffee, not really worry about the people around you versus, you know, (while driving) I'm constantly like, 'What is the guy in the next lane doing?' ... 'How am I going to make it there?' ... It's just — it's a hassle.”
He said the challenge with taking the bus getting from the bus stop to his office.
"My old office used to be in Escondido. It would have been really easy to just take a bike and maybe bike the last couple of miles to my office," Brown said. "If it's in Rancho Bernardo, and the bus doesn't quite go there, then I'd probably take a transfer, and transfers are usually not that great."
SANDAG is collecting feedback on the proposed route until April 23. And part of that is looking at last-mile options.
Lane said the route is in the early planning stages. If everything goes smoothly, the earliest it will be running is 2029.
