San Diego, California, USA

Table of Contents

Overview - San Diego

Located on the eponymous bay north of the US-Mexico border, San Diego is the seat of San Diego County. It has approximately 1,388,000 inhabitants in the city proper as of 2023. The San Diego metropolitan area (San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad) comprised 3,269,973 residents as of the 2023 US Census Bureau Estimate.

San Diego's rapid transit network consists of four light rail services and a bus rapid transit service. It also has a commuter rail service, three rapid bus services, and a tourist trolley running on its light rail network (not covered on this site).

San Diego Trolley

Opened 1981, the San Diego Trolley consists of four light rail services that serve the city of San Diego, California and the surrounding suburbs.

Blue Line

The Blue Line of the San Diego Trolley is a light rail service on a North-South alignment, running from UTC in the north to San Ysidro Transit Center in the south on the US-Mexico border, serving 32 stations.

The Blue Line was opened in July 1981. The last extension was to UTC in November 2021. The Blue Line is owned by the Metropolitan Transit System and operated by San Diego Trolley Inc.

Orange Line

The Orange Line of the San Diego Trolley is a light rail service on an East-West alignment, running from Courthouse in downtown San Diego to El Cajon in the east, serving 18 stations.

The Orange Line was opened in March 1986. The latest expansion to the line was the moving of the western terminal from America Plaza to a new Courthouse station in April 2018. The Orange Line is owned by the Metropolitan Transit System and operated by San Diego Trolley Inc.

Green Line

The Green Line of the San Diego Trolley is a light rail service on an East-West alignment, running from 12th & Imperial Transit Center in the west to El Cajon in the east, serving 24 stations.

The Green Line was opened in July 2005. The Green Line is owned by the Metropolitan Transit System and operated by San Diego Trolley Inc.

Copper Line

The Copper Line of the San Diego Trolley is a light rail service on a north-south alignment, running from El Cajon in the south to Santee in the north, serving 4 stations.

The Copper Line was opened in September 2024 as part of the partition of the Green Line. The Copper Line is owned by the Metropolitan Transit System and operated by San Diego Trolley Inc.

MTS Rapid

Opened 2014, the MTS Rapid consists of a bus rapid transit service and three rapid bus services that serve the city of San Diego, California and the surrounding suburbs. There are additional routes that only operate during peak hours, which are not covered on this website, as well as circulator loops which are also not covered on this website.

Rapid 215

The Rapid 215 of the MTS Rapid is a rapid bus service on an Southwest-Northeast alignment, running from Santa Fe Transit Center in the southwest to SDSU Transit Center in the northeast, serving 17 stations. It runs in a dedicated median ROW between University and Howard Avenues.

The Rapid 215 was opened in October 2014.

Rapid 225

The Rapid 225 of the MTS Rapid is a bus rapid transit service on a Northwest-Southeast alignment, running from Santa Fe Transit Center in the northwest to Otay Mesa in the southeast, serving 11 stations. It runs in a dedicated median or exclusive ROW from Brandywine Ave to Millenia. Since at least 2022, there has been an additional stop at the East Village. However, while it appears on all timetable since January 30, 2022 and potentially earlier, it does NOT appear on the official Rapid map or system map and so we have chosen to not include it on our strip map or system map.

The Rapid 225 was opened in September 2018.

Rapid 227

The Rapid 227 of the MTS Rapid is a rapid bus service on an East-West alignment, running from Imperial Beach Pier in the west to Otay Mesa Transit Center in the east, serving 12 stations of which six are served in a single directional loop only.

The Rapid 227 was opened in October 2023 and was reconfigured in June 2024 to turn along 9th St rather than 3rd St.

Rapid 235

The Rapid 235 of the MTS Rapid is a rapid bus service on a North-South alignment, running from Santa Fe Transit Center in the south to Escondido in the north, serving 14 stations. It runs in a dedicated median ROW for the two transit plazas on its route (I-15 Centerline). Since an unknown date, there has been an additional stop at the East Village. However, this does NOT appear on digital timetables, at least as of Sept 2023, and it does NOT appear on the official Rapid map or system map and so we have chosen to not include it on our strip map or system map.

The Rapid 235 was opened in June 2014.

Coaster

Coaster

The Coaster is a commuter rail service on a North-South alignment, running from Oceanside Transit Center in the north to San Diego in the south, serving 8 stations.

The Coaster was opened in February 1995.

References & Helpful Links

San Diego Trolley at Wikipedia

Coaster at Wikipedia

Official Website for San Diego Trolley: San Diego Metropolitan Transit System

Official Website for Coaster: North County Transit District

Maps

Official System Map - San Diego Trolley [PDF] [Last Accessed Apr 29, 2025]

Unofficial Map - San Diego Trolley and Regional Transit Map [November 2024] by u/Cyberdragon32 (reddit.com)

Other Sources

San Diego, USA at Urbanrail.net

Asset Notes

San Diego Trolley colors taken from official map as of Dec 2019 (October 2024 for Copper Line).

MTS Rapid (215, 225, 235) colors taken from official map as of November 2021. Iris Rapid (227) color taken from official map as of October 18, 2023.

Coaster colors taken from NCTD logo as of Dec 2019.