A concerned resident told the University Community Planning Group (UCPG) Tuesday, Dec. 12 that it should be more involved in the planning of a new bus route project in northern University City.
The route, a 7.5-mile-long circle through the community referred to as the Super Loop, has been a collaborative effort between San Diego City Council President Scott Peters, the San Diego Association of Governments (SANDAG) and the San Diego Metropolitan Transit System (MTS). The project, with a system of 10 buses circulating through a 15-station route, is scheduled for completion in late fall 2008 and should reduce traffic congestion and decrease travel time, according to Peters’ office and SANDAG.
But some community members think the buses are unnecessary.
“There are going to be three routes: MTS, the UCSD shuttle and now the Super Loop,” UC resident Dale Disharoon said at the meeting. “The frequency of buses will be one every five minutes. That’s pretty disruptive.”
Disharoon told the audience he’s particularly worried about the noise and pollution the buses will give off. At the last SANDAG meeting in March, he spoke against the route, which is scheduled to pass frequently in front of his home. He said he is seriously concerned that SANDAG, MTS and the city have not scheduled another public hearing before they will begin action on the project.
SANDAG confirmed that the meeting in March was the last of its kind and that the project is now in the administrative process.
“These long-term decisions are going to be made and they’re going to change our community,” Disharoon said. “We need to look into it, because once these buses are purchased, we’ve got them forever, and people are going to leave this community because of it.”
Resident Debbie Knight agreed that the planning group should look at the issue more closely.
The UCPG, headed by Linda Colley, agreed to get more information on the project from SANDAG. Peters, who attended the meeting, told the audience that officials were trying to get low-noise equipment that would be “neighborhood friendly.”
“University City traffic studies show that 50 percent of the congestion in the Golden Triangle is created by internal car trips from home to work or school and back,” Madeleine Baudoin, UC representative for Peters, said by phone last week. “Public transportation projects will allow for better transportation overall and will take a significant number of cars off the road.”
The Super Loop buses will run every 10 minutes, unlike the 30-minute-interval MTS buses, and should make taking the bus faster than commuting by car, according to Baudoin.
Peters’ office has been working directly with MTS and SANDAG in order to ensure the quality of buses selected.
“We are very aware of those concerns and that’s why we are involved and are looking out for the best interest of the community,” Baudoin said. “We are trying to put buses on the ground that are quieter, cleaner and faster.”
The proposed bus route will extend in a circular pattern to connect major hubs, including University Towne Centre mall, University of California San Diego, La Jolla Village Square, Executive Drive and Genesee Avenue office clusters, and Nobel Park, according to a map on the SANDAG Web site.
MTS is slated to open contract bidding for the buses in August 2007 and is likely to operate the bus service under a contract with SANDAG, according to Mario Oropeza, senior project manager at SANDAG.
The issues of noise and emissions will be addressed in an environmental docket report, which will be released next year for SANDAG to evaluate, Oropeza said.
TransNet, a half-cent sales tax that was extended by voters in 2004, is providing funding for all aspects of the project. Bus fees have not yet been determined but should be comparable to other San Diego public transportation, according to the SANDAG Web site.
For information about the Super Loop, visit www.sandag.org.