Agency overview | |
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Formed | 1980 |
Preceding agency |
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Jurisdiction | San Diego County |
Headquarters | 401 B Street, Suite 800, San Diego, CA 92101 |
Annual budget | $1.36 billion |
Agency executive |
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Child agencies | |
Website | sandag.org |
The San Diego Association of Governments (SANDAG) is the metropolitan planning organization (MPO) for San Diego County, California. It is an association of local county governments, with policy makers consisting of mayors, councilmembers, and county supervisors, and also has capital planning and fare setting powers for the county's transit systems, the San Diego Metropolitan Transit System (MTS) and the North County Transit District (NCTD), some of which was assumed by the Metropolitan Transit Development Board (became MTS in 1986). SANDAG, along with the Southern California Association of Governments, are the only metropolitan planning agencies in Southern California.
The board was previously governed with the representation of one board member from every city in San Diego County, with each member holding two votes in two systems. The approval of a project required the majority tally vote representing all cities and board members and the majority of represented members weighted by population.
After the passage of SANDAG's reform bill in 2017, any four representatives representing a majority of the county's population can overrule the tally vote. [1]
From 2018 to 2023, the director of SANDAG was Hasan Ikhrata, who made transit expansion and roadway pricing a priority. [2] In 2024, he was replaced by Mario Orso. [3]
The Compass Card was launched by SANDAG in May of 2009 to integrate the fare payment systems of San Diego MTS and North County Transit District into one system, meant to reduce the number of fare transactions at customer service centers. The Compass Card was replaced by PRONTO in September 2021.
As of July 2024, all 18 incorporated cities of San Diego County as well as the county government itself are members of SANDAG. Those include: [4]
Additionally, 11 other agencies/governments that border San Diego County or are relevant to the region also participate in the Association as advisory members. Those include: [4]
Coaster is a commuter rail service in the central and northern coastal regions of San Diego County, California, United States, operated by the North County Transit District (NCTD).
The San Diego Trolley is a light rail system serving San Diego County, California, United States. The trolley's operator, San Diego Trolley, Inc., is a subsidiary of the San Diego Metropolitan Transit System (MTS). The trolley operates as a critical component of MTS, with connections to and integrated travel tickets with the local bus systems.
The Compass Card was the first-generation smart card used for automated fare collection on public transport services within San Diego County, California. Administered by the San Diego Association of Governments (SANDAG), it was valid on a number of different travel systems in San Diego County including MTS buses, the San Diego Trolley, North County Buses, the Coaster and the Sprinter. The system was operated by Cubic Transportation Systems. Phased out over the third quarter of 2021, it was discontinued on August 31, and its successor, Pronto, launched the following day.
Sprinter is a hybrid rail service operating in the North County area of San Diego County between the cities of Escondido and Oceanside, California, United States. The service uses the 22-mile (35 km) Escondido Subdivision of the San Diego Northern Railroad. Station platforms were constructed for the line's fifteen stations serving the cities of Oceanside, Vista, San Marcos, and Escondido. The line provides service to California State University, San Marcos and Palomar College. Sprinter service operates every 30 minutes and is targeted towards students and commuters.
The North County Transit District (NCTD) is the agency responsible for public transportation in Northern San Diego County, California. The agency manages the COASTER commuter rail service between Oceanside and San Diego, the SPRINTER hybrid rail service between Escondido and Oceanside, the BREEZE transit bus service, LIFT paratransit service, and FLEX on-demand and point-deviation service.
The following is a list of transportation options in San Diego County, California.
The San Diego Metropolitan Transit System is a public transit service provider for San Diego County, California. The agency operates a transit system that includes the San Diego MTS bus system, San Diego Trolley, and Rapid. MTS also controls the San Diego and Arizona Eastern (SD&AE) freight railway and regulates taxicabs, jitneys, and other private for-hire passenger transportation services.
The SuperLoop was a bus rapid transit system in San Diego, California, United States, in the University City area. It connected the University of California, San Diego and Westfield UTC. The 8-mile loop featured 15 stops served by as many as 12 dedicated New Flyer hybrid buses. Service of the SuperLoop was provided by the San Diego Metropolitan Transit System.
The Blue Line is a 26.3-mile (42.3 km) light rail line in the San Diego Trolley system, operated by San Diego Trolley, Inc., an operating division of the San Diego Metropolitan Transit System (MTS). With an end-to-end travel time of one hour and twenty-three minutes, it operates between UTC Transit Center and San Ysidro Transit Center, the latter of which is at the Mexico–United States border directly adjacent to the San Ysidro Port of Entry, facilitating easy connections across the border. The line serves La Jolla, downtown San Diego, National City, Chula Vista, and San Ysidro and is the system's longest line.
The Orange Line is an 17.1-mile (27.5 km) light rail line in the San Diego Trolley system, operated by San Diego Trolley, Inc. an operating division of the San Diego Metropolitan Transit System. The route connects downtown San Diego with the cities of Lemon Grove, La Mesa, and El Cajon. The Orange Line has the lowest ridership of the San Diego Trolley's three core lines, transporting 10,896,289 riders during FY 2014 according to the MTS.
San Ysidro Transit Center is a San Diego Trolley station in the San Ysidro neighborhood of San Diego, California. The station is the southern terminus of the Blue Line and is located on a short rail spur off the San Diego and Arizona Eastern Railway main line which hosts the Blue Line to downtown San Diego.
The following is a list of transportation options in San Diego, California.
The San Diego MTS bus system is a public transport bus service operating in San Diego County, California. It is part of the San Diego Metropolitan Transit System (MTS). The system operates 97 bus routes in San Diego and the rest of the southern half of San Diego County, California. There are 85 "MTS Bus" fixed-route services, nine "Rapid" bus rapid transit routes, and the "MTS Access" paratransit service. In 2023, the system had a ridership of 33,068,400, or about 121,500 per weekday, as of the second quarter of 2024.
Breeze Rapid was a brand of bus service with some bus rapid transit characteristics operated by the North County Transit District (NCTD) in North County, San Diego. Its first and only route (350) was introduced in 2011. The brand has been quietly retired, but the route is still in operation.
The government of San Diego County is defined and authorized under the Constitution of California, California law, and the Charter of the County of San Diego. Much of the government of California is in practice the responsibility of county governments such as the government of San Diego County. The County government provides countywide services such as elections and voter registration, law enforcement, jails, vital records, property records, tax collection, public health, and social services. In addition the County serves as the local government for all unincorporated areas.
Rapid is a bus rapid transit system operating in San Diego County, California. It is part of the San Diego Metropolitan Transit System (MTS). The system mainly operates on the HOV lanes of Interstate 15 and 805. Freeway-level stations are located in the medians of Interstate 15, Park Boulevard, and East Palomar Street.
The Purple Line is a commuter rail line proposed by the San Diego Association of Governments (SANDAG) as part of the San Diego Trolley system. It would run from San Ysidro Transit Center at the Mexico–United States border to Kearny Mesa with a possible extension to Carmel Valley. Most of it would run along a similar route to I-805. The Purple Line could include up to 12 stations, a new maintenance facility, and a storage yard.
Balboa Avenue Transit Center is a San Diego Trolley station in San Diego. The station is located along Balboa Avenue between Interstate 5 and Morena Boulevard. Service began on November 21, 2021 after the completion of the Blue Line Mid-Coast Trolley extension project.
Pronto is the contactless payment system for automated fare collection on public transit services in San Diego County, California. The system is managed by the San Diego Metropolitan Transit System (MTS) and operated by INIT.