City leaders in La Mesa are reviewing options to fix chronic traffic problems at the downtown trolley station, but officials said any solution would cost at least $500 million and remain decades away.
The La Mesa City Council reviewed a long-awaited study by the San Diego Association of Governments last week on possible redevelopment of the MTS Orange trolley line that runs parallel to Spring Street in the heart of the downtown village district.
City engineers have adjusted Spring Street signals in an effort to reduce trolley-related backups and halted left-turn traffic. Still, the street-level crossings continue to cause frequent delays at one of the city’s busiest intersections.
Proposed solutions include moving the trolley tracks or placing them underground, which could cost anywhere from $569 million to $741 million —nearly four times the city’s current yearly budget.
“With that price tag, obviously, it’s not something that we’re going to be moving on right this second,” Councilmember Lauren Cazares said.
Years ago, city leaders asked SANDAG to look into potential ways to ease traffic congestion and improve safety at the railway crossing. The project was awarded $500,000 in funding to explore redevelopment options under the Caltrans Sustainable Planning grant program.
Though there are no immediate plans for Orange Line service frequency to increase, SANDAG Senior Regional Planner Cecily Taylor said the change will come eventually. Currently, the line runs a train about every 15 minutes, but the agency has plans to double the frequency. Those frequent stops would halt traffic at intersections twice as often, creating longer backups.
“Without any changes (to the trolley station), the traffic delays in La Mesa would significantly increase,” Taylor said.
SANDAG evaluated four concepts for the La Mesa Boulevard trolley station area, including short-term improvements — estimated to cost about $13.7 million — such as signal upgrades and new pedestrian walkways.
The most expensive proposal had an estimated cost of $741 million and would have lowered the trolley into a trench to reduce vehicle-train collisions and pedestrian trespassing incidents. SANDAG officials decided not to pursue the idea after residents said they opposed it.
Overall, officials said an elevated trolley station would likely be the best solution, with a cost of about $567 million.
“There would be the greatest safety and mobility benefit from the aerial guideway or the trench,” Taylor said. “The trade-off is that these are complex projects, there would also be ongoing costs to consider associated with having a grade-separated station.”
The price tag puts any major redevelopment far beyond La Mesa’s reach, at least any time soon. Officials said they want to continue weighing their options as potential grant funding becomes available.
“When funding does become available, we need to be ready to jump at it because if we don’t have ideas that have been studied then we’re not competitive,” Cazares said.
Further cost-benefit analysis should be completed, Taylor said, noting the project could be funded with federal grants but they will likely stipulate that some local funding is provided.
The study found that residents are most concerned with maintaining the downtown village character while maintaining transit access, she said.
“I don’t care if you draw flowers on it, it’s never gonna look village-y,” Councilmember Laura Lothian said, noting the rendering for the elevated trolley looked “industrial and concrete.”
There could be ways to incorporate the structure into the village vibe, Taylor said, but noted the agency didn’t have any specific recommendations because the project is in the early stages.
The city council did not take any actions based on the study’s findings. Officials said construction could take up to four years, once funding is secured.
“We’ll let our great-grandchildren know about this,” Mayor Mark Arapostathis joked.