The Santa Fe Depot and America Plaza transit stations together serve as the primary transportation hub to Downtown San Diego for residents, commuters, and visitors. The two stations connect passengers to the UC San Diego Blue Line Trolley, Sycuan Green Line Trolley, the Silver Line Downtown Loop, COASTER commuter rail, Amtrak intercity rail, Rapid Bus Rapid Transit service, and many local bus lines. Having all these transportation options in one location is beneficial for riders, but navigating between the two stations and to Downtown attractions is not intuitive, creating confusion and safety concerns for transit riders, pedestrians, and vehicles.
To address this, MTS has embarked on the America Plaza/Santa Fe Depot Pedestrian Enhancement Project to improve the pedestrian experience in and around this important transit hub. The objectives of the plan are to:
- Improve pedestrian circulation by creating safe and intuitive links between the stations to promote seamless transitions between all modes of transportation
- Provide better wayfinding signage that will guide passengers to transit services and other civic amenities
- Activate the area with urban design amenities to create a welcoming human-scale public space that is sensitive to the surrounding built environment and climate
The end result will help create a vibrant urban experience that leverages the unique, transportation, historical and cultural resources adjacent to the stations .
We want your input!
Following the first two open houses in November 2019, MTS developed three draft design concepts for improvements to the America Plaza and Santa Fe Depot Stations. These concepts were presented to the public for additional input at a workshop on February 13, 2020. A final proposed design concept was presented at a third (virtual) workshop in September 2020. You can watch the recording of that webinar below, and provide public comment by Thursday, September 10. The final design concept is expected to go before the MTS Board of Directors at the September 17 meeting (where public comment will also be accepted).