Problem #8. coaster Doesn't Reduce Traffic

The I-5 Highway is a massive transportation corridor of San Diego and Orange County with 1.3 million trips, over 250x the volume of riders (4,500) that occur on the Coaster/Amtrak/Metrolink. Claims that these coastal train lines reduce I-5 Highway congestion is simply not credible.

Driving and commuting in san diego: the big picture

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Driving Alone is the dominant Peak (after work PM) Commute mode because driving is the most convenient and shortest commute time. Cell phones, podcasts, entertainment makes commutes more tolerable.

San Diego Ranks 3rd Best in Commute Time for Top 20 Metro Areas

Commuter congestion exists in all cities. While not a strict rule, the larger and more dense the city, the longer the commute regardless of the availability of public transit.
San Diego has relatively low population density at approximately 4,000 people per square mile versus 28,000 for NYC , 8,000 for LA and 18,000 for San Francisco.

References

NEXT PROBLEM: #9 Doesn't reduce GHG

The coastal trains are often close to empty with an approximate vacancy rate of 90%. Empty trains along with the prospective impact of massive tunnel construction is not environmentally friendly. EVs also undermine the environmental supremacy of rail. LEARN MORE