SDSU Gets New Transit Center at Main Entry

The four-year-old aspiration to build a county transit center at San Diego State University’s main entrance became reality Friday.

A one-block section of Campanile Drive, between Hardy Avenue and East Campus Drive, was vacated for the center, which has six bus bays, two passenger shelters, exterior waiting areas, landscaped walkways and a university information booth.

“The university’s information booth used to be this little shack,” said Steve Ron, senior transportation specialist with the county Department of Public Works. “It was right in the midst of where we were building this new center, so it was torn down and we gave the university a bright red, brand-spanking new information booth in its stead.”

The new center, which is owned by the county and managed by the university, centrally locates the six bus lines serving the SDSU area, which in the past used five pickup locations within two blocks of the new center, Ron said.

“There’s been a real concern about safety lately here on campus, and we believe this new center will provide a safe and attractive place for people to wait for the bus,” said Larry Piper, SDSU facilities and transportation planner. “There is a good deal of lighting and the center is a large open space, so it should be safe even at night.

“Part of the reason the university played such an active role in choosing the architect for the project and the design stage was that we wanted to put our best face forward at our main entrance,” Piper said. “We think we achieved this goal. It definitely looks like an inviting pedestrian mall. We carried out the brick pattern in the sidewalk, included some more green space in the landscaping and believe it shows the university as a unified architectural entity.”

Funds for the $2.5-million project came from the California Transportation Development Act, which provides funds for such projects through locally collected sales tax, Ron said. The idea for an SDSU transit center was originally considered by the Metropolitan Transportation Development Board in 1982.

The new center is expected to serve 256,000 passengers annually, a San Diego Transit Corp. spokesman said. About 253,000 people from the university area currently use the bus system.

“Because of the added convenience of having all these bus lines centrally located, we expect a bit of an increase in passengers,” Ron said.