San Diego Metropolitan Transit System

San Diego Metropolitan Transit System
A Rapid bus departs Santa Fe Depot station (left) while a Blue Line train of the San Diego Trolley loads passengers at America Plaza station. The stations are a major MTS hub in Downtown San Diego.
Overview
Locale	Southern San Diego County, California
Transit type	Buses, Bus rapid transit, Light rail, Paratransit
Number of lines	4 light rail lines[1] 95 bus routes[1]
Number of stations	62 light rail stations[1]
Daily ridership	236,200 (weekdays, Q1 2024)[2]
Annual ridership	71,784,900 (2023)[3]
Chief executive	Sharon Cooney[4]
Headquarters	James R. Mills Building 1255 Imperial Avenue San Diego, CA
Website	sdmts.com
Operation
Operator(s)	San Diego Trolley, Inc. San Diego Transit Corp. Transdev

The San Diego Metropolitan Transit System (SDMTS or often simply MTS) is a public transit service provider for central, southern, northeast, and southeast San Diego County, California, as well as for the city of San Diego. The agency directly operates a large transit system that includes the MTS Bus, San Diego Trolley light rail, and Rapid bus rapid transit services. The 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.

MTS is one of the oldest transit systems in Southern California, with predecessors dating back as early as the 1880s. The current agency started operations in 1976 as the San Diego Metropolitan Transit Development Board (MTDB) and changed to its current name in 2005.

The MTS works closely with the North County Transit District (NCTD), which operates public transit services in Northern San Diego County, and the San Diego Association of Governments (SANDAG), which plans, develops, and constructs transit projects for both the MTS and NCTD.

In 2023, the system had a ridership of 71,784,900, or about 236,200 per weekday as of the first quarter of 2024.