North County Transit District
The North County Transit District (typically abbreviated as NCTD) is the agency responsible for public transportation in Northern San Diego County, California. The agency manages the COASTER commuter rail service between Oceanside and San Diego, the SPRINTER hybrid rail service between Escondido and Oceanside, the BREEZE transit bus service, LIFT paratransit service, and FLEX on-demand and point-deviation service.
| North County Transit District | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Overview | |||
| Locale | Northern San Diego County, California | ||
| Transit type | Buses, commuter rail, light rail, paratransit | ||
| Number of lines |
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| Number of stations | 15 light rail stations 8 commuter rail stations | ||
| Daily ridership | 22,100 (weekdays, Q3 2023) | ||
| Annual ridership | 6,473,700 (2022) | ||
| Website | gonctd | ||
| Operation | |||
| Began operation | September 30, 1975 | ||
| Operator(s) | MV Transportation | ||
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NCTD owns 62 miles (100 km) of mainline railroad track (the Surf Line) from the Orange County/San Diego County line to the San Diego Santa Fe Depot (used by COASTER, Metrolink, and Pacific Surfliner passenger trains along with BNSF Railway freight trains) along with the 22-mile (35 km) Escondido Branch (used by the SPRINTER and BNSF freight trains).
NCTD also works closely with the San Diego Metropolitan Transit System (MTS) which operates public transit services in Southern San Diego County, and the San Diego Association of Governments (SANDAG) which plans, develops, and constructs transit projects for both the NCTD and MTS. NCTD’s rail services are directly operated by the agency, while bus services are operated under contract by MV Transportation.
As of 2022, NCTD provides 6,473,700 passenger trips per year, or about 22,100 per weekday as of the third quarter of 2023. NCTD's geographic area is approximately 1,020 square miles (2,600 km2) with an approximate population of 842,000 people.