Decreased fares mean increased opportunity to take the Amtrak Pacific Surfliner.
As of May 1, train fares between Guadalupe, Grover Beach and San Luis Obispo dropped by 75 percent.
“We're just working with the existing train schedules and we recognize that we could buy down the cost of the fares,” explained Peter Rodgers, Executive Director of the San Luis Obispo Council of Governments (SLOCOG).
SLOCOG is working with the Los Angeles-San Diego-San Luis Obispo Rail Corridor on a pilot program to reduce fares and improve traffic with help from State Transit Assistance funding.
While the organizations are hoping the new rates encourage more people to ride the train, local resident Ryan Cruz said traveling by rail can also help keep you out of traffic along the Highway 101 corridor.
“It's just so much easier to deal with traffic, especially if you're going down to Santa Barbara and the traffic and the parking," he said.
The program also aims to ease traffic between Nipomo and Pismo Beach, an area that is and will see multiple highway construction projects over the next year.
According to a SLOCOG staff report, the average ridership between the three communities of San Luis Obispo, Grover Beach and Guadalupe on a given day is between 2.13 and 5.18 people.
Rodgers said they are working within the current train schedule but are hoping to add a third round trip to San Luis Obispo in the next year.
“We need to work within the existing right of way that we have and the existing rail services that we have and grow transit to the degree that it works for people," he said.
“I would love to see more of that to increase the frequency of the trains... anything they can do to bring more of it,” Cruz added.
Travel times with Rail Pilot Program discount
Guadalupe to SLO: 11:54 a.m. - 12:39 p.m. or 7:56 p.m. - 8:46 p.m.
Guadalupe to Grover Beach: 11:54 a.m - 12:08 p.m. or 7:56 p.m. - 8:10 p.m.
Grover Beach to SLO: 12:09 p.m. - 12:39 p.m. or 8:11 p.m. - 8:46 p.m.
Grover Beach to Guadalupe: 6:31 a.m. - 6:45 a.m. or 4:32 p.m. - 4:46 p.m.
SLO to Guadalupe: 6:11 a.m. - 6:45 a.m. or 4:12 p.m. - 4:46 p.m.
SLO to Grover Beach: 6:11 a.m. - 6:29 a.m. or 4:12 p.m. - 4:50 p.m.
