Public officials and news commentators often complain about how we Californians are too in love with our cars to use public transportation.  While I agree we are fairly addicted to our own personal set of wheels, I am certainly willing and would be happy to take a bus or train from time to time and avoid sitting in traffic.

The problem is, the schedules and routes available leave a lot to be desired, and I often have no choice but to drive myself.

Take the day before yesterday, for example.  I thought it would be a fun outing for my family (my husband, my 2 year old boy and my 4 year old girl) to head to downtown San Diego from our north county beachside community, Cardiff-by-the-Sea.  It’s only a 20 minute drive, but I thought part of the fun would be to take the commuter train “The Coaster” down there and back. 

(Buses weren’t an option unless we were willing to transfer 3 times and spend our entire day just on getting there.)  So, I went online and looked up the Coaster schedule - NOT a single train on Sundays!  I guess it’s only for commuters - well, only for M-F commuters… 

So then I checked Amtrak- I know I’ve often had to sit and wait for passing trains on a Sunday, so, I think to myself, there must be plenty of trains scheduled throughout the day.  Well, there were several options - can’t complain there.  Almost one train an hour.

The shocker was the fee - they charge $18 round trip for 1 adult!  My 4 year old could go at half fare, and the little one was free, so our total came to $45 - just to go 20 minutes down the coast.  Had the Coaster been available it would have cost us $24 total - better, but still hardly what one would expect after living in a city like New York, where a 20 minute ride costs a few bucks…  No wonder people drive themselves.