When is a transit stop not a transit stop?

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When is a transit stop not a transit stop?

April 4, 2026

The wise people in Sacramento have forced density rules on every city and town in the state. Thou shall build. And it shall be stack-and-pack. And it shall be even bigger next to major transit stops. Beginning July 1, 2026, Senate Bill 79 (SB 79) enacts a significant “upzoning” mandate in California, requiring local jurisdictions to permit high-density housing within a half-mile of “major transit stops”. This law focuses on “urban transit counties”—defined as having 15 or more passenger rail stations.

But what happens when that transit stop either disappears or is so scaled-back that it barely serves anyone? The Daily Journal and the Comicle both rewrote the doomsday planning scenarios put out by BART and Caltrain:

A little over a month after BART laid out its tentative plan to close 15 stations if it didn’t receive funding, Caltrain also warned it could close one-third of all stations and eventually shut down passenger service altogether.

The agencies are relying heavily on the passage of an upcoming November ballot measure in several Bay Area counties, including San Mateo, in which voters will decide whether to help eliminate major transit agencies’ deficits through a 14-year sales tax measure.

Even if the ballot measure passes, both systems are deep in the red. And it’s highly questionable that San Mateo County would get its “fare share” as noted back in September here. So when a stop, or 15 stops, close and the developers have already stack-and-packed the half-mile radius around it, what do we do? Answer: suck it up.

Posted in Local Real Estate, Planning, Sacramento Stupidity, SamTrans-Caltrain, State Ievel issues

2 responses to “When is a transit stop not a transit stop?”

Joe

April 8, 2026

In the “Suck it up” department, San Mateo doing us no favors. This letter to the DJ editor nails it. I don’t know the guy but he’s paying attention!

Your state legislature passed bill Senate Bill 79 which allows apartment buildings up to seven stories within a half mile of a major transit stop (trains and buses).

It presumes lots of people will be using public transportation, which is wishful thinking at best. It prohibits local government from mandating minimum parking requirements if it impacts state-mandated city housing quotas.

San Mateo has more than 15 large development proposals. Larger developments include Hillsdale Shopping Center with 1,670 housing units, Concar Passage (along Delaware Street) with 850 housing units.

And Mollie Stone’s removal with the potential for many units. These and others will be within a half mile from major transit stops.

One example of what’s to come is a smaller development of six stories, 181 units, on North San Mateo Drive, recently and easily approved by the Planning Commission. However, parking would only include 180 spaces allowing one car parking per unit. And what about visitor parking?

The debacle: The number of households with two or more cars has increased substantially from 22% in 1960 to 60% in 2023. The average number of cars per California household is 2.3. So, with all these developments, the developers will not be allowing enough resident parking spaces, meaning more profit for them. That means spillover parking and traffic into your neighborhood if you live a half mile from a major transit stop.

If this upsets you and the quality of your life, contact the San Mateo City Council, and state legislators Diane Papan and Josh Becker, and let them know how you feel.

Gary Isoardi
San Mateo
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The average number of cars per household of 2.3 rings true to me. As Mr. Isoardi notes, that is an impending debacle even before Caltrain cuts service and closes stations……………
Jennifer Pfaff

April 8, 2026

In our case, because we currently have a population of less than 35,000, it is 1/4 mile radius to 75ft., with a 200 ft. zone around the transit hub, that can go to 95 ft. tall. We’re not too far off of 35K, and then the concentric circle goes to 1/2 mile, just as the letter writer in San Mateo mentioned. Our San Mateo neighbor probably has a population of around 100K by now, but still has a great, very charming downtown. Imagine what our downtown(s) would be with all the cast shadows? For comparison, the new office project at the Town Square is about 95ft. tall. Developers got a height variance to compensate for all the additional efforts (costs) necessary to work around the active creek culvert, and move a historical structure back and forth. However, the building is set way back from anything around it.

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