SWC News Center

Connection Starts at the Hub

By: Stephanie Kingston - August 29, 2026

Southwestern College unveils a safer commute at the new Transit Center. 

The District recently celebrated the opening of its new Transit Center at the Chula Vista campus, creating a safer, more accessible arrival point for students, employees and visitors who use public transportation.

Located along Otay Lakes Road, the new Transit Center replaces the former bus stop located along the campus perimeter road. The new location moves buses away from one of the campus’s main internal roadways and provides a dedicated area for passenger drop-off and pickup.

“Southwestern College has always been about creating access to education, to opportunity and access to a better future,” said Superintendent/President Mark Sanchez. “This new Transit Hub is an extension of that mission, making it safer and easier for our students and community to get to campus and take advantage of everything Southwestern College has to offer.” 

The new facility features a dedicated bus loading and unloading lane, helping reduce congestion caused by buses, personal vehicles and rideshare traffic moving through the campus core. By creating a designated space for transit vehicles, the project makes it easier for passengers to arrive and depart while improving circulation throughout campus.

The new Transit Center was made possible through a partnership between Southwestern College and the San Diego Metropolitan Transit System, with support from federal and local resources. Congressman Juan Vargas helped secure $500,000 in federal community funding for the project, an investment that helped make the transit improvements possible.

The project also reflects the vision of Southwestern College’s Proposition Z facilities program, which has helped transform the Chula Vista campus with new and improved facilities designed to better serve students and the community.

Bringing the project from an idea to a completion also took the work of many behind the scenes. Southwestern College’s Facilities, Planning and other campus teams helped guide the project from planning through construction. Core Construction and Gafcon served as important partners in bringing the vision to life, while the project also contributed to over 200 local jobs and over 12,000 hours of labor.

As Southwestern College celebrates its 65th anniversary and looks toward the future, projects like the new Transit Center demonstrate that creating equitable opportunities for students starts with making sure they can get through the front door however they choose to arrive.