ESCONDIDO: Nearby businesses getting mixed results from Sprinter foot traffic

Restaurants, coffee houses report biggest surges

By DAVID GARRICK - Staff Writer | Friday, July 25, 2008 6:13 PM PDT ∞

ESCONDIDO ---- Some merchants near the Escondido Sprinter station say they have seen a small surge in business since the trains began running in March, but others say they have received no benefit from being within walking distance of the busiest station on the line.

Based on more than a dozen interviews conducted Friday, restaurants, coffeehouses and other businesses that cater to the Sprinter's mostly young ridership have gotten the biggest boost. But merchants catering to older customers were far less enthusiastic about the new rail line's effect on their profits.

Sprinter passengers arriving in Escondido on Friday morning said they sometimes visit businesses near the station when they miss their train and must wait 30 minutes for the next one. But most passengers said the Sprinter has not changed their shopping or dining patterns very much.

The experience of merchants near the Escondido station, which is just west of downtown at Valley Parkway and Quince Street, is in stark contrast to the sharp boost in business reported by Oceanside merchants since the trains began running.

Officials from the North County Transit District have said the contrast is probably because many inland residents take the Sprinter to the Oceanside Municipal Pier and the beach, where they eat and shop before returning home. In those scenarios, passengers usually do not eat or shop near their home stations.

Of the 15 stations on the 22-mile Sprinter line, the Escondido Transit Center had the largest number of daily boardings during June, with an average of 1,450 passengers per day.

The Vista Transit Center was second with an average of 1,300 boardings per day, and the Oceanside Transit Center was third with 1,293. No other station averaged more than 706 boardings per day.

Harvey Mitchell, chief executive of the Escondido Chamber of Commerce, said Friday that it makes sense that businesses catering to young people have seen the biggest boost.

"I don't see a lot of older people riding the Sprinter," said Mitchell. "A lot of those people on the Sprinter maybe don't have enough money for the gas to go somewhere else in North County, but the Sprinter is getting them out and about."

Mitchell said the Sprinter has not yet begun to attract many of the business owners and professionals who are seen on the Coaster trains that travel from Oceanside to San Diego, or on commuter trains in New York or Los Angeles.

While the Escondido merchants interviewed Friday said they do not typically ask people if they have come from the Sprinter, they said many customers volunteer that they take the train.

Daniel Deussen, an employee at Regal Cinemas just east of the station, said he has heard enough customers talking about the train to estimate its affect on business.

"The impact hasn't been huge, but it's at least a few people every day," said Deussen.

A few steps away at Paradiso Mediterranean Cuisine, owner Fardad Raouf said he gets about five extra customers daily from the Sprinter.

And at nearby Fatburger, employee Jossa Vargas said the restaurant has seen a surge in Friday night customers. She speculated that more people are taking the train to the Cruisin' Grand classic car shows in downtown Escondido on Friday nights, which means they must pass by Fatburger on the way from the train station to Grand Avenue.

At Carrow's, a diner just east of the station catering mostly to older customers, manager Felipe Guerrero said the Sprinter has not boosted business at all.

"I see more people walking by, but none of them come in," said Guerrero.

West of the station in the Gateway Center, waiter Matt Covert said many customers at Uno Chicago Bar and Grill mention the Sprinter.

"Sometimes people say they want to get their food and drinks in a hurry because they have to catch a train," said Covert.

Sarah Post, a barista at the Starbucks inside Barnes & Noble, said several customers each day say they are waiting for a Sprinter train.

Mike Davis, owner of Quizno's in the plaza, said he thinks the Sprinter has helped his business.

"I don't know if I could directly connect it to the Sprinter, but we've certainly had a bump in the last month or two," said Davis. "I can guarantee you the Sprinter does not hurt."

But Lori Johnson of Michael's, a business with an older customer base, said she has seen no boost at all from the Sprinter.

Trains runs every half-hour from 4 a.m. to 9 p.m. weekdays and every hour on weekends. Sprinter day passes cost $4 per person.

Contact staff writer David Garrick at (760) 740-5468 or dgarrick@nctimes.com.