Palomar Airport Road to Poinsettia Coaster Station 

The third segment of the project includes the middle section of Avenida Encinas from Palomar Airport Road to the Poinsettia Coaster Station. It will be constructed as a separate capital improvement project and is currently in the final design stage.

This segment will require widening of the existing roadway to accommodate new sidewalks and wider bike lanes. The city will evaluate environmental impacts of this project after the design phase. Next steps include property acquisition, utility undergrounding, habitat impacts and possible mitigation, and obtaining required permits. 

Proceeds from the traffic impact fee the city assesses on developers will pay for the engineering design, environmental assessment and construction phases of this portion of the project.

• See proposed improvements.
• Feedback can be emailed to the project manager at brandon.miles@carlsbadca.gov.

Poinsettia Coaster Station to Carlsbad Boulevard 

Segment two of the Avenida Encinas Coastal Rail Trail is the southernmost part of Avenida Encinas and runs from the Poinsettia Coaster Station to Carlsbad Boulevard. Construction is complete with the new traffic light and crosswalk at San Carlos Street, at the northern entrance to the shopping center. 

• The crosswalk has an audible “WALK” voice when it’s safe for people to cross the street.
• The signal will remain green until someone presses the button to cross Avenida Encinas and has the normal green, yellow and red ball traffic lights. This type of light was chosen for this location since it can be coordinated with the traffic signal at Avenida Encinas and Poinsettia to keep traffic flowing. 

Improvements include:

• Resurfaced and restriped road between the Poinsettia Coaster Station and Carlsbad Boulevard
• Narrowed and reduced driving lanes between Poinsettia Lane and Windrose Circle
• A mid-block crosswalk with a new pedestrian signal at Avenida Encinas and San Carlos Street
• Buffered green bike lanes at conflict points where cars and bikes share the road
• High-visibility crosswalks and ADA-compliant ramps at:
  • Poinsettia Coaster Station driveway
  • Embarcadero Lane
  • Macadamia Drive
  • Raintree Drive
  • Windrose Circle
  • Dory Lane
  • Poinsettia Lane
  • San Lucas Street
  • Portage Way
  • Ponto Drive
  • Carlsbad Boulevard

Design improvements

Cannon Road to Palomar Airport Road 

Segment one of the Coastal Rail Trail runs along Avenida Encinas from Cannon Road to Palomar Airport Road. 

The city constructed this project segment with funding from a separate Capital Improvement Program project. Improvements included a road narrowing with bike lanes that run along both sides of the streets and are delineated by pavement striping and signs (class II bike lanes).  

The enhanced intersection at Cannon Road and Avenida Encinas will be constructed as part of another city project, the Terramar Area Coastal Improvements Project, separate from Caltrans grant funding. 

The Coastal Rail Trail was initially planned in the 1990s as a continuous bicycle route that would run along the railroad tracks from downtown San Diego to Oceanside. According to SANDAG, logistics, costs and environmental concerns since its original planning have forced some areas of the route away from the tracks and onto side streets such as Avenida Encinas.

Using Avenida Encinas as part of the Coastal Rail Trail supports the city’s goals to design roads that can safely accommodate all modes of travel and improve access and connectivity. 

Avenida Encinas is a public transit corridor that includes five North County Transit District transit stops, one of them being the Poinsettia Regional Coaster Station. The Poinsettia Station includes bike racks and secure bike lockers that bicycle commuters may use while taking the coaster to destinations throughout the region. 

In addition to transit access, the project corridor is widely used to access three schools, recreational centers with youth and adult gyms, residences, major employment centers, medical and commercial offices, South Carlsbad State Beach and retail shopping.

According to the Pedestrian Master Plan, this corridor is one of the highest concentrations of employees, walking commuters, pedestrian-dependent sub-populations (youth and elderly), disabled persons, and pedestrian generators in the city. Due to these land use and demographic factors, there is a major potential for the local community to make convenient walking and biking trips, rather than driving, for everyday activities. 

In July 2017, the City of Carlsbad was awarded a $1.77 million Active Transportation Program grant by Caltrans to construct a portion of the Coastal Rail Trail along Avenida Encinas between Carlsbad Boulevard and Cannon Road. Improvements along Avenida Encinas are identified by three segments with the grant focused on improvements in segment 2 from the Poinsettia Coaster Station to Carlsbad Boulevard. 

• Segment 1 from Cannon Road to Palomar Airport Road (north end)
• Segment 2 from Poinsettia Coaster Station to Carlsbad Boulevard (south end)
• Segment 3 from Palomar Airport Road to Poinsettia Coaster Station (middle)

Jan. 21, 2026 | Planning Commission
The Planning Commission held a public hearing and adopted related resolutions.

June 3, 2024 | Traffic Safety & Mobility Commission
Reviewed and provided input on the design for Segment 3 of Avenida Encinas, from Palomar Airport Road to the Poinsettia Coaster Transit Station. 

May 23, 2023 | City Council 
The City Council accepted the bids and awarded the contract to Granite Construction Company for Segment 2 of the project, Avenida Encinas from the Poinsettia Coaster Transit Station to Carlsbad Boulevard. 

March 14, 2023 | City Council
The City Council approved plans, specifications and authorization to bid for Segment 2 of the project, Avenida Encinas from the Poinsettia Coaster Transit Station to Carlsbad Boulevard. 

Aug. 18, 2022 | Traffic & Mobility Commission
The commission voted to support staff’s recommendation to approve the plans and specifications for the project. 

June 6, 2022 | Traffic & Mobility Commission
The commission discussed additional public comments and then directed staff to return to the commission with the final improvement plans and specifications for Segment 2 of the project.

April 4, 2022 | Traffic & Mobility Commission 
City staff presented and sought input on the design plans for segment two of improvements between the Poinsettia Coaster Station and Carlsbad Boulevard.

June 7, 2021 | Traffic & Mobility Commission
City staff presented and sought input on the conceptual plan for the project.

May 3, 2021 | Traffic & Mobility Commission
City staff presented and sought input on the conceptual plan for the project.