Kristina Wegshieder

ho rides VTA’s Commuter Express? San Jose native Kristina Wegshieder for one.

“I love the wi-fi on the express trains. I was dubious at first but I’m impressed with its speed and how easy it is to get on. The wi-fi is definitely a plus,”  Kristina   notes.

Although she can cite trips to seven continents and is currently planning a trip to Madagascar later this year, for now this world traveler is catching VTA’s new Commuter Express light rail service two to three times a week at the Ohlone-Chynoweth Station in south San Jose and riding to the Tasman Station in north San Jose.

Her employer, Brocade, helps make riding transit even easier by providing shuttle service for its employees between the Tasman Station and the Brocade campus. If the weather is nice, however, she sometimes opts to walk.

Brocade recently moved to new offices near North First Street and State Route 237 in north San Jose. At that time, Brocade joined VTA’s Eco Pass program; a program where an employer buys annual VTA transit passes and then provides them to all of its employees.

With Brocade’s move adding five miles to her commute, Kristina said it just made sense to give public transit a try.  She discovered the Commuter Express trains, which run non-stop between Ohlone-Chynoweth and downtown San Jose on weekday mornings (and in the opposite direction each afternoon) come close to matching the time it takes to drive from her South San Jose home.

Parking the personal vehicle has other benefits besides the occasional morning walk. Kristina found her auto insurer was willing to quote a lower price since she was driving less and she is also saving money by buying less $4-a-gallon gasoline.

So until this transit trooper heads out on another exotic journey, her travels around Santa Clara County will be by light rail, with the laptop fired up and the stress level dialed down.