archd1
June 14th, 2006, 03:58 AM
Article Launched: 06/13/2006 12:00:00 AM PDT
Orange Line heads toward overcapacityBY RACHEL URANGA, Staff Writer
With the Orange Line nearly surpassing its 15-year ridership goals in just seven months, transit experts say the MTA should consider expanding the line and even adopting a light-rail system - sooner rather than later - to meet soaring passenger demand.
Spurred by rising gas prices and a surprisingly strong appetite for public transit, thousands more passengers than anticipated are boarding the 14-mile, $330 million busway each day.
And while the Metropolitan Transportation Authority says it can handle the load, transport experts say a capacity problem looms.
"The system was underbuilt and underfunded," said Nate Brogin, a former chairman of the Valley Industry and Commerce Association's transportation committee. "What we need is to go back and rebuild the system, the correct way - not the cheapest."
A longtime advocate of above- or below-ground transportation, including rail and subterranean busways, he and others say the bus line could reach capacity sooner than the MTA thinks.
But MTA officials say with buses running every three minutes, ridership would have to soar - from close to 22,000 now to 30,000 to 40,000 - before it hit capacity.
"We are not anywhere near (exceeding) capacity of the line," said Gary Spivac, an MTA manager in charge of the San Fernando Valley.
Yet, with gas prices hovering around $3.40 a gallon, the demand could come sooner than the MTA plans, experts warn. Ridership along the busway has followed a steady climb upward, rising 31 percent since opening. The agency has already had to add four buses along the route.
Across the county, the MTA has logged a surge in riders, with rail ridership climbing 18 percent over last year. MTA bus ridership has increased 10 percent in the past 12 months.
Agency officials who spent $270,000 in May to promote "Free yourself, Go Metro" - a bus-over-car campaign - largely pin the jump to gas prices.
"These ridership rates won't go down because the cost of driving is going to continue to go up with the direct cost that commuters pay (in gas) and in time," said Hasan Ikhrata, director of planning and policy for the Southern California Associations of Governments.
"We should have thought about this last year. You are providing good and needed services but you need a much higher level of frequency than you have today."
Ikhrata says buses should be running every 20 seconds rather than every three minutes as they do now. Others take a harder line, calling for a long-term rail project, a notion long dismissed as being too costly.
"Clearly there is a demand here," said Richard Katz, a mayoral appointee to the MTA board and former Assembly member who sat on the transportation committee for more than a decade. "We
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have to look at what we can do to meet the needs of the riders. I don't want to see people turned off because the buses are too crowded.
"In the long term, we need to look at if we need to switch to light-rail buses."
For much of the 1980s and 1990s, officials and transit advocates wrestled over how to supply the sprawling Valley's growing commuter class with an effective transportation system.
But NIMBY-ism and opposing views that ranged from a monorail over the Ventura Freeway to a subway, forced officials to settle on a much less ambitious busway system that could be built for less money.
Considered the Cadillac of the MTA system, the busway boasts its own landscaping, right-of-way and a bike path. The 57-seat, train-like buses see more riders than the $898 million Gold Line that runs from Pasadena to downtown Los Angeles.
Early surveys of the line showed that 20 percent of the riders were new to public transportation.
"It's a no-brainer," said Richard Petty of North Hollywood, a public transportation convert. "I asked myself, Do I really need to drive to work?"
For three months, the former car commuter has been loyal to the Orange Line. But over that time he's seen an uptick in passengers and now says he avoids the packed buses at the 5 p.m. commuting hour.
An early advocate of the line, MTA board member Supervisor Zev Yaroslavsky said the agency should hold off at least 18 months to determine whether ridership will remain steady or plunge if gas prices fall.
But, he adds, the Orange Line's unique pathway allows it to expand with more buses or even into light rail. Already, he said, the MTA is speaking with bus manufacturers about higher-capacity vehicles.
"This is a good problem to have because it's really not a problem. It's a capacity management issue," said Yaroslavsky, an MTA board member and longtime advocate for the Orange Line.
"There is no practical limit to what the Orange Line can handle. It should be encouraging the MTA to promote this approach to public transit elsewhere in the county and in the Valley."
Staff Writer Angie Valencia contributed to this story.
rachel.uranga@dailynews.com
(818) 713-3741
Orange Line heads toward overcapacityBY RACHEL URANGA, Staff Writer
With the Orange Line nearly surpassing its 15-year ridership goals in just seven months, transit experts say the MTA should consider expanding the line and even adopting a light-rail system - sooner rather than later - to meet soaring passenger demand.
Spurred by rising gas prices and a surprisingly strong appetite for public transit, thousands more passengers than anticipated are boarding the 14-mile, $330 million busway each day.
And while the Metropolitan Transportation Authority says it can handle the load, transport experts say a capacity problem looms.
"The system was underbuilt and underfunded," said Nate Brogin, a former chairman of the Valley Industry and Commerce Association's transportation committee. "What we need is to go back and rebuild the system, the correct way - not the cheapest."
A longtime advocate of above- or below-ground transportation, including rail and subterranean busways, he and others say the bus line could reach capacity sooner than the MTA thinks.
But MTA officials say with buses running every three minutes, ridership would have to soar - from close to 22,000 now to 30,000 to 40,000 - before it hit capacity.
"We are not anywhere near (exceeding) capacity of the line," said Gary Spivac, an MTA manager in charge of the San Fernando Valley.
Yet, with gas prices hovering around $3.40 a gallon, the demand could come sooner than the MTA plans, experts warn. Ridership along the busway has followed a steady climb upward, rising 31 percent since opening. The agency has already had to add four buses along the route.
Across the county, the MTA has logged a surge in riders, with rail ridership climbing 18 percent over last year. MTA bus ridership has increased 10 percent in the past 12 months.
Agency officials who spent $270,000 in May to promote "Free yourself, Go Metro" - a bus-over-car campaign - largely pin the jump to gas prices.
"These ridership rates won't go down because the cost of driving is going to continue to go up with the direct cost that commuters pay (in gas) and in time," said Hasan Ikhrata, director of planning and policy for the Southern California Associations of Governments.
"We should have thought about this last year. You are providing good and needed services but you need a much higher level of frequency than you have today."
Ikhrata says buses should be running every 20 seconds rather than every three minutes as they do now. Others take a harder line, calling for a long-term rail project, a notion long dismissed as being too costly.
"Clearly there is a demand here," said Richard Katz, a mayoral appointee to the MTA board and former Assembly member who sat on the transportation committee for more than a decade. "We
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Advertisement
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
have to look at what we can do to meet the needs of the riders. I don't want to see people turned off because the buses are too crowded.
"In the long term, we need to look at if we need to switch to light-rail buses."
For much of the 1980s and 1990s, officials and transit advocates wrestled over how to supply the sprawling Valley's growing commuter class with an effective transportation system.
But NIMBY-ism and opposing views that ranged from a monorail over the Ventura Freeway to a subway, forced officials to settle on a much less ambitious busway system that could be built for less money.
Considered the Cadillac of the MTA system, the busway boasts its own landscaping, right-of-way and a bike path. The 57-seat, train-like buses see more riders than the $898 million Gold Line that runs from Pasadena to downtown Los Angeles.
Early surveys of the line showed that 20 percent of the riders were new to public transportation.
"It's a no-brainer," said Richard Petty of North Hollywood, a public transportation convert. "I asked myself, Do I really need to drive to work?"
For three months, the former car commuter has been loyal to the Orange Line. But over that time he's seen an uptick in passengers and now says he avoids the packed buses at the 5 p.m. commuting hour.
An early advocate of the line, MTA board member Supervisor Zev Yaroslavsky said the agency should hold off at least 18 months to determine whether ridership will remain steady or plunge if gas prices fall.
But, he adds, the Orange Line's unique pathway allows it to expand with more buses or even into light rail. Already, he said, the MTA is speaking with bus manufacturers about higher-capacity vehicles.
"This is a good problem to have because it's really not a problem. It's a capacity management issue," said Yaroslavsky, an MTA board member and longtime advocate for the Orange Line.
"There is no practical limit to what the Orange Line can handle. It should be encouraging the MTA to promote this approach to public transit elsewhere in the county and in the Valley."
Staff Writer Angie Valencia contributed to this story.
rachel.uranga@dailynews.com
(818) 713-3741