Feedback pours in about troubling bus experiences
My head is still spinning from the phone calls, letters and e-mails from readers bristling about troubles with the MTA bus system.
You related tales of rudeness, inconsiderate Los Angeles motorists and the stress of traveling some of the nation's most congested streets.
And those were just the comments from bus drivers.
After reading my last column about Metropolitan Transportation Authority bus drivers who deliberately start routes late, rush past their stops to gain extra time and sleep during their breaks, one bus driver left four voice mails offering his take.
He said the MTA does not give drivers enough time to make it through their routes, and when traffic clogs or cars crash along the way there's even less time for them to catch their breath and recover from the stress. So some drivers create their own breaks.
"Sometimes we do things we shouldn't do because we're trying to make it work for us," he said.
Another called with tales of passengers spitting, punching and making faces at drivers. If he defended himself, he's sure that would be the end of his job.
No one ever said driving a bus was easy, especially in Los Angeles where people can get a little nuts when anything interferes with their commutes.
Riding the bus isn't always a breeze either and many called and wrote about their own public transportation war stories.
With disabling leg problems, 58-year-old Larry Moore of Glendale relies on his walker to get around. The MTA reserves seats in front of the bus for seniors and handicapped riders such as Moore.
But more often than not, Moore said, able-bodied passengers grab those seats, leaving him to hobble down the narrow aisle in search of another seat.
"Some of the bus drivers will tell people to get out of those seats. Sometimes the riders will laugh at you," Moore said. "If they don't move, the drivers say there's nothing they can do about it."
What on earth is the matter with these people? Commuting in Los Angeles is tough enough.
In fact, Los Angeles residents spent about 623,796,000 hours stuck in traffic in 2003, costing about $10.7 billion in gas and lost time, according to the Texas Transportation Institute.
Moore said getting around can create such frustrations that sometimes it's not worth even leaving the house.
Even with all completely functional limbs, I don't want to leave my place on some days and deal with the commute.
Although there are times when the sun is shining and the Beatles are playing on the radio that there's no finer place to be cruising around than in Southern California.
But driving behind cell-phone talkers who hold up lanes of traffic while lost in the never-never land of their conversations drives me completely berserk. At those moments I visualize sticking a filthy plunger to their car windows and flinging them off the roads. All with one hand.
Harsh? I can't help myself. Like I said, this is Los Angeles and we generally don't like anything that messes with the ride.
So what drives you crazy about your commute? Whether it's by bus, bike, train or car, there's bound to be a thing or two that sends you over the edge. Tell us what should be done about it.
Traffic stinks.
Need more Flyaway Services
Bullet RR to Las Vegas
Bullet RR to Sacramento CA
Inland Port
Palmdale Airport Center
Rebuilt I5 sections.
Flying cars
Unfortunately since Southern Californians rely on public transportation much less than many other urban areas the politicans don't neccessarily have the incentive to make things right.
The worst part of waiting for the Orange Line bus during the day and night is wondering when the driver is going to pullup where the people are waiting.
It doesn't matter whether the weather is cold or not, it seems that something can be done to allow passengers to be seated in the empty bus and wait for the driver to begin back to Warner Center.
There is absolutely no reason for passengers to wait out in the cold while your driver is resting comfortably inside a warm office while we freeze.
IT IS TIME YOU ALLOWED PASSENGERS TO SIT IN THE WARMTH OF THE BUS WHILE WE WAIT FOR THE DRIVER!
My brother had a lot of problems with Metro. Two of the problems were related to the 167 line. After his daily therapy sessions at the Sepulveda VA, he often got passed up by the 167 bus because the bus was full of students. What really angered me, however, was the time that he had to go for an IV for an infection. He was supposed to go everyday, including weekends. On one Sunday, the 167 did not show up and he therefore never got his injection. Another situation which really upset us was when he was on a very crowded bus on Lankershim when we were going to the North Hollywood festival. The bus was very overcrowded, and because of that a fight broke out. He almost got hurt, and it ruined his day. The worst experince I can remember that he had was when his bus broke down somewhere on Roscoe, and the driver got very angry. My brother did not carry cash, and could not pay another fare. His first driver would not help him get on the next bus, and he could not pay, so he had to walk home in 100 degree temperatures for about 2--3 miles. He was not healthy, and this was not good for him.
I wanted to add one more experience for my brother. Three years ago Metro drivers/memchanics were on strike. The only buses running then were the contract lines 167/96 and the dashes. My brother had an appointment at the Westwood VA hospital. There are shuttles running between the hospitals, so he had no troouble getting there to Westwood, but somehow he mised the last shuttle coming back into the Valley, and he got stranded in West LA. I was working late hours then, so had wait almost four hours for me to get home and try to arrange a ride for him. Noone wanted to do it beause of the bad traffic in LA, but I finally arranged for him to get picked up by my brother-in-law. Thewse bus strikes should not be allowed. They do hurt a lot of people.
Page 1 This is the letter that received from Mike Brewer:
Thank you for your correspondence regarding San Fernando bus lines 161, 166, 167, 218, 231, 422, and 423. We value your observations and welcome the opportunity to respond to your concerns.
A review of ridership data on line 161 (Westlake-Canoga Park) confirms heavy boarding on eastbound trips departing Parkway Calabasas and Park Granada Blvd between 4:00 and 4:30pm. To reduce passenger loads, an additional trip was added on February 17, 2006 in the abovementioned time period.
As requested in your letter, an earlier northbound trip wqs added to the line 230 weekday schedule on February 23, 2006. It departs Laurel Canyon and Chandler at approximately 5:12 AM and connects with line 166 at Laurel Canyon and Osborne at 5:28am. This schedule change should enable you to complete your commute in a more timely and convenient manner.
Your suggestion to extend the 218 (Laurel Canyon-Cedar Sinai) to Chandler Blvd. and reroute line 237 (Wooodley Ave) to directly serve the Sepulveda Veteran's Admimistation Hospital have merit and will be included in the Metro Connections Restructuring study. Our staff will also consider your proposed reroute of lines 422 (LA-Sherman Oaks-Warner Center) and 423 (LA-Newbury Park-Thousand Oaks-Woodland Hills) to directly serve Universal City Station.
The October 30, 2005 reroute of line 167 was implemented to provide approximately 550 riders a day with improved access to the Metro Orange Line and provide students with more convient access to Valley College and classrooms. Staff is currently monitoring the impact of this reroute and will consider changes if warranted. A more thorough evaluation will be completed in the coming months. In addition, your comments about bad order wheelchair lifts and inexperienced bus drivers will be forwarded to Transportation Concepts Inc (TCI) for response and resolution. TCI operted Line 167 service under contract with the MTA.
For your information, new Rapid Lines are planned for both Lankershim Blvd and San Fernando Road. They are scheduled for implementation in December 2006 and June 2008, repectively.
Thank you for bringing these important matters to out attention. If you have any questions or wish to discuss this matter further, please feel free to contact me.
Sincerely,
Michael Brewer
Page 2
Dear Governance Council:
I have a few issues I would like to discuss with you. These issues concern the 161, 167, 218, 230, 422 and 423 bus lines, the Orange Line and a few small issues. Please be assured that I do support transit and I am opposed to private autos and dislike drivers. I am also very disappointed with the way bus servicve has deteriorated in the San Fernando Valley in the last year due to the preferences given to the Orange Line riders.
The first issue is the 167 contract line. Before the governance council was created, I complained bitterly about this line to MTA Gateway. One of my major complaints was in the incompatability of the buses and the Sepulveda Veteran's Hospital for a few reasons. One of these reasons is that the contract drivers are very nice, but inexperienced on how to handle problems such as the wheelchair lifts. Another problem with the buses is that the wheelchair lifts frequently don't work. When I was taking this buys regularly a few years ago, one passenger physically carried a wheelchair bound vet and his wheelcahirt off the bus almost everyday when the lift didn't work to keep the bus on schedule. When I was on another job I was frequently late because the lifts didn';t work and the drivers didn't know what to do. Another problem with the very old buses is that the buses are hard to board. The doorwell is very steep and narrow. Many of the vets I have seen on the 167 are a little elderly and disabled whixch makes borading for them even harder. Another problem with this is overcrowding. I have heard of vets being passI have has problems getting to the hospital on time myself. My final complaint on this line is the change that was made to the route last Oct 30. The jog around Valley College is ridiculous. The drivers don't like it and the bus
was overcrowded with schoolchildren. Other problems are the headway and the reliability factor. The headway is much too long during non-peak hours. The intersection of Fulton and Burbank is one of the most dangerous on the Orange Line, and you are forcing this bus to make a left turn in the middle of this.
In addition, it ads about ten minutes to the travel time during heavy traffic. I will no longer take this bus because of this. Our vets deserve better service.
Sue-I have five more pages, but I will have to do them later. This part got a litle mixed up somehow. I will continue later.
Page 3
The line 237 runs on Woodley, which is adjacent to the Sepulveda VA. I am requesting a minor reroute on this line through the VA Sepulveda entering through the backstreet near building 99. This would create better access to the hospital. The 237 is a Metro bus and would therefore be easier to board and load heelchairs. Thank you for adding a rapid bus on Sepulveda. Please consider submitting an article to a newsletter
called "Veteran's Health Today" (www.visn22.med.va.gov) to advertise the easier access from the VA to the Sylmar Metrolink and various desert destinations.
I found the line 161 to be dangerous when overcrowded.
When I heard the plans to force the riders from the 422 and 423 on to the 161 line I felt compelled to complain again. There are three reasons that make this line dangerous. #1. The drivers. Many of the drivers I experienced on this line like to jerk the bus, due to heavy traffic
in Calabasas (and a new Civic Center is openeing soon which will add to the congestion) which makes it difficult for riders who are standing to stay standing. #2) The route. The route north of Topanga Canyon. It is very curvy.
#3) Overcrowding. Being jerked around curves on a crowded bus is a very bad situation, especially in heavy traffic. Please remember that overcrowding is in violation of the Consnet decree. I experienced this unpleasant situation for many months while I was working in Calabasas. I almost quit the job because this ride was so umpleasant. I almost fell many times (I left Calabasas Road and Park Granada about 4:05 PM).
I have a comment on the 230 line. Going South, the earliest bus comes at %:30 am. going North, the earlist bus comes at 5:55 am at Laurel Canyon and Chandler. Why this discrepancy? I start work in Chatsworth at 7:00 am. The 5:55 bus arrives too late for me to get to work on time. I currently take the last 156 noght owl which arrives at 4:55am, and I get to work 45 minutes early. If both 230 buses started running at the same time of 5:30, I could leave a little later and others could get to Chatsworth earlier. I took the first southbound bus once when the 156 did not show up, and it was quite full.
When I have to be somewheree at a particualt time, I will not take a bus that reuns once an hour if I have a choice, due to the unrealiability factor of Metro buses. However, I will take them home. Please note that many headers are wrong on the buses, including the Orange Line. A friend of mine almost got arrested because the header on the bus she boarded was wrong which made her late for a court appearance.
I am requesting a stop be added in Universal ciity for the 422 and 423 lines.
Please ectend the 218 to either Chandler or the Red Line Subway.
I have noticed cell phone use by drivers expl;ooding lately. A new thing is hiding the microphones in their uniforms. Please address this issue with them.
The following is a list of reasons why the Non-Orange Line rider is being shortchanged by the Orange Line rider: the bus stop at Oxnard and Van NUys was removed. A new stop waas put in at the Orange Line. This angered me a immensely
and limits my access to the 156. 2 orange Line riders are riding on 633,000$. Non Oranbge Line riders are riding on buses that are old, decrepid, and over 13 years. I have seen broken poles, searts, etc. On one occasion, I almost broke my ankle exiting a bus because the stairwell was decrepid.
In one week last October, I saw 10 dead buses. 3> Service cutbacks. Cutting the 156 line in half and reducing the headway last October is a violation of my civil rights ((please note that Mr. brewer did not mention this in his reply)). 4. The buses are very cold in the morning. Bus riders should have some heat in the mornings. 5. Rapid Bus Line. the 166 and 94/394 are consent decree lines, yet they have no rapid lines. Sherman Way also needs a rapid. Yet, the only streers getting rapids asist the Orange Line rider. 6. My final comment is the headway on non Orange Line buses.
I am boycotting the Orange Line for three reasons: 1. Running it through the Chandler corridor is a serious mistake. 2 The EXCESSIVE cost of the buses.
3. Safety. I applaud the L A times for telling the truth about the safety issues. By the way, after the strobe lights were installed on the Orange Line buses, I will not need to use lights in my apartment. the buses will light it for me. Please remember when you are talking about the Orange LIne, you are alking about my home and the homes of many other people on the Chandler Corridor which again is a residential neighborhood.
99 % of bus riders may be sheep, but the 1% of us who are not will fight back when we see injustices and civil rights violations. When we work together, we are very strong.
Thank you for listening.
sincerely, DG
MTA buses with speakers on the outside announcing the bus number and destination are noise pollution! Does the MTA not realize that these buses stop near peoples homes and apartments? I live 2 houses down from a stop and I can hear line 33 announcements! And the poor passengers and driver have to hear this the whole commute at every stop. I know this is supposed to be for the short sighted but that does not give the MTA the right to take away people's right to the quiet enjoyment of their homes on the off chance that a blind person will be at the bus stop.