The Metropolitan Transportation Authority (Metro) is proposing the elimination of nine bus routes and shortening others as part of a plan to make the bus system more efficient. The Metro Board is scheduled to vote today on the proposal, which has been denounced by the Bus Riders Union, an organization that advocates for the millions of people who use the buses each day.

One of the bus routes that serves Fairfax Avenue will be shortened as part of Metro’s plan to make service more efficient. (photo by Rafael Guerrero)

In the Hollywood area, Metro is proposing to eliminate Line 757, a rapid bus line that runs between Western Avenue and Hollywood Boulevard and the Crenshaw Green Line Station in Hawthorne. According to Scott Page, manager of service planning for Metro, Line 757 duplicated service on another local line, 207, that runs on Western Avenue, and was not providing the 20 percent or greater increase in travel times that the Rapid Bus Lines are designed to provide over local bus lines.

“If you were travelling to the Crenshaw Green Line Station and you started at Hollywood and Western, you would save maybe ten minutes, end-to-end,” Page said. “That particular line runs through Koreatown, and that is where traffic is heaviest and stops are more frequent.”

Page added that many of the riders on Line 757 were only traveling short distances, a need line 207 on Western Avenue is intended to serve. Page said to offset the elimination of Line 757, Metro will use longer buses on Line 207 that can accommodate 57 passengers instead of 40. An additional bus line will also be created on the route to run during rush hours on weekdays to accommodate commuters.

Page added that other bus route eliminations would not affect riders in the local area, and are primarily located downtown, in South Los Angeles, the San Fernando Valley and in the communities around the L.A. Harbor. He stressed that the changes are designed to better coordinate the bus lines with demand. The changes call for Metro bus service to be cut by four percent, or approximately 305,000 hours of service. If approved, the changes would take effect on June 26.

Page said the proposal does call for the shortening of Line 217, which currently runs on Fairfax Avenue and Hollywood Boulevard between and Fairfax and Washington Boulevard and Fountain and Vermont Avenues. An analysis of the route showed most passengers were getting off or boarding the bus at the Metro Red Line Station at Hollywood and Vine, where the line will terminate under the proposal.

Eric Romann, an organizer with the Bus Riders Union, said the proposed changes will dramatically affect low income people who rely on the bus system.

“What the MTA calls efficiency sounds to us like a blow to the hard working people of Los Angeles,” Romann said. “It is a system that many people of color need to find a job, get to their jobs, or use to get to where they need to go. The elimination of bus lines will make it harder for them to get to their jobs or school. To us, it is the opposite of efficiency.”

Page said Metro is also formulating plans for more changes once the Expo Light Rail line opens. A specific opening date has not yet been scheduled, but the line is expected to be completed between November and January. The Expo Line will run between downtown Los Angeles and Culver City, but plans eventually call for it to be extended to Santa Monica. Page added that the Expo Line will be a significant improvement for people travelling from communities east of downtown Los Angeles to places like the Fairfax District or West Hollywood, because they will be able to use the light rail line and then connect with northbound buses, instead of transferring several times along the way.

The Metro Board Meeting begins at 9 a.m. on March 24 at Metro Headquarters, 1 Gateway Plaza, adjacent to Union Station. For information, visit www.metro.net.