No best way: L.A. transit saves commuters money, but takes too much time.

DESPITE gasoline prices approaching $3 a gallon, it's easy to figure out why Los Angeles commuters are reluctant to give up their cars for mass transit--and it's all in the numbers.

After commuting to and from work one day last week using public transportation--buses, subways and trains--four Business Journal staff members were surprised to find that the costs were either comparable or even cheaper than taking their cars.

The problem was the time drain. Clogged streets and freeways turned out to be faster than trains and buses, even when they were on schedule.

For media reporter Pat Maio, the $163.50 cost of a monthly rail and bus pass is a relative bargain compared with the $200 per month he pays for gasoline alone for his daily 44.5-mile one-way trek--and that doesn't factor in wear and tear and insurance. "Not a bad deal," he noted, "but the nearly five hours of time that I spent commuting doesn't justify the time it takes me away from my family."

Others obviously agree. Even with skyrocketing gas prices, the development of a modest but growing subway network and the addition of express bus lines, mass transit usage in Los Angeles County has largely stagnated for the past decade-and-a-half.

During the year ended June 30, 2003, there were 428 million boardings onto Metropolitan Transportation Authority buses and trains, virtually the same number as the 424 million bus boardings in 1988, before a single rail line opened. Meanwhile, L.A. County's population has grown by about 15 percent, to 9.9 million.

Question of time

The reasons go far beyond L.A.'s love of cars or the transit strikes that have occasionally crippled ridership.

"Our transit system is not designed as a main source of mobility for the region," said Dana Gabbard, executive secretary for Southern California Transit Advocates. "It's designed to deal with a market of lower income people who live in the inner city and need to get to jobs along certain corridors."

For mass transit to work on a region-wide basis, it must provide what last week's informal Business Journal test showed it currently doesn't--time savings.

"If you value your time, transit is an expensive option," said James E. Moore II, professor of industrial and systems engineering at USC's Epstein Department of Industrial & Systems Engineering. "We don't take transit because it doesn't connect where we live with where we want to work."

Building more rail lines isn't the best solution, either, he said, noting that ridership depends on the cost of gasoline relative to income and population density.

"Average density in Los Angeles is pretty high but there is no great variation in density--there is no Manhattan in L.A.," he said. "So demand is rather diffuse, which makes it difficult to serve by rail. Rail's greatest impact in L.A. has been on the reduction of bus service."

In the past year, the MTA strike and a slower economy have been factors for additional ridership declines. In outlying systems, such as Santa Monica's Big Blue Bus and the Foothill Transit District in the San Gabriel Valley, fare hikes also appear to have played a role.

Nationally, mass transit ridership fell 1.5 percent for the year ended Sept. 30, 2003, according to the American Public Transportation Association. That decline followed five years of growth that cumulatively totaled 21 percent, according to association spokeswoman Rose Sheridan.

"We got hit with a double whammy last year," Sheridan said. "With the slow economy, there were not as many people taking mass transit to get to jobs. Also, with state and local budgets under severe strain, many public transit agencies got hit with budget cuts, forcing them to reduce service and raise fares."

Longer-distance success

One of the few bright spots is Metrolink, which connects L.A.'s transit grid with the Inland Empire and Ventura and Orange counties. Passenger traffic last month jumped 7 percent from year-ago levels, to a record 38,000 average weekday boardings. The increase has been most dramatic since the beginning of the year, when gas prices began their most recent surge.

Metrolink, with long trips that can reach more than 40 miles, is most sensitive to pump price fluctuations, but ridership growth has not been proportional. "It takes an awful lot to get people out of their cars," said Metrolink spokeswoman Sharon Gavin.

And for good reason.

Service tends to fall off after 7 p.m., and many professionals have to stay at the office until then. Add that to the extra commuting time, and many potential mass transit riders just can't get on board.

Despite all the bus routes and rail lines that have been added in recent years, it's still more convenient to get around Southern California behind the wheel.

Driving to work from his Santa Monica home takes real estate reporter Danny King about 30 minutes, depending on congestion along the Santa Monica (10) Freeway.

Even after deducting the 36 minutes it took him to find and catch a Metro Rapid down Wilshire Boulevard, commuting by bus would take close to an hour. While the trip's $2.50 roundtrip ticket price is less than half the cost of commuting by car, the extra time on the bus outweighs the savings.

"The difference between taking the bus and driving for me is about $4," he said, "but if it takes an extra hour by bus, I'll gladly spend the $4."

To help speed things up, the MTA is trying to establish dedicated routes for certain bus lines so that they run more like train lines. The idea is for one to pull up every several minutes, according to MTA spokesman Ed Scannell.

Along one of its most heavily traveled routes in the San Fernando Valley, the MTA is building a dedicated 15-mile bus route running between the North Hollywood Red Line subway station and Warner Center in Woodland Hills.

MTA transportation planners said it will take the buses about 45 minutes to run the length of the route, which will be officially called the "Orange Line."

Meanwhile, routes that are 20 to 30 miles long have been shortened to lessen the impact traffic can have on making those buses late. And beginning next year, the MTA plans two lines to its Metro Rapid system every two months until there are 28 routes operating by 2008.

The transit agency has also installed sensors in intersections that can detect when a Metro Rapid bus is approaching and then delay a traffic signal from changing until the bus is through. "That resulted in a 25 percent decrease in travel time," Scannell said. "That means if it takes two hours to get somewhere on a regular service bus, it takes a half hour less on Metro Rapid."

On MTA bus lines, there has been a slight rebound in ridership--in part due to the introduction of the popular Metro Rapid lines that started four years ago along Wilshire and Ventura boulevards. The buses have since spread to other major thoroughfares.

In March, average weekday boardings along the Wilshire/Whittier corridor hit 93,094, nearly 50 percent higher than the 63,500 prior to introduction of the Metro Rapid service in June 2000.

Big Blue decline

The modest growth for MTA busses, however, contrasts with other local systems.

Since peaking in October 2000 at 66,000, average weekday boardings on the Foothill Transit System have fallen sharply, reaching a low of 46,000 last September.

"last year was a particularly bad year, and not just for us," said Foothill's marketing director Rahul Kumar. "Nationwide, many of the largest transit systems had a down year, most likely because of the economy." In Foothill Transit's case, the declines were exacerbated by a 22 percent price increase, the first in 10 years.

In Santa Monica, Big Blue Bus ridership peaked in 2001, but fell 13 percent last year. Spokesman Dan Dawson blamed a fare increase and a slow economy.

MTA rail ridership is hard to gauge. With no turnstiles at rail stations, the MTA is forced to rely on sampling ticket machines and spot counts on trains. Two years ago, MTA staff overhauled their computer modeling, resulting in sharply lower ridership numbers for the Red Line. (Others weren't affected as much.)

MTA rail ridership has shown signs of increasing over time.

The Blue Line went from 50,000 riders per weekday in January 1999 to 75,000 in September 2003, just before the mechanics' strike. "There's always a spike in the opening month or two after a rail extension opens," Scannell said.

And the future? Mass transit remains a series of incremental steps within a giant-sized transportation system.

Scannell said the MTA is ready to begin construction on extending the Gold Line from Union Station to East L.A. After that, the agency wants to shift its attention to building a rail line between downtown and Culver City, tentatively called the "Expo Light Rail Line." But neither project has been funded, and only the Gold Line extension appears closer to getting federal aid.

"We're not just building a system to serve the needs of people today," Scannell said, "we're building a system that will be ready when people need it in the future."

For the moment, however, the experiences of King, Main, Steve Silkin and Anthony Palazzo, outlined in diary form below, speak to what is at best a work in progress.

Silkin from the West Valley

Route: Metro Rapid bus from Warner Center to Universal City; Red Line from Universal City to Hollywood & Highland; walk from Hollywood & Highland to Hollywood and La Bred; bus south on La Brea to Wilshire; walk from La Brea and Wilshire to LABJ office at Wilshire and Masselin. Same route home.

Time: Morning: 2 hours, 10 minutes; evening: 1 hour 55 minutes. Driving takes 45-75 minutes, depending on traffic.

Experience: After a 10-minute wait, bus leaves Warner Center Metro Rapid terminal at 7:50 a.m. and crawls across the Valley, stuck at a dead stop for a time under the 405 overpass. Maybe there was an accident. An 8:45 arrival at Universal City. The train comes at 8:57, and gets to Hollywood & Highland three minutes later. The walk to La Brea takes 10 minutes and the wait for the bus another 10. On the way home, there is a 25-minute wait for the bus at La Brea. An attempt to hail a cab is unsuccessful. The bus finally comes and zips up La Brea for perfect timing at the Hollywood & Highland subway, and it takes only minutes to get from there to Universal City. The escalator is out of order, so there is a four-flight climb to the street. The last leg of the trip, the bus ride home, goes faster than it did in the morning--45 minutes compared with an hour.

Pros and Cons: The passes are a great deal at $52 per month. Even at $3 for the day pass, or $15 a week, mass transit would be a significant savings. Gas costs for the 1986 Mazda are $20 per week, or $80 a month. Add annualized maintenance for a total of $160 per month in driving costs for the 24-mile commute in an economy car. But cost savings don't justify the added time spent commuting on this route.

Maio from Claremont

Route: Metrolink train from Claremont to Union Station; Red Line subway from Union Station to Western Avenue and Wilshire Boulevard; bus from Western and Wilshire to Fairfax Avenue and Wilshire; walk from Fairfax and Wilshire to office at Wilshire and Masselin. Same route home.

Time: Morning: 2 hours. 10 minutes: evening, 2 hours 30 minutes. Driving takes up to 1 hour. 30 minutes, depending on traffic.

Experience: Parking lot at Metrolink's Claremont station is crowded, so it takes a while to find a space. Some trouble buying a ticket from the dispensing machine and there's little time to spare when the 6:28 train pulls in. Most of the riders are sleeping. Train arrives at Union Station at 7:25 a.m. and then it's a transfer to the Red Line subway--except instead of taking the train to Western and Wilshire, I head in the other direction, so I have to backtrack (some confusing signage in finding the right connection). Arrive at Wilshire and Western and catch a crowded bus at 8:05. Bus stops two blocks from the office so that tacks on more time. Arrive at work at 8:40 a.m. Same route home, beginning 6:28 p.m. A man in a wheelchair has trouble getting loaded onto the bus (riders wouldn't move until the driver herded them out of their seats). Arrive at subway connection at 6:50 p.m. and wait 10 minutes to catch a train downtown. Arrive at Union Station at 7:16 p.m. for an 8 p.m. Metrolink train to Claremont, so there's time to kill. Board the train at 7:45 p.m., arrive in Claremont at 8:52 p.m., eight minutes from home.

Pros and Cons: A monthly pass costs $163.50. which is cheaper than the $50 spent weekly to commute 44.5 miles to and from work. Without the monthly pass, a single-day roundtrip ticket costs $11.50, which provides access to the Metrolink train, subway and bus systems. Not a bad deal, but the nearly five hours of time spent commuting doesn't make public transit worthwhile.

King from Santa Monica

Route: Big Blue Bus (Santa Monica) No. 4 line from Fourth Street and Hollister Avenue to Fourth and Colorado Avenue in downtown Santa Monica: Metro Rapid bus No. 720 from downtown Santa Monica to Wilshire and Fairfax: walk from Wilshire and Fairfax to LABJ office. Route home: Metro Rapid bus west to Wilshire and Barrington: walk to University High: driven home by' a friend.

Time: Morning: 1 hour, 33 minutes; evening, 45 minutes (to University High in West L.A.). Driving takes 20 to 35 minutes, depending on traffic.

Experience: The walk to Big Blue Bus stop at Fourth and Hollister is fruitless because road construction had rerouted bus line. The unplanned walk to the Metro Rapid stop at Fourth and Colorado takes 15 minutes. Eight "Not in Service" Metro Rapid buses whiz by across the street during the 21-minute wait (the bus is scheduled to run every seven to 10 minutes, according to MTA Web site). Traffic moves well on Wilshire, and by Barrington the bus is nearly full--a mix of students, domestic workers and elderly and only one (the reporter) in business attire. Seat spacing is two inches too small to fit a 6-foot-2-inch rider without pain. Not a lot of "regular" riders, as most paid a fare as opposed to having a bus pass and many ask the driver for directions as they get on. The bus arrives at Wilshire and Fairfax at 9:45 ,and the walk to work is eight minutes. Going home, the bus arrives at 7:35 and moves quickly through Beverly Hills but the driver calls "Last stop" at Westwood Boulevard (apparently, not all Metro Rapid No. 720 buses go to the coast). At 7:58, the driver allows free entrance for riders claiming to have gotten on the "other" 720. The bus arrives at Wilshire and Barrington five minutes later, then there's a 10-minute walk to Tuesday night basketball game at University High School. The leg home was completed with the help of a friend with a car.

Pros and Cons: Round trip costs $2.50 by bus, while the cost-per-mile (gas, insurance, maintenance, depreciation) for a Honda Civic is 27 cents, so the 22-mile is)und-trip commute runs $5.94. Even without a monthly pass. there's a financial advantage to taking the bus. Still, in a best-case scenario--immediate bus arrival, light traffic--the commute would take about an hour, more than double the typical drive.

Palazzo from Pasadena

Route: A two-subway, two-bus ride, starting with a half-block walk to the Pasadena Area Rapid Transit System bus stop; transfer to the Gold Line at the Memorial Park station; head downtown to meet up with the Red Line at Union Station: exit at Wilshire and Vermont, take a Metro Rapid bus down Wilshire to La Brea: walk the final couple of blocks to work.

Time: Morning: 1 hour, 30 minutes by mass transit; evening: 1 hour, 45 minutes. Driving takes about an hour in the morning, 10 minutes more at night.

Experience: Stepping onto the Gold Line train, a woman in graying dreadlocks observes: "Nice to be on when it's new, before the graffiti. They already scratched up the elevators." The line is comfortable, moderately full, few riders had to sit next to each other. On the Red Line, some people know each other and exchange greetings, and the conductor drew some smiles with his cheery morning rap, tinny on the intercom: "'Welcome aboard the Metro Rail."

Cost: A Day Pass cost $3, which covered the subways and the MTA bus. The local Pasadena ARTS bus cost 50 cents each way, for a total of $4 for the round-trip commute. With a monthly pass it comes to $3.20 a day. Driving is $4.25 a day. plus insurance and wear and tear oil the car.

Pros and Cons: The convenience factor still favors driving. The extra 45 minutes of round trip commuting is significant and the use of mass transit means that my wife has to drop off the kids at school each morning. And what about errands after work? The benefits of mass transit are more intangible. It feels good to help cut back on smog and traffic and it's nice to see the different groups of Angelenos treating each other kindly. If only the commute were a bit shorter.

Not So Rapid Transit

Morning commute to Miracle Mile.

From the West Valley
2 Hours 10 Minutes

From Pasadena
1 Hour 30 Minutes

From Claremont
2 Hours 10 Minutes

From Santa Monica
1 Hour 33 Minutes