Orange Line reshuffling ridership, transit officials say.

City officials were thrilled to see that the Metro Orange Line drew twice the number of passengers that the Metropolitan Transit Authority predicted, but the first riders on the rapid bus system seem to be feeding in from other public transportation lines, not commuters who traditionally drive to work, transit officials say.

"I think there's a pent up demand for a faster route through the San Fernando Valley," said MTA spokesman Dave Sotero. "A lot of the people that have taken the Orange Line in the first three days have perhaps been transit riders that used other bus lines that are feeding into the Orange Line--because it is faster."

Sotero said that once drivers realize that there are free Metro parking lots, some with over 1,000 spaces, along the Orange Line route, more of them will be inclined to start riding the bus.

More than 11,000 passengers rode the new bus system on Oct. 31, the first regular commuting day after the line opened, but Sotero said that on the opening weekend, more than 40,000 passengers rode the Orange Line in one day, demonstrating that the new line can accommodate many more commuters.

The $350 million busway promises to take drivers from North Hollywood to Warner Center in about 40 minutes, the average time it takes during rush hour according to the MTA. Sotero said that the North Hollywood buses have been coordinated with Red Line trains so that the transfer between the two is easy.

Lynn Walton, a lead clerk at an accounting firm in Warner Center said she took the bus last Monday and Tuesday. She drove from her home in Northridge to the parking lot at the Balboa station.

"It was shorter in time, and I arrived at work not hating everyone," said Walton.

Walton said that there will be days where she has to drive into work, but she plans to take the Orange Line as often as she can.

The busway has generated some safety concerns in its first week of operation. On Wednesday, a 78-year-old woman struck the rear of a bus, injuring herself and 10 passengers. On the previous Thursday, a car ran a red light and struck a bus making a test run, although no one was injured.

Over the last six months, Los Angeles County sheriffs deputies have written more than 500 traffic citations along the route and made over 17 arrests.

Sotero said that the MTA is making an effort to make the public aware of the bus route, and added that sheriffs deputies will continue to patrol on motorcycles, patrol cars and horses.

"The intersections are equipped with the necessary traffic signals, and if people would be cautious and adhere to traffic signals, they would not come into any interference with the buses," said Sotero.