SMART SHUTTLE DEBUTS IN VALLEY SERVICE FEATURES CHEAP, FLEXIBLE ROUTES.

Byline: David Bloom Daily News Staff Writer

A new shuttle began operation Monday to provide cheap, flexible, door-to-door public transit service to northwest San Fernando Valley residents.

``The west San Fernando Valley is finally getting some of the transit dollars it so badly needs,'' said Councilwoman Laura Chick, who represents part of the shuttle's service area. ``We are getting a state-of-the-art, entrepreneurial, flexible system.''

Fourteen Smart Shuttle vans will circulate in neighborhoods of Woodland Hills, West Hills, Northridge, Chatsworth and Granada Hills, between the 118 and 101 freeways, from 6:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Friday, said Dave Daley, a partner in the company running Smart Shuttle for the city of Los Angeles and the Metropolitan Transportation Authority.

Officials hope to provide an additional South Coast Air Quality Management District shuttle in the future to expand the service to 10 p.m. and on Saturdays, Daley said.

The base fare will be $1 to go between such ``access points'' as malls, schools and colleges, hospitals, recreation centers and Metrolink stations, Daley said.

Under the new shuttle system initiated Monday, system riders can arrange to be picked up if they call at least two hours in advance. The telephone number is [phone]. People who want to be picked up early in the morning have to call the night before.

The pickup will cost an extra 50 cents, and getting dropped off at other than one of the 36 access points will cost another 50 cents, Daley said.

Among the likely riders on the new service are the elderly, students, the disabled and commuters, many of whom can't easily use the infrequent, hard-to-access service the MTA now provides in the West Valley, Daley said.

The system relies on sophisticated computer mapping, scheduling and locater systems to figure out which van should pick up passengers at given addresses, Daley said.

``For many years, we've been promised a transportation system in the Valley,'' said Councilman Hal Bernson, who represents part of the service area. ``Here it is. It is a convenient, practical service that will take us where we want to go. This is a major step, and it's not to be taken lightly.''

Mayor Richard Riordan said he has been pushing smart shuttles for a couple of years, so residents can get more convenient, better service at a much cheaper cost than now.

But Riordan said he also wants to try other smart-shuttle approaches, such as charging the base MTA fare of $1.35 for riding the shuttle but providing free transfers to MTA buses.

Gloria Ohland of the Surface Transportation Policy Project said the smart-shuttle approach is an important piece of the solution to easing congestion and giving residents access to jobs, shopping, medical care, recreation and more.

San Fernando Valley politicians said the shuttle program brings back some of the $1.3 billion the Valley has paid since 1981 in transportation sales taxes. Given the MTA's battered finances, bus system improvements are the Valley's best chance in the next couple of decades to have a better transit system.

``This is about fighting for a fair share,'' said Councilman Richard Alarcon. ``This is the future of transportation in the San Fernando Valley.''

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PHOTO City officials turn out Monday for the debut of the West Valley Smart Shuttle at Topanga Plaza in Woodland Hills.

Gus Ruelas/Daily News