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May 12, 2008
2 Hour One-Way Bus Commuting No More
Photo by Fred Camino of MetroRiderLA via Flickr
Today's edition of Steve Hymon's weekly Road Sage column explores one Altadena man's story of de-caring for five years, but unwillingly giving back into car culture after Metro changed some lines, ultimately forcing his four hour daily roundtrip to be a little longer and more unpredictable.
Cliff Moore, who is not fond of driving, lives in Altadena, works in Sun Valley and likes it that way. He was fine with his commute of three busses, but when Metro split the 92 for reliability reasons, Moore found that reliability a bit unpredictable, forcing him to be often late for work after a newer four bus commute. However, "he knows a mass transit system can't be built to serve him," Hymon notes.
Moore now drives a 1995 BMW and his commute takes him 25-minutes each way cutting 95-minutes off his old public transit route. Maybe he might consider going back to transit someday, but that might depend on fixing a "glaring hole" in the bus system. Currently, as the Road Sage reports, there is "no service connecting the San Gabriel Valley to cities along the 210 Freeway corridor."
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FINALLY! A truthful posting about our shitty bus system by LAist.com.
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Ive been saying FOREVER that public transport in LA is piss poor. I love how the ad on the bus says "Miss Traffc" while its stuck in the middle of a parking lot. Classic.
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it would be great to have some public transit, one of the biggest global cities with detroit style public transit. come on already los angeles
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Do any of you actually take public transportation?
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Its hardly indicative of the experience of every single bus user in LA is it?
Take me, I go from the Valley -> Santa Monica during the week on the bus. Averages are 15 mins longer than my regular commute by car. I can shave those 15 mins off by taking my bike over the hill with me.
LA Bus network isnt perfect, no system that uses our roads is due to the sheer volume of traffic, but flying down Wilshire on a Rapid watching those traffic lights stay lit is priceless.
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I take the train from Wilshire to the Rose Bowl during football season. Other times Im either biking or driving. I will rarely take the orange line along Victory...
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I like taking public transport when I can to sporting or other events. It beats searching for parking and the crowds in and out. The only place this doesnt work for me is Dodger Stadium.
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danwuh, exactly, this is not indicative of every single bus user in LA, just one story of many, good or bad.
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LA buses are incredibly useful. I've lived in LA for two and half years now without a car, and have been able to do everything any other auto-toting angeleno does - good job, long nights out all over town, eating out, getting laid, beach weekends, etc.
Granted, the service is spotty as you move further away from the region's various city centers, but don't let the naysayers win. They're idiots. It works, and it will eventually work even better.