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Route 460 was one of the many to receive minor changes | Photo by Alan Heitz via LAist Featured Photos on Flickr
Twice a year, Metro makes a slew of changes to their schedules and transit routes in an effort to improve service and efficiency. Sunday was one of those days. Usually, there is something new and flashy to show off like a new Rapid bus route, but this summer there's no such thing. In fact, one Rapid line was discontinued in the Valley and another lost its weekend service in South LA.
What's new--temporarily new, we should say--is line 632, which will run alongside the Gold Line Eastside Extension route until it opens later this summer. As for when the new train route will open between Union Station and East LA, no specific date has been set.
Within Metro, this bi-annual change is unofficially called "the shake up," but Spokesperson Gayle Anderson likes to call it a "time table tuneup." Citizen committees within different regions advise Metro on changes, she said, such as crowded buses that need more frequent service or buses running empty.
The next set of changes will happen in late December. A full list of changes that took place on Sunday are listed here.
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Man, no more 724 rapid? That bites. It was an awesome connector to the rail.
agree treeVerb. that line was by far the most efficient & simple way of reaching Downtown LA quickly 724-Redline.
Too bad it got no ridership. It definitely was a handy Red Line psuedo-extension.
Reality check time.
The 724 Rapid, because of its relatively short length, was only five to six minutes faster than the 224 Local, and you would only be able to take advantage of the minor time savings if you rode end-to-end (which few passengers do). When there are no appreciable time savings, it makes more sense to run a line that can make all stops if needed.
The other factor in play was that the 724-794 combination was never a good replacement for the previous 394 limited stop service that ran from Sylmar all the way to downtown Los Angeles, and the replacement of 724 with an extended 794 restores that previous service, which was very well patronized prior to a year ago. By comparison, 724 had the third lowest ridership in the Valley (only 168 and 645 did worse) and 794 had the sixth lowest. Rapids that aren't near the top of their area's ridership totals are the ones that get cancelled or restructured.
You have to look at the bigger picture on these matters. 724 was not "awesome" and in reality, its ridership totals were what "bites". 224 is every bit as simple to get to North Hollywood Station, and "efficient" in terms of getting maximum use of your tax dollars is not running buses that were rarely more than half full.
Yes, it is "too bad" that the ridership wasn't there. But most of us who were opposed to it a year ago knew this would be the case.
"Reality check time."
lol, God forbid the people who did use it be disappointed that it's not there anymore. They aren't denying that it saw low ridership.
Umm, flame war bait aside, the 224 is what bites. Those old skank buses are third world and depressing, not to mention most of their motors and brakes are shot.
The 724 was fast.
I'll do the pepsi challenge stopwatch test of a new rapid bus versus an old MTA junkheap any day of the week. (Not to mention added minutes for the detrimental effect on one's psyche.)
@ treeVerb: Those "old skank buses" on the 224 are less than ten years old and they are well-maintained in addition to being reasonably new. Your opinion has no basis in fact.
If 724 was doing better than scheduled, the only reason possible was low ridership (meaning less time at stops). Which comes back to the base reason: Lines with poor ridership gets cancelled or restructured.
@ Spokker: Of course they're disappointed. That doesn't mean calling it "awesome" and ignoring the realities of public transportation operations makes them right and Metro wrong for doing this.
To all: I made a prediction when this decision was made that the realigned and extended 794 will be in the top 10 of Valley lines within a year. That is how confident I am that this was the correct course of action. And if my prediction proves true, then it won't matter how "awesome" the handful of former 724 riders thought it was. Public transit is about moving the most number of people possible, and 724 simply was not doing that.
"224 are less than ten years old and they are well-maintained in addition to being reasonably new. Your opinion has no basis in fact."
so in that version of the universe, a 9 year old bus runs as well a new one? talk about dearth of facts.
A large percentage of the MTA buses brakes/transmissions are shot, especially in the valley, that there are several drivers who refuse to leave the depot unless they get 'one of the good buses'. One driver even loudly bragged that that's how he got switched onto "one of the good routes"
Either there is some MTA p.r. department spin woven into the above statement, or contrarianism/stirring the pot is perceived as supreme.
Did you ever use 724? since the comment about low ridership is not really true.
It had more to do with the departure times and the arrivals of the red line, the times with 724 and low riders was when a 224 had already picked up the people.
Most bus operators in front of the Station try to leave as soon as they see the people arriving, so many times the people that run catch the bus, while the rest have to wait for the next bus, so if a 224 arrives first, it will be pack with no room left, so then when a 724 arrives next it would pick up the people that didn't fit.
Since almost all ridership is related to red line arrival it would make more sense to have that match
No one said Metro was wrong!
"I made a prediction..."
No one cares.
When I got on the 750 rapid this morning I was told there WAS no more 750 rapid, and that the 30-40 minute route down Ventura from Universal City station to Warner Center is now a "regular" route, and they can only go so fast, making it more like 60-75 minutes. They dumb part is that they haven't added any more stops yet, it just goes slower. And adds 10 minutes to my commute. WTF?
"When I got on the 750 rapid this morning I was told there WAS no more 750 rapid"
Who gave you this incorrect information?
The driver announced it - in English and Spanish. If true, it would make my commute by car actually easier. But it appears not to be.
@ msmerymac: What you are hearing is the opinion of disgruntled Metro operators. Because too many of them were breaking the speed limit on Ventura Blvd. (considered to be "unsafe operation" under Metro policy) and creating long gaps in service as a result, the schedule now includes timepoints which the operators must not leave ahead of schedule at. They don't like it because they don't like it, so they are making these disparaging remarks.
@ Spokker: It is your right not to care what I say, but you do not speak for all.
Thanks for the info! I wasn't aware that they would run so ahead of schedule - most bus services DO have time points you can't run ahead of, and the bus will usually have to wait at a stop or pull over until they are back on time.
I'll trust the 750 time table that's still up on the metro site. This makes me feel a lot better.