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That is, if you take public transit between Santa Clarita and Los Angeles on Santa Clarita Transit's commuter express routes. Officials in Santa Clarita acted fast to solve a problem they could forsee happening again. A protest a couple months ago in Westwood caused major traffic delays and bus stop changes. With little communication to riders except for e-mail (because not everyone has a Blackberry they check obsessively), that afternoon became a bit hectic for commuters who didn't know what to do.
“A lot can happen in the time it takes our commuter users to get from the office to their bus stop such as large detours, significant road closures, and major traffic delays. Now through U-text, the City of Santa Clarita Transit can keep our customers informed of unexpected, last-minute commuter route changes at all times,” commented Mayor Bob Kellar in a statement. The system is not set up for the city's local bus routes, but in 2009, they plan to launch a Next Bus type program where users can check where the bus is and when it will arrive via cell phone.
Metrolink and Metro use Twitter for occasional service alerts. But where's DASH and Commuter Express?
Photo by jez.atkinson via Flickr