Build better bus service

LA. needs a first-class, bus-centered transportation system, with reliable 24/7 service and a bus every five minutes.

Double the bus fleet, provide a 50-cent fare and $20 monthly bus pass and implement bus-only lanes on all major corridors in the county instead of building multibillion-dollar rail lines or converting boulevards such as Olympic and Pico into mini-highways. Reducing the number of cars, not just moving them, must become the city’s priority.

Lower fares mean more riders. From 1982 to 1985, annual bus ridership rose by 41% – the highest in L.A. history – when fares were dropped from 85 cents to 50 cents.

Bus-only lanes – a means of prioritizing public transit over single-passenger automobiles – have proved effective too. In Seoul, a city of 10 million people, adding buses on 119 miles of dedicated lanes attracted 1 million more riders.

This city needs to stop pandering to the car. Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa and City Council member Wendy Greuel (chair of the Transportation Committee) should lead by fronting $27 million in city money to start the bus-only lanes on Wilshire Boulevard. Waiting for federal funds to arrive puts off completion of bus-only lanes until 2011. In 2008, we need to stop talking and start building.

Francisca Porchas is lead organizer at the Bus Riders Union.