As people raised their hands for an opportunity to express their
complaints, a Big Blue Bus customer representative frantically
jotted down bus riders’ comments about the system on poster
paper.
“My son has to wait 30 minutes to catch a bus home from
school.”
“If the bus is full, the driver won’t stop to let
people in.”
“The bus drivers are throwing passengers around when they
drive.”
In a Big Blue Bus community meeting led by Customer Relations
Manager Dan Dawson on Thursday, community members discussed such
concerns, in addition to public transit developments.
The meeting started with a presentation outlining possible
changes to the wait periods for lines 4, 5, 8 and 9, as well as the
fare structure.
Dawson addressed future projects, like putting up a Rapid 7 line
in 2008, which will have limited stops, a facility expansion
project, and the addition of real-time signs and GPS tracking.
After the presentation, the floor opened up to the audience to
discuss issues such as the frequency of buses on certain lines and
slowness due to traffic.
Senior Administrative Analyst Paul Casey replied that the
slowness problem could only be fixed if bus lanes were made
available, which is not entirely under the Big Blue Bus
system’s control but would require the efforts of the
Metropolitan Transportation Authority.
Other problems, such as inappropriate honking, could be fixed
with driver education, said Larry Taylor, computer programmer at
UCLA.
“It’s frustrating that drivers will honk when there
are only two cars in front that aren’t moving when the light
changes,” Taylor said. “It not only violates the
California Vehicle Code section 27001, which says honking should
only be used for insuring safety, but the peace of the community as
well.”
The audience came to life over issues of driving skills, saying
the jerky driving made them feel like they were being thrown around
and caused neck pains.
While many riders brought up concerns with buses in the general
Los Angeles area, others addressed problems specific to UCLA.
“They should put more stops at the Ackerman turnaround
because it’s so tiring to have to walk into Westwood to catch
a bus to somewhere only a few minutes away (to drive),” said
Jeffrey Duh, a first-year aerospace engineering student.
Dawson assured the audience that all the issues brought up at
the meeting would be addressed in weekly service improvement group
meetings.
“Every suggestion today will be written up and we will
literally go down every single comment and discuss ways to fix the
problem,” Dawson said. “Input and feedback from the
community is so important.”
Community members voiced several concerns throughout the
discussion, but many people expressed their thanks for having a
meeting to address their issues and for providing information.
“It is a great information seminar to keep up to date on
what changes are being made,” said Mat Silverstein,
third-year history student. “I’m surprised more
students didn’t come. It would make transportation a lot
easier for them.”