For those residents of Los Angeles who seem to spend more time in their cars than they do anywhere else, there is refreshing news from the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority that alternate means of mass public transportation may be in the works.
Considering the largely popular “green movement” in Los Angeles, it is about time the city seriously starts planning to initiate large-scale changes in public transportation. These efforts to look at options for increasing mass transportation are especially crucial to the UCLA community, which has shown increasing reliance on public transportation or better carpooling.
Public bus ridership to UCLA has increased 2.7 percent and the percentage of student commuters who otherwise drive alone to UCLA has decreased by 4.9 percent since 2000, according to Daily Bruin archives. By ensuring new and easier means of public transportation are available, the city may encourage more L.A. natives to take advantage of those options.
This would be crucial to reducing the number of lone drivers on the road, which stands at about 75 percent of drivers in the L.A. region according to Daily Bruin archives.
The city must take the necessary steps to expedite this process so that L.A. commuters, and especially those nearing the UCLA area, can utilize sustainable transportation and help maintain sanity during rush hour.