Summary of Public Hearing Comments
Metro Connections - June 24, 2007 phase
(Hearing held February 7, 2007.)
Approximately 29 individuals attended the hearing held in Van Nuys. 23 of those individuals provided verbal testimony and 21 individuals provided written comment via letter, facsimile and e-mail by the February 14 closing date. One petition with 223 signatures was submitted at the public hearing and the Westside/Central sector provided one comment from their public hearing.
The respondents included Twelfth District Councilmember Greig Smith, City of Burbank, City of Los Angeles Department of Transportation and various other
organizations including the Southern California Transit Advocates, Transit Coalition, Northridge East Neighborhood Council, and the Bus Riders Union.
The 44 respondents provided a total of 133 comments on various proposals included in the notice. Approximately 16% supported, 68% opposed, 14% suggested modifications and 1% provided other comments on various proposals. The majority of comments opposed proposals to cancel lines or route segments on Lines 154, 155, 168, 183, 239 and 656. Fewer comments were received on proposals to shorten Lines 90-91 and 92 and create new Lines 290 and 292. The new study express line received overall support but service duplication was an issue.
The proposals to canceled Line 168 and midday/weekend service on Line 239 received the most comments and the most opposition, or a total of 18 comments
on each line. The percentage breakdown for each line was exactly the same, with 83% opposed, 6% supported and 11% suggested modifications to the proposals. Councilperson Greg Smith provided written testimony on behalf on his constituents and two representatives from the Northridge East Neighborhood Council submitted verbal testimony and a resolution opposing changes to both Lines 168 and 239. The verbal testimony cited concern for the elimination of access to California State University at Northridge (CSUN) and the reduction in trip counts included in CSUN’s Environmental Impact Report for their expansion plan. It was stated that the plan includes 300 additional residential units along Zelzah Avenue and a 10,000 increase in student population.
Those opposed to the change on Line 168 cited potential lack of service to a new shopping center planned at Paxton and Bradley. Others stated that the previous
cancellation of midday and Saturday service on Line 168 contributed towards its poor performance. Two suggestions were received to modify the proposal by 1) maintaining the Paxton segment or 2) rerouting the Paxton segment to Mission College and the other end to Roscoe and Van Nuys Boulevards. Support for the proposal indicated that service has not performed well for three decades.
Comments opposed to the Line 239 proposal stated the need for service to access schools and employment. Some attributed the lack of ridership to the fact that there is no Orange Line Station on White Oak Avenue. Suggestions were made to reroute service to the Reseda Station or reroute service from Louise Avenue to Chatsworth Street and Balboa Boulevard in Granada Hills. Support for the proposal indicated that this and other proposals should have occurred a long time ago.
The proposals to cancel late night/weekend service on Line 155 and midday/Saturday service on Line 154 received 16 and 15 comments respectively. Both proposals received no support and about 80% opposition. The City of Burbank strongly objected to the proposal for Line 154 since it would eliminate an important link between Downtown Burbank and North Hollywood during periods when Burbank Bus service does not operate. Both the City and the Southern California Transit Advocates suggested maintaining at least the Burbank to North Hollywood segments since there is no other service in the area.
The City and others requested that Line 155 be retained for six months and modified to consolidate stops in Downtown Burbank and the Media District. They suggested coordinating service levels with Line 96 to provide 30 minute service to both locations.
The proposed shortening of Line 183 at Alameda Avenue and San Fernando Road in Glendale received 14 comments and 1 petition. About 64% of the comments and a petition with 223 signatures opposed the proposal. Access to the hillside area east of Glenoaks Boulevard was an issue due to limited Beeline service and operating hours. Suggestions to modify the route included extending the western terminal to the Sepulveda Orange Line Station or serving the segment east of downtown Burbank as an extension of the route of Line 155. Support for the change stated that the segment should have been eliminated when the Glendale Beeline service was established. The City of Burbank requested that Metro staff work with them to continue to provide the hillside service.
The proposal to shorten the owl route of Line 656 at Santa Monica Boulevard and Highland Avenue received 11 comments. Eight comment or 82% of the total comments opposed the change due to the forced transfer late at night. To mitigate the change, it was requested that the transfer be coordinated with either Line 4 at Santa Monica and Highland or Line 2 at Hollywood and Highland. Two comments supported the change due to duplication.
Proposals to split Line 90-91 into two lines in Sunland and Line 92 at Downtown Burbank Station received seven and eight comments respectively. The proposals for new lines 290 and 292, replacing the northern segment of both lines respectively, received six comments on each line. The primary concern was the elimination of the one seat ride and that transfers are not a public benefit. It was stated that breaking lines would not improve reliability due to traffic and patrons who lived near the transfer point may as well drive.
A total of 57% of the comments on Line 90-91 and 50% of the comments on Line 92 and also on Line 290 opposed the proposals. Support for the proposals was based on the need to provide more reliable service. One suggestion was received to extend Line 292 to Olive View Medical Center and three suggestions were received to restructure and combine with other Metro routes in Glendale.
The Study Express Line concept, operating between the North Hollywood Red/Orange Line Station and Pasadena Gold Line with two in-route stops, received 11 comments. Six comments supported the concept and four comments opposed the concept due to duplication with Commuter Express Line 549. The Los Angeles Department of Transportation informed the Governance Council that effective Monday, February 12th, Commuter Express Line 549 would be rerouted to serve the North Hollywood Red/Orange Line Stations. The City of Burbank requested that service on Line 549 be studied by all concerned parties to determine whether or not if this or a new service should provide the express link.
Finally, a number of miscellaneous comments were received on proposals that were not included in this public hearing. Comments pertaining to proposals in other sectors were forwarded to the appropriate parties for inclusion in their report.
NOTES FROM STAFF REPORT ON CONCERNS RAISED AT THE PUBLIC HEARING:
Line 90-91 is 30 miles long so an incident along the line could impact the schedule on the entire line. Breaking the line allows service to be better managed to improve service reliability. The line will be split in Sunland since this is the location where ridership drops off and service frequencies are reduced. Saturday service was only extended from Sunland to Olive View Medical Center in June, 2003.
Line 92 is 26 miles long so an incident along the line could impact the schedule on the entire line. Line 92 had the highest number of schedule related complaints in January, 2007 (14% of total complaints). Breaking the line allows service to be better managed to improve service reliability. The line will be split at Downtown Burbank Station since this is the existing shortline location where ridership drops off and service frequencies are reduced.
Staff recommends canceling Saturday Line 154 service due to low productivity. Recent data indicates that weekday productivity on this line would not be significantly improved if midday service were canceled. There is also concern for a service gap on weekdays, particularly between Burbank and the North Hollywood Station, resulting from the service cancellation.
Staff recommends canceling late night and weekend Line 155 service due to low productivity, but agrees that a minor reroute in the Burbank Media District could improve service in the area. Coordinating trip times with Line 96 could also improve service but may not be feasible at all periods due to differences in service levels. Staff will evaluate the schedule to determine what changes can be made.
Staff recommends maintaining weekday Line 183 service since savings can be offset if weekend service is canceled east of Glenoaks Boulevard and if all day weekday service is provided once an hour during periods when service is more frequent.
Based on comments received and an evaluation of productivity on midday service, staff recommends maintaining Line 239 midday service and operating service once an hour throughout the day to make better use of resources. There is no Orange Line station at White Oak Avenue due to cost considerations. Staff will evaluate the option to reroute service to the Reseda Station.
In accordance with Metro Connections guidelines, Line 656 will be shortened to reduce service duplication. Staff will mitigate transfers between Line 656 and Line 4 at Santa Monica Boulevard and Highland Avenue.
The Los Angeles Department of Transportation has rerouted Commuter Express Line 549 to the North Hollywood Station effective February 12. Staff will work with all concerned parties to determine if the new Tri-City Transit Link Express service is needed.
