Buses Are the Best Transit Alternative

I have come to the conclusion that none of the rapid transit plans envisioned for the Valley (subway or light rail westward along Chandler Boulevard or monorail above the Ventura Freeway) would be suitable or of sufficient utility to be economically viable. I have never seen a study of exactly how many Valley residents actually go Downtown every day and what their dispersal areas are. A Valley light-rail system that would require transfer to another vehicle at Lankershim Boulevard would be useless; commuters just would not do it. However, the cost of building the one-car continuous subway ride to Woodland Hills could never be justified.

Twenty-two years ago, when the OPEC oil embargo hit us, the RTD and the city arranged to subsidize bus fares all over, and Valley people could go Downtown for 50 cents. There were express buses and “limiteds.” Travel time for me from Sherman Oaks was about 30 minutes to Hill and 5th streets. Both the proposed subway and the light rail are impractical because they are too rigid. The money that would otherwise be wasted on these new systems should be applied to the purchase of new and better buses, and the fares for all MTA rides should be reduced to 25 cents, 50 cents or 75 cents, depending on distances traveled. They would have no trouble with lack of ridership. The new buses would provide flexibility to accommodate shifting population growth or concentrated pockets of riders going to the city. Of course, intra-Valley transit would also be improved. The millions and billions wasted on the subway and the obscene tunnels under the Hollywood Hills could easily support the fare subsidies I have mentioned.

ROBERT E. GREEN

Sherman Oaks