Most Bus Riders Say Service Is Good

Most county bus riders are satisfied with trips between cities, but many want longer service in the morning and evening, according to an annual rider survey by the Ventura County Transportation Commission.

The survey found that more than 80% of riders on six lines rated their bus experience average or better. Most of the complaints had to do with buses that took too long or didn’t start early enough or end late enough.

The survey, conducted at the end of November and beginning of December, tabulated between 35 and 160 riders on every bus line run by the county. The data were collected by surveyors using hand-held computers.

The VISTA 126 line, linking Ventura, Santa Paula and Fillmore, was rated most successful with more than two-thirds of the riders expressing high satisfaction with the frequency of the buses and start and end times. Almost 90% of the riders did not have a car available to make the same trip.

The least successful line was the VISTA Conejo Connection, along the Ventura Freeway from Oxnard to Camarillo, Thousand Oaks and Westlake. The line ends at the Warner Center in Woodland Hills, a business complex where almost 9,000 county residents work.

On that line, nearly 40% of the riders said the frequency of the buses and the end times were average or lower than average. About half said the trip took too long. Almost 40% had a car available to make the trip.

Because the Conejo Connection draws so few riders, the Transportation Commission may cut the number of trips from six to four. That would eliminate the two trips in the middle of the day but keep those during the morning and evening commute times.

The findings will be reported at the commission’s monthly meeting at 10:30 a.m. Friday in Camarillo City Hall, 601 Carmen Drive.

For more information, call the Transportation Commission at 642-1591.