Metro’s Bus-Only Lane project will increase efficiency and reduce high traffic, smog

As a longtime L.A. resident and former commuter to UCLA, I can attest to the challenges of using the Metro bus system in a city whose traffic yields to no one.

This is why I fully support Metro’s Bus-Only Lane project for Wilshire Boulevard.

The project will cover a 12.5-mile distance, creating bus-only lanes to expedite bus transportation through parts of downtown L.A., Koreatown, Westwood, West Los Angeles and Brentwood (or, from the intersections of Wilshire Boulevard and Valencia Street to Wilshire Boulevard and Centinela Avenue).

Metro estimates that this proposal will speed up passenger travel times in these areas by an average of 30 percent.

The Wilshire Boulevard plan has recently obtained a good amount of local attention due to a series of town hall-type meetings and support from the Bus Riders Union.

The project will involve a variety of street enhancements, including street widening, lane re-stripping and renovation of certain curb lanes.

Funding for the proposal will come from the Small Starts Program, a subdivision of the New Starts Program, a federal grant program designed for transportation projects throughout the nation. The $23.3 million Bus-Only Lane project received federal approval in March 2009.

But, despite the fact that this proposal has received the federal green light, opponents to the project argue that a bus-only lane on Wilshire will only worsen traffic for automobile drivers, while minimally improving transportation times for bus riders.

In addition, the Wilshire Bus-Only Lane project requires an Environmental Impact Report/Environmental Assessment, which experts estimate will not be completed until June 2010.

Although I fully support the need for an environmental evaluation regarding the bus-only lane proposal, the overall process for the project’s approval is long-winded, especially when one considers the absolute logistical necessity for a bus-only lane in the UCLA-Westwood area ““ according to Metro, the strategic Wilshire Boulevard corridor handles about 100,000 boardings on a daily basis.

In addition, the environmental impact of having a more efficient bus system will lessen Los Angeles’ car dependency, thereby minimizing the amount of smog emitted into the Westside regions. The formula follows a simple logic ““ the reason students and other commuters are so deterred by the current bus system is its inefficiency. If we helped to solve this problem with the bus-only lane, that could lead to more bus riders, fewer drivers, fewer cars and less traffic, gasoline and smog.

Naturally, many of the Wilshire Boulevard passengers are UCLA students, and I can confirm the struggle involved with riding the Metro bus on this high-traffic route, based on my experience.

In fall 2008, I commuted from my home, a little more than two miles away from campus. Not wanting to deal with the complications (and hefty costs) of UCLA parking, I opted for a more economic and eco-friendly decision ““ riding the Metro bus to school.

Although taking the bus to school saved me from the frustration and strained concentration that was required of driving every morning, I soon learned that bus riding required a good deal of planning and punctuality on my part ““ and due to the signature Angeleno traffic ““ never guaranteed that I would get to school on time.

Surprisingly, the two-mile commute often required me to be at the bus stop on Wilshire 45 minutes to an hour before my class began (calculating walking time from Ackerman to North Campus and other additional “transportation elements”). This meant that in order for me to make it to my 9:30 a.m. class, I had to be out the door by 8:45 a.m. at the latest.

Eventually, I evaluated the pros and cons and switched from bus riding to carpooling with a friend. For me, the amount of preparation and planning required to complete a two-mile commute by bus did not turn out to be an efficient option.

And I’m not alone in my protests. Marlon Avelar, a member of the Bus Riders Union, recently discussed in an article how he missed a job interview because he was stuck on the Wilshire bus for more than an hour.

Strictly from a student’s standpoint, the Bus-Only Lane project for Wilshire Boulevard will help decrease the time of the commute for many Bruins across the board and allow them to commute more efficiently to campus.

But aside from the interests of students, the Wilshire bus-only lane will help to alleviate Los Angeles’ automobile dependency and traffic congestion.

And in terms of long-term goals, a more effective bus system will help to eliminate some of the environmental woes, namely excessive smog and fossil fuel dependence, which continue to haunt this city.

E-mail Chung at [email protected]. Send general comments to [email protected].