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AN ANGRY ANGELENO - Check out my previous LA Public Transportation columns “LA Metro Is Still Greedy and Evil Under Mayor Karen Bass” and “Mayor Karen Bass Betrays Los Angeles.”
DASH Bus Wrap Advertising Program Disappoints
Yes, that's a recent picture of a DASH bus up top (August 2nd of this year). These 33 neighborhood circulators (there used to be a lot more of them before cuts by the City) are run by LADOT (LA City Department of Transportation), NOT LA Metro. This particular DASH bus is the Fairfax DASH, which I saved many years ago...more on that another day. Notice that it is advertising DOWNTOWN LA service...I've seen that ad repeatedly on this FAIRFAX route. Why are they wasting valuable eyeballs in my affluent hood continuously advertising service that is not relevant to my hood, instead of GENERATING ADVERTISING REVENUE. What a concept, actually generating advertising revenue to pay for more DASH service (which has been cut in the past) and even bus shelters (more on that later).
It appears that they have been running this same irrelevant non-revenue generating advertising wrap in my hood since BEFORE April 2019 (look at the date at the top of the bus ad) ...that's MORE THAN FOUR YEARS. Imagine all the lost advertising revenue!
It gets worse...
DASH Has Been FREE for Almost FOUR Years
Why?? Since March 23, 2020, DASH has been FREE...SO stupid. All the lost revenue that could have gone for more bus service...or even bus shelters (more on that later).
DASH Needs the Revenue
Years ago, a portion of Measure R sales tax revenue was supposed to go to DASH, but Villaraigosa diverted it to Rail instead. Also, LA Metro used to kick money into DASH, treating it as a partner instead of a competitor...to be put out of business. You would buy a Day Pass for Metro and it would include DASH service. DASH has eliminated routes and reduced service on routes. So, further starving DASH of fare and ad revenue just stinks of LA Politicians being Anti-Bus and wanting to make Traffic worse so that LA Metro, which a few of them also help run, can get more money out of us for Rail...to beat Traffic one day. LA Metro is very Anti-Bus.
Big Problems at LA Metro Rail are POLICY Problems
The problems at LA Metro Rail will not simply be solved by changing from a particular law enforcement provider to a new LA Metro Police Department. Simple logic and commonsense leads to the conclusion that there are TWO Main Problems at LA Metro Rail. And you can get rid of those 300 LA Metro Transit Ambassadors (potential $ 123 Million for 5 years) ...they're useless and Metro is wasting money on them that could be used for REAL law enforcement...or more Bus Service.
On July 2nd of last year, Steve Scauzillo of the LA Daily News (LADN) reported on the Transit Ambassadors and Crime on LA Metro. LA County Supervisor Holly Mitchell, who sits on the LA
Metro Board, said “We reserve law enforcement...to those incidents that truly warrant it – and fare evasion is not one of those.” Transit Ambassadors will NOT call-in law enforcement to deal with fare evasion. Scauzillo: “If someone doesn't have a fare, instead of citations and arrests, an ambassador will show the customer how to use the fare vending machine....” Really.
LADN's Scauzillo talks to Azusa's Mayor Robert Gonzales about murders on Metro's Gold Line. Gonzales “also spoke about...Azusa's increase in unhoused individuals is tied to two [Gold Line] factors. First, between March 2020 and January 2022, no fares were collected, resulting in homeless...riding the...cars for free. 'The unhoused used it as a mobile shelter. So other folks didn't want to get on that thing' “.
LA Metro Rail Should NOT Be Free
LA Metro is NOT enforcing fares on Rail, which in the past was a way to manipulate ridership to make it look like Rail was more popular than Buses (where fares were being enforced), but now is just filling the Rail system up with homeless people doing drugs, committing crime, and causing other problems.
There are already large groups of people that ride for free or low fares...students and seniors come to mind.
But Metro Rail properties, stations, and rail cars should be reserved for people conducting legitimate business. By charging, besides gaining the fare revenue, you have less people present (just real legitimate customers that are trying to go somewhere), which is easier to police.
LA Metro Rail Should NOT Be a Homeless Shelter
Simple logic and common sense. You do NOT let homeless people live in stations and on rail cars, doing drugs and causing other problems. You run it like a Bus line. Everybody has to pay (except many students). At the end of the line, everybody has to get off. And, yes, you CAN enforce that...you have LAPD within the City of LA patrolling Metro, you have LBPD patrolling Metro within the City of Long Beach, you have LASD patrolling Metro in other areas...and Metro security. It will be hard at the very beginning...like enforcing a 41.18 zone...but once the homeless understand that there is strict enforcement, it will become easy. And I'm not just talking about clearing the rail cars at the end of the day for cleaning. ALL THROUGHOUT THE DAY AND NIGHT. At the end of EVERY ride!
No loitering at stations. Conduct your transit business and leave! Strictly enforce fares. Stop the Progressive BS.
On September 9 of this year, Steve Scauzillo, covering LA Metro for LADN wrote that “Waiting less time on a station platform for the train...can reduce anxiety, caused by mentally unstable and unhoused...or drug users hanging out on platforms, asking passengers for hand-outs.” Here's an idea: Don't let them do that!!
All Metro Property becomes No Camping Zones! It's Public Transit, not a Sh-t Show.
Can These Commonsense Changes Be Done? Who Controls LADOT and LA Metro?
LADOT is controlled by Mayor Bass, who just picked a new General Manager for the department, who coincidentally used to work for LA Metro. Mayor Bass has the most power at LA Metro. She sits on
the Metro Board and gets to fill 3 other seats. One of her picks is Progressive Katy Yaroslavsky, who ALSO sits on the City's Transportation Committee that deals with LADOT and DASH. Who else sits on the LA Metro Board? The 5 LA County Supervisors, including Progressive Lindsey Horvath.
There are 4 more voting members. The Mayor is the current Board Chair and historically is the public face of Metro and publicly supports its Big Money Moves.
Law Enforcement at LA Metro Should NOT Be Moonlighting for Overtime Pay
For example, when LAPD officers got their LA Metro gig years ago, it was for full overtime pay. That's TWO problems. First, you're wasting money. Second, being a full time LAPD cop is hard enough. If that person is working a second job, they're either gonna do a worse job at their main job, their second job, or both. Whoever guards Metro should be FULL TIME Metro Law Enforcement. You could have LAPD, LBPD, and LASD folks that ONLY work guarding LA Metro within their jurisdictions. That's their full-time assignment...at regular pay, NOT overtime pay. OR you could have LA Metro have its own police, like LAX has its own police.
(“An Angry Angeleno” is the nom de plume of Yuval Kremer, a former ballot candidate for both LA County Supervisor and LA Mayor. The opinions expressed by Mr. Kremer are solely his and not necessarily those of CityWatchLA.com.)
