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ChineseAnother Ride Report: Metro Rapid Express Line 920
[tags]los angeles, mta, bus rapid transit, beverly hills, santa monica[/tags]
The alternative title of this piece is, “F— Beverly Hills. F— everything about Beverly Hills. F— Beverly Hills with the business end of a rake and Ann Coulter’s head.” This would be a good time to turn away the kids.
While the subway’s chances of reaching the sea are bobbing between “slim” and “none,” Wilshire Boulevard has both road and transit congestion. Yes, in Los Angeles, of all places, there is such a thing as too many people riding a bus. Wilshire Boulevard is busy.
Crowd: How busy is it?
MetroRiderLA: It’s so busy that a Rapid bus line had to get a Rapid bus line.
Metro now has to use the 900 series of routes. If there are any other new route classifications, Metro may actually break the four-digit route barrier.
A Metro sign in stages of metamorphosis. Line 20, with some modifications, dates back to the early 1980s. The Rapid teardrop dates to the first lines instituted in 2000. It deviates from the 1980s standard since it had widely been believed that most of Metro’s ridership is functionally illiterate and would be best served by a simple red symbol. When that was thought of as condescending, Rapid bus lines received the 1980s treatment, but accented by a red band. Not shown is the poor coordination between the signage, which Metro was really on the ball with during this shake-up, and the unupdated information cube at eye level on the pole.
Somewhere in L.A., a transit nerd is laughing his ass off at that last line.
Wilshire Boulevard bus service comes in three varieties now. There’s Local line 20, now fortified with the rich goodness of former Line 21. There’s 720, the most successful bus rapid transit project in the country, even though calling the service “BRT” is like calling a barrel a BMW. Now, there’s a Rapid Express, too, making only six stops between Koreatown and Santa Monica.
Don’t be fooled by the “express” moniker, though. There’s no letter X, no blue buses, but the upside is there’s no step-up fare, either. Also, “express” loses all meaning as getting between the subway and Santa Monica requires passing through Beverly Hills. The only metaphor that best describes riding along Wilshire during rush hour through is to be the camera in a sigmoidoscopy.
See the alternate title of this piece.
Here’s the deal. The bus, NABI 60-BRT #9347, arrives at Fourth Street and Wilshire Boulevard in Santa Monica at 4:45 p.m. Over half of this trip’s 53 passengers board here. It arrives in Westwood about 15 minutes later. Over a dozen riders get on here. By the way, riders already have a good idea of where this bus stops and know what they are doing after this line has only been in service for two days. Less than 10 minutes later, the bus speeds through Millionaire’s Row and gets to Santa Monica Boulevard.
A view of 9347 on Line 920, in front of the articulation.
[Editor's note:] What happens between Santa Monica and San Vicente boulevards is too graphic to print.
East of Fairfax Avenue, speed picks up again, although the bus is not a road rocket. Only a few passengers boarded here, while a crowd was waiting for a 720. Around Highland Avenue, this bus caught up with its leader and passed it by after Crenshaw Boulevard. Most of the bus emptied at Western Avenue. Amazingly, most of the bus riders chose to transfer to the Purple Line here, even though there is twice as many trains at the end of the 920 at Vermont Avenue.
It arrived at Vermont in 75 minutes. Santa Monica to Koreatown in 75 minutes with the fastest bus on Wilshire. Of this, 40 minutes was passing through Beverly Hills. About three miles of the route accounts for more than half of its running time.
Hell, not only must the subway be built to the sea, Beverly Hills has to pay for it all.
Line 920, perfect from Koreatown to Fairfax or Westwood to Santa Monica. Anything in between requires a helicopter.
The bus arrives at Wilshire Boulevard and Vermont Avenue 75 hours minutes later.
Discussion
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Please keep discussions civil: exercise Troll Controll.
I can’t agree more. That is why I keep all my work east of Beverly Hills. The commute is so tiring. Beverly Hills is the reason way the rapid and express lines are not working as properly as it should and its the reason why the subway is only six stops short. What is it going to take for Beverly Hills to see the big picture.
Hmm, express bus passing traffic via helicopter; not a bad idea. Could just be as good as the subway.
http://www.rotaryaction.com/pages/swordfish.html
Haha! Brilliant review!
In case you didn’t know, Beverly Hills has seen the “Big Picture.” They want the subway down Wilshire, and they’ve already picked out where the stops are going to be in their fair city.
Now, if only the money could materialize to build it. Can’t we squeeze SOME of it out of the massive transportation bond we passed last fall? AHNOLDT!!!
I’ve got a bit more transit news at my blog, this time on the big blue bus fare transition
Hell, I’d be happy with the purple line just being extended to Fairfax Ave. I hate going to the Westside as well, but I still like to eat at Canter’s every now and then.
That rapid bus needs a lane all to itself.
All it would take is some paint (a solid white line) and a few cops handing out tickets for cars getting in the way.
Eliminate right turns, and give the bus the ability to freeze car traffic like a train would.
Essentially, make the BRT a real BRT!
oh man… classic wad. wuts even more frustrating is that it seems like since so many 920′s exist during rush hour the 720 is relegated to local bus sizes and not articulated. so yes, i’m for the existence of the 920 but the 720 is still insanely busy, and riding it rapid stylz on a local bus is a daunting task. but we all champion on and i agree, bev hills is the entire reason for the insanity of wilshire. once you get west of santa monica you haul ass, the same as once you get east of fairfax. its just as you said, they’re the reason we dont already have a subway to the sea and even as scott mercer points out, that they’ve graciously opened they’re collective pompous shit filled eyes and want the subway, they should be doing more than just saying “we want it”. they should be championing it throughout the city and pay for the gala groundbreaking affair where everyone whose been fkd by b. hills’ nimby ass bullshit is invited to drink enough they have to pee in everyone’s garden filled window sills and marble birdbaths.
I just got on the 720 yesterday from Main Street (Downtown) to get to WLA. I thought one hour would be enough. Silly me it took 90 minutes to get to Federal and Wilshire, and yes most of the congestion was in Beverly Hills by Century city to Westwood. After Westwood it was free sailing. I actually felt sorry for all the folks in their BMWs and Mercedes, they had stop and go traffic BH-they get what they deserve and it will only get worse. Although the traffic impacts us commuters, at least we get to read on the bus. The Metro line is really the only feasible solution and it will reward the commuters but it has to go further westbound, even if that means stopping before BH. And I agree with the commentator, I would also be okay if it stopped at Fairfax- or even La Brea, just get it further west from Western.