Rapid bus expected to cut LAX trip in half
DOWNTOWN — City officials have given their approval to the opening of a rapid bus line intended to make the trip between Santa Monica and LAX faster and more seamless.
The Big Blue Bus’ latest public transportation service, the Rapid 3 line, was celebrated with a ceremony attended by 30 city and county officials on Monday, who said the express bus ride will offer a myriad of features that will make it more appealing to commuters, residents and tourists traveling along the Lincoln corridor.
City Councilman Herb Katz, who spoke at the ceremony, noted Santa Monica recently placed fifth nationwide for its sustainability measures and said he is proud to live in a city which provides high-quality public transportation options.
“I’m excited about the new line because it will be the fastest way to travel between LAX, Santa Monica and downtown,” Katz said. “It’s great to be part of a community that offers this kind of service.”
The Rapid 3 line will run north and south along a 10-mile stretch of Lincoln Boulevard, from Wilshire Boulevard and Fourth Street to Aviation Station, near the Los Angeles Airport. There will be 13 stops in each direction.
Riders generally will not have to wait more than 15 minutes at a stop, if they use the service between 6 a.m. and 10 a.m., and from 2 p.m. to 7 p.m. on weekdays.
The cost to ride will be the same as non-rapid buses at 75 cents for a regular adult fare and 25 cents for seniors, the disabled and students.
Travel time from the city to the airport is expected to be cut in half with the new service, reducing it from nearly one hour to one-half hour. To do this, the Rapid 3 will utilize “signal-priority” technology, which enables buses to move quickly through oncoming stoplights.
Stephanie Negriff, Big Blue Bus director of transit services, said City Hall hopes the introduction of the signal-priority technology will hopefully have a positive effect on Lincoln traffic flows.
She didn’t comment as to what effect the new service will have on ridership, noting city officials will evaluate the program in a year. Information provided by the city indicated ridership on the Big Blue Bus system has increased 17 percent between 1990 and 2000.
In addition to decreased travel times, the Rapid 3 line is intended to appeal to users through some of its amenities and branding. It will feature on-board luggage racks, reading lights and a “distinctive new dark blue color for easy recognition.”
The Rapid 3 will operate on liquefied natural gas — like 89, or nearly half — of the city’s Big Blue buses, which city officials said is equivalent to eliminating the smog and soot from 17 to 33 cars.
Ten buses have been purchased for the Rapid 3 line, costing $372,000 each. Five of the buses were purchased as part of a development agreement with Playa Vista, a large development that is located along the bus route. Santa Monica is covering the capital cost for the other five buses, for a total of $1,860,000.
Big Blue Bus serves 51 square miles of service area in greater Los Angeles, from Palisades to LAX and from Santa Monica to downtown Los Angeles, for its 80,000 daily riders.
Roger Snoble, Metro chief executive officer, said the completion of the Rapid 3 line has marked the halfway point to create a grid of express bus routes county-wide. So far, 28 rapid services have been put into place, with double that number, or 56, expected to go into operation in coming years, Snoble said.
“No one would have imagined looking forward to a faster travel time on Lincoln, but we’ll see a transformation of that with the rapid bus routes,” he said. “We’re offering more competition with the automobile.”
Snoble said that although the metropolitan Los Angeles area was still considered the worst nationwide for automobile congestion and related air pollution, the county is taking some of the furthest steps to address the issue.
City Councilman Kevin McKeown is looking forward to riding the Rapid 3 line.
"I take the Big Blue 3 to LAX whenever I travel, and I’ve never missed a flight,” McKeown said. “The Rapid 3 will make that even easier.”
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on June 21, 2005. Read the original PDF.