Big Blue Bus offers a free pass to SMC students, employees
SMC Students at Santa Monica College should have an easier time next week getting to class on time, and just might pocket some bank in the process.
The community college has partnered with Big Blue Bus to offer two new services — the “SMC Commuter” line and an enhanced cross-town route that will run every 15 minutes between Montana Avenue to Ocean Park Boulevard.
Both routes — which will operate on weekdays only — will be free to SMC students and employees with school identification, officials from the college said. The school will pay $80,000 for the service to run through the spring semester, before re-evaluating the program.
“SMC is proud to be partnering with the award-winning Big Blue Bus to improve service to our students, employees and the larger Santa Monica-Westside community,” said SMC President Chui Tsang. “The SMC Commuter is the first in a series of bus service improvements and additions that will help reduce traffic congestion, demand for scarce parking spaces, and air and noise pollution.”
The new and improved services are part of a transportation initiative, currently being developed jointly by the college and Big Blue, to enhance existing bus lines and provide new connections to SMC’s campuses. The initiative seeks to encourage motorists, particularly SMC students and employees, to get out of their cars in efforts to reduce traffic and help the environment.
Other proposals will be discussed at community meetings to be held by Big Blue Bus beginning in March.
This weekend, Big Blue is also unveiling some service changes to existing lines as part of its bi-annual review. The changes include an earlier departure from downtown Los Angeles to Santa Monica, and a new stop for Line 10 — at the corner of Santa Monica Boulevard and 17th Street — that will replace two nearby stops not frequently used, said Dan Dawson, a spokesman for BBB.
“A few times a year, we look at our service and make adjustments based on a lot of things, like where people are getting on and off, how people are using the service, is there traffic congestion and do we need to add an extra bus or make adjustments so that buses are arriving on time,” Dawson said.
The SMC Commuter has been designed to reach the high number of SMC students and employees who live in the Palms and Mar Vista areas. The new line will be an extension of Line 13, which currently ends at the Westside Pavilion. Buses will travel through Palms and Mar Vista, with stops at SMC’s Main and Bundy campuses. Line 13 departs from Downtown Los Angeles along Pico Boulevard.
The SMC Commuter, which will also serve residents and businesses, will run twice in the morning, at 9:10 a.m. and 9:40 a.m., starting at Pico and Westwood boulevards, and twice in the afternoon, at 1:36 p.m. and 2:06 p.m., leaving from the main campus at 20th and Pearl streets.
In the spring, college officials and BBB staff will decide if the hours of operation should be extended. Meanwhile, school officials vow to continue looking for grants and other funding sources to help expand the program, college officials said.
In addition to the new line, SMC is paying for another bus along Line 11, a north-south Santa Monica route that stops at the main campus and John Adams Middle School, among other locations. The additional bus will increase the frequency of service from every 30 minutes to every 15 minutes. In addition, 30-minute evening service will be added from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m., Mondays through Thursdays, BBB and college officials said.
“We believe this will make a major difference for our students coming down the Metro line on Wilshire or Santa Monica boulevards,” said Melvin Martinez, vice president of planning and development at the college. “With the increased frequency, Line 11 definitely becomes a very useful line and students can use it to transfer back to Metro when they are heading home.”
College officials are considering developing a program that mirrors one used by UCLA in which the college pays for students’ bus fair.
“This board is very much in favor of transportation initiatives that meet the larger goal of sustainability and improved circulation throughout the city,” said Susan Aminoff, chair of the SMC board of trustees. “We are trying to promote a cleaner environment for our city by changing student culture to accept public transportation as a viable alternative for getting to campus.”
In June, BBB will also unveil a new service called “Mini Blue,” which will use shuttles to transport residents throughout the city. The service will consist of a fleet of short lines around the city in smaller buses that run on alternative fuels. Line 11 is an example, Dawson said.
“We had a mandate from the City Council to develop a transportation system just within the city limits to help people who live and work in the city to go about their business without ever needing their cars,” Dawson said. “We want to create a network of shorter lines so it won’t matter if you work in the Water Gardens, Ocean Park or on Main Street. You will be able to get around quickly and easily.”
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on February 2, 2007. Read the original PDF.