Merger of 2 Transit Agencies Supported

The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday endorsed consolidating the area’s two big public transportation organizations into a single agency.

The action was prompted by months of controversy over the operations of one of the organizations, the Southern California Rapid Transit District, which has been accused of mismanagement, including overly high administrative spending, too much overtime and drug use by bus drivers.

In addition, growing numbers of public officials have expressed concern that the RTD and the other transit organization, the Los Angeles County Transportation Commission, are separately constructing huge rail projects and are feuding over who should operate the trains.

Appointive Power

Though lacking the authority to order organizational changes, the supervisors’ recommendations are important. They appoint five members to both the RTD board and the county Transportation Commission and they are expected to continue to have appointive power over the governing board of a new agency.

However, on Tuesday the board could not agree on key details of how to combine the transit district and the commission.

Liberal Ed Edelman stopped for the present a proposal backed by the five-member board’s conservative majority to allow the new transit agency to call for bids from private companies to operate rail and bus lines.

Just two conservatives, Deane Dana and Chairman Mike Antonovich, were present at the meeting, leaving them short the three votes they needed.

Blamed Schabarum

Conservative Pete Schabarum was absent, but Edelman, talking to reporters afterward, blamed Schabarum for the private-company provision and accused him of persuading the city administrative office to go along in a report to the supervisors.

“This is the CAO fronting for Pete Schabarum,” Edelman said. Schabarum is a longtime proponent of turning over many government operations to private companies.

The board’s recommendation was made to the Legislature, whose Assembly Transportation Committee will hold a hearing in Los Angeles today on proposals to reorganize the county’s public transit.

County staff members had hoped the supervisors would present a united front to the Transportation Committee to increase the county’s power in the legislative negotiations that are expected to continue through the year.

Opposes Parts of Plan

But Edelman made it clear that he opposed substantial portions of the plan prepared by the county administrative office. That plan was strongly endorsed by Dana and contained provisions that pleased Antonovich and the board’s third conservative, Pete Schabarum.

And while Edelman and the second liberal, Kenneth Hahn, who is hospitalized recovering from a stroke, cannot have their way on the board, Edelman said he expects their views to have impact in the liberal- and Democratic-controlled Legislature, where transit union leaders have said they will oppose moves to turn county bus and train operations over to private operators.

Edelman said he also objects to an idea advanced by the administrative office for the governor to appoint the chairman of the governing board of a new transit authority.

Dana urged the board to present a united front.

“We are going to have the biggest mess unless we straighten this out,” he said.