GLENDALE : Bus Pass Cost to Rise for Seniors, Disabled

The Glendale City Council has approved a 50-cent increase in the price of Los Angeles County bus passes for senior citizens and the disabled.

The $10 monthly pass--to ride Metropolitan Transportation Authority buses--is usually sold to the elderly and disabled at $4, with the city absorbing the $6 difference, said George A. Miller, Glendale’s director of public works.

Now, senior and disabled riders will pay $4.50 per pass.

The increase--the first change in the rate in eight years--would become effective in a month to six weeks, Miller said. About 36,000 passes are sold annually citywide, Miller said.

City officials proposed the 50-cent hike to offset rising costs in operating bus pass sales at two sites: Adult Recreation Center, 201 E. Colorado Ave., and the Sparr Heights Senior Center, 1613 Glencoe Way.

The Adult Recreation Center near downtown Glendale sells an average of 2,700 to 4,000 passes each month, while the Sparr Heights center sells only about 200 a month.

The high demand has made it harder for staff members to keep track of sales and money because they also have other responsibilities at the two centers.