Commission Cancels VISTA Bus Service

Regularly scheduled bus service for Oak Park and two nearby communities across the Los Angeles County line was canceled Friday with barely a word from Ventura County Transportation Commission members.

The commission voted unanimously to withdraw the fledgling bus service beginning Feb. 1.

“It was a good thing,” said County Supervisor Frank Schillo, who sits on the commission. “Unfortunately, the need is not there.”

The VISTA bus service, which stands for Ventura Intercity Service Transit Authority, was started in June 1994 as a two-year pilot program to link bus systems in cities throughout the county.

Later that year, the Oak Park Municipal Advisory Council persuaded county transportation officials to extend VISTA service to their community, Agoura and Westlake Village.

But the service never took off, averaging as few as two riders a week. Oak Park officials voted last month to accept the recommendation to shut down the bus service.

Residents of Oak Park, Westlake Village and Agoura still have access to public transportation through the commission’s Dial-a-Ride service, which has proved much more popular.