VISTA Bus Service Is Making Progress

Since I have been the recipient of a number of calls from concerned citizens who depend on the bus, I feel it is necessary to comment on the July 13 story on the Ventura Intercity Services Transportation Authority, or VISTA, buses.

All four bus routes met the requirements established before the start of VISTA for continuing the demonstration for a third year. Those requirements are based on looking at the revenue recovery ratio the best quarter of the year, not on an annual rate, because as a demonstration, changes can, have and will be made during the year to improve the system’s performance.

We are working to increase revenues on the buses, but this is difficult because bus pass revenues are shared among the routes. For example, if someone got on Thousand Oaks Transit, then took VISTA and connected with SCAT to go to Oxnard, each agency would get one-third of the revenue. Also, unlike city bus services, VISTA travels long distances through greenbelts and open space to provide connections to other buses in the county.

Even so, the 2-year-old VISTA buses are doing well. In comparison, the Simi Valley bus system, one of the most cost-effective in the county, is 18 years old, yet only for the last six years have actual passenger fares met the state revenue ratio requirements.

To set the record straight, the VISTA 126 bus and both the Fillmore and Santa Paula Dial-A-Rides have exceeded state standards for rural service and will no doubt be continued after the demonstration ends. It is also expected that the U.S. 101 VISTA bus will be continued.

The two routes we are struggling to improve are the VISTA East and Central routes. VISTA East provides the only means for students from Thousand Oaks or Simi Valley to get to Moorpark College except by car. We are getting a larger bus for the Central VISTA route since it is overcrowded at times and we hope this fall to begin serving the Flynn Road industrial area in Camarillo.

Next year, elected officials will look at revenue ratios, consider other factors such as system connectivity, trend, fares, needs, etc., and make recommendations on continuation of VISTA services. VISTA can be paid for as a permanent service with transit funds, available to each city and the county after the demonstration ends. The public will have an opportunity to comment on the continuation of VISTA service through next year’s Unmet Transit Needs public hearing.

If it was easy to connect all the cities by bus so people can travel throughout the county, it would have been done years ago. In recognition of that difficulty, the U.S. Department of Transportation has selected the VISTA Demonstration Project as one of 12 outstanding projects. People need to be able to rely on public transit before they change their travel habits. The Times’ support in promoting the use of the system would be a greater public service than prematurely alarming transit-dependent riders. As to the photo you chose to print, buses--just like the roads and freeways--are busier at peak hours.

GINGER GHERARDI

Executive director,

Ventura County

Transportation Commission