No Wiggle Room for the MTA

There is a certain way of phrasing things at the Metropolitan Transportation Authority that shows the agency still doesn’t quite get it. For instance, the authority trimmed nighttime bus service, used primarily by poor workers, without offering enough tangible alternatives; this action comes as the MTA is under a federal court order to improve bus operations and conditions for--guess who--poor workers.

The MTA’s rationale? The riders could catch another bus “within reasonable walking distance,” up to three-fourths of a mile. What exactly would the MTA know about “reasonable distance” on some not-so-inviting Los Angeles street late at night?

News flash: The bus riders won their lawsuit to improve poor MTA service. And this week Donald T. Bliss, the federal court-appointed special master overseeing the consent decree, ordered the authority to ease the impact of the service cutbacks.

“A fundamental purpose of the consent decree is to improve bus service . . . therefore any restructuring . . . should be part of an overall plan to improve bus service to the transit-dependent,” Bliss said. The MTA should think creatively to do that, experimenting with economical and flexible small shuttles or even taxi vouchers for late workers if ridership doesn’t justify full-sized buses.

Meanwhile, the authority ought to note that Bliss, whose decision could be appealed to the federal judge on the case, sent another strong message: The consent decree will be interpreted without wiggle room. That means comply or lose more authority to the courts.