Metrolink May Add 7 Trains to County Service

Despite annual figures showing that Metrolink service in Ventura County falls far short of being profitable or even a popular means of commuting, Metrolink and county transportation officials are considering expanding its service later this year.

Metrolink’s proposed 1998-99 budget calls for as many as seven trains to be added by October to the fleet of nine that currently serve the county.

“This is definitely something that we feel will work toward the goal of getting people out of their cars and off the highways,” said Metrolink spokesman Peter Hidalgo. “If riders are given more options on when they can use the trains, then the service itself becomes more useful and more valuable to the entire Southern California community.”

Although the proposal is still far from approval, transportation officials envision the extra trains being used to expand service at the county’s four existing stations.

Specifically, more trains would be run to each of the stations in the mornings and evenings at more frequent intervals, giving commuters greater flexibility.

The initial cost of expanding the service has been tagged at about $300,000, but that may increase dramatically if Union Pacific, which owns the rail lines running to Camarillo and Oxnard, decides to charge much higher fees for use of the tracks.

The company originally had wanted $6 million a year for use of a 20-mile section connecting the west county Metrolink stations. Instead, it is getting $100,000 a year in rent, plus $400,000 annually in maintenance fees.

The issue will be discussed at the June 5 meeting of the Ventura County Transportation Commission, with final approval expected by the Metrolink board of directors later that month.

Established in October 1992, Metrolink currently serves an estimated 3,700 Ventura County commuters each day, about 1,000 who ride to Los Angeles and points farther south. That number is only a fraction of the more than 96,000 workers who commute by car to out-of-county jobs.

By far, the greatest number of Metrolink passengers live in Simi Valley, Moorpark and Thousand Oaks, which together provide more than 72% of the Ventura County line’s total ridership.

Although the line extends into Oxnard with an additional station in Camarillo, only 16% come from those communities, with the bulk of the rest, about 7%, coming from Ventura.

The number of riders has increased slightly over the last five years, but the cost of operating the service has about doubled to $9.1 million, with the county’s share increasing from $1.3 million in 1992 to the $1.8 million it will need to budget for the coming year.

And fare receipts, while inching up for the past three years, continue to be sluggish, covering less than 42% of the line’s annual operation costs. That is slightly above the 39% national average for mass transit systems.

Transportation officials maintain that expanding the service will not only help boost ridership and revenues but is integral toward building a balanced and useful network of alternate transportation.

Officials at the Ventura County Transportation Commission say recent surveys illustrate that Metrolink use would increase dramatically if it offered commuters more flexibility.

“By no means is this a leap of faith,” said Mary Travis, the commission’s manager of rail operations. “People want and need this service and would use it if it offered them more options on when they could go.”

Bill Davis, who represents Ventura County on Metrolink’s board of directors, agreed.

“The No. 1 issue for people who use or would like to use Metrolink is that they need more service,” he said. “People tell me that if there were a 9:30 a.m. train they’d use it, or if they could catch one in Los Angeles at 7:30 p.m. they’d use it, so there’s little question in my mind that if this happens we’ll see the trains get a lot more crowded.”

However, as many cities have learned, prying people out of their cars is an almost insurmountable task, and it is uncertain whether that would be any different in Ventura County.

According to a recent study by the Southern California Assn. of Governments, commuters have a laundry list of reasons why they prefer their cars to trains and buses.

For most, driving alone remains a cost-effective means of getting to work, and traffic, although bad, isn’t a concern grave enough to prompt them to change driving habits.

“Cars mean freedom, and people think that when they’re asked to take a train or a bus they’re being asked to give up that freedom,” said Jim Moore, a professor of urban planning at the University of Southern California. “It’s a very difficult thing to do.”