6,700 Bus Benches Being Replaced

Although the waits may be long and the weather hot, bus riders can at least look forward to more comfortable benches, officials said Wednesday.

New plastic benches will replace the city’s 6,700 wood and concrete ones, said Tonya Durrell, a spokeswoman for the city’s Department of Public Works. Since February, workers have been installing the new benches.

Fifty percent of the material in the new benches is recyclable, officials said. The composition will ensure that their materials can be used again after they wear out, preventing them from ending up in landfills, Durrell said. The new ones also have higher backs for more comfort.

“We are satisfied these are a more comfortable, environmentally friendly type of bus bench,” said Durrell, adding that new ones are also easier to clean, maintain and repair.

The replacements come after Board of Public Works commissioners requested that bus benches be made of recyclable materials, Durrell said. The benches are being replaced as part of a 10-year agreement between the city and Canoga Park-based Norman’s Bench Advertising.

The work is being done at no cost to the city, which will annually receive as much as 38% of ad revenues that Norman’s Bench receives throughout Los Angeles, Durrell said.

As part of a separate agreement, about 400 additional bus shelters are also being installed around the city, officials said. Unlike the benches, the shelters have roofs and some include pay phones, Durrell said.

The shelters, most of them newly designed models, are also being installed without charge to the city. Costs will be covered by L.A.-based Infiniti Outdoor Southern California, which is responsible for installing the new shelters and retrofitting the 1,000 existing ones.