OCTA Vows to Boost Bus Ridership

Promising faster delivery of major projects and more bus service to build ridership, the Orange County Transportation Authority on Monday approved a $574-million budget for fiscal 2001-02.

High among the spending priorities are proposals to reverse a drop in ridership, which reduced OCTA’s anticipated revenue this year by an estimated $1.6 million. The remedies include more frequent service on some routes and offering more weekend and evening service.

“A major effort will be made during the next fiscal year to expand and improve our bus service in an attempt to increase ridership--something that appears to have flattened out over the past few years,” said Arthur T. Leahy, OCTA’s chief executive officer.

In April, the authority estimated that bus ridership had fallen about 3 million boardings short of expectations for 2000-01 because of a fare increase and schedule changes that brought complaints of longer rides and more transfers. There are now about 59 million boardings a year on OCTA buses.

Overall, the budget calls for increases in bus service of 9% on fixed routes and 20% for handicapped riders. The authority will continue to revamp its bus fleet by buying 91 vehicles powered by cleaner-burning liquefied natural gas. Last year, OCTA bought 51 natural-gas vehicles.

The county’s transportation agency operates 750 buses and employs 1,700 people, including 1,100 bus drivers and mechanics. It owns the Orange County right of way for Metrolink, the regional commuter rail line.

In addition, OCTA manages the revenue from Measure M, a half-cent sales tax increase passed by Orange County voters in 1990. To date, the tax has raised about $1 billion for a variety of transportation projects, from carpool lanes to major freeway projects.

The new budget represents about a 10% increase over fiscal 2000-01. It calls for improvements to streets and highways, an expansion of the county’s bikeway system and accommodating the projected growth of Metrolink.

Metrolink is expecting a 12.3% increase in daily ridership this year. The rail line provides 19 daily trips on the Orange County line, including some to Los Angeles, and 12 daily trips on the Orange County-Inland Empire route.

For 2001-02, which begins Sunday, OCTA plans to finish the Costa Mesa Freeway expansion and carpool lanes on the Garden Grove Freeway. Design work on the long-awaited widening of the Santa Ana Freeway in north Orange County is expected to begin.

The agency also has earmarked about $84 million in Measure M funds for street improvement projects, a slight increase over this year’s funding.

Mike Ward, chairman of the OCTA board of directors and an Irvine councilman, said the increase in next year’s budget has been made possible by an increase in revenue from Measure M and more state grants.

OCTA officials say the budget reflects a recent staff reorganization designed to improve the agency’s efficiency, maximize the use of resources and increase its accountability to the public.

Leahy’s reorganization includes the creation of the Transportation Systems Development Division, which will explore the potential of a light-rail system for Orange County and ways to speed up work on the Garden Grove Freeway.

The budget is the first for Leahy, who took control of OCTA in November. Shortly after his arrival, Leahy became embroiled in two controversies: the decline in bus ridership and the shelving of the $2.3-billion CenterLine project, a proposed commuter rail line from Irvine to Fullerton.

In March, the OCTA board halted the 30-mile rail network at Leahy’s recommendation. The project lacked support from cities, businesses and residents along its proposed route.

During the budget process, “Leahy was very hands-on,” Ward said. “His big thing was the fight for improving bus ridership by providing better service. He kept reminding us that we are in the bus business.”