MTA Should Offer Riders a ‘Magic Carpet’

Re “MTA Weighs ‘Hub and Spoke’ Routes,” July 17: The Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s proposal for a “hub and spoke” system is wrong-headed and dumb. Airlines favor “hub and spoke” because of the savings, which come at the expense of travelers’ time and convenience. This same approach would certainly make MTA’s job easier and perhaps cheaper but would significantly degrade the travel experience for users of our public transportation system.

Hub and spoke ensures that more travelers will need to plan their routes, take three buses (one to the closest hub, one to another hub, one to the destination) and spend extra time in transit. Fully half the travelers (statistically) will have to travel extra miles, many of them away from their destinations, because their trips start from the wrong side of their local hubs.

A far better approach for L.A. bus riders would be a “magic carpet” system, in which buses travel at frequent intervals along all the major streets and transfers are nearly free. Under this system, you can get anywhere simply by walking to the nearest big street and getting on the next bus going in your direction, then possibly transferring to another bus, before walking the last few steps. No planning. No wasted time or travel.

Robert Moskowitz

Woodland Hills