-
Division 2's Alex Ward carefully avoiding spills
Twenty-six point six percent!
•
RTD IS GOING PLACES HERB:s\14.
103
Southern California Rapid Transit District Volume 1 Number 4
February 19, 1974
Dime fare draws happy Sunday patronsRiders find
standing-room-only on manylines as popularity of 100 service
grows
•
RTD operators are still carryingbus loads of very happy 10-cent
pas-sengers every Sunday, thanks to theLos Angeles and Orange
CountyBoard of Supervisors.
The Southern California ridingpublic is celebrating the
Super-visors' newly-kindled interest in pub-lic transportation on a
day whenmost of the area's service stationsare closed. As a result
of the successof RTD's Sunday Sample Day Jan.20, the Supervisors of
both countiessubsequently voted to grant the Dis-trict subsidies up
to $25,000 perweek from Los Angeles County andup to $1,100 from
Orange County tomake up for the reduction in fareboxrevenue as a
result of the lower fare.
Reaffirming Los Angeles County'spledge to help fund the
10-centSunday service, Kenneth Hahn,chairman of the Board of
Super-visors, made a personal appeal forthe continuation of the
program be-
fore a special meeting of RTD'sBoard of Directors Jan. 25. "This
is abreakthrough for public transporta-tion in Los Angeles County,"
Hahnsaid. "I like this new spirit to improveour public
transportation throughthe joint efforts of both the Board
ofSupervisors and the Rapid TransitDistrict."
The Supervisors appropriated$575,000 from County RevenueSharing
funds to subsidize the Sun-day program. The increases in Sun-day
ridership anticipated by RTD'sstaff as a result of the dramatic
farereduction will probably require theoperation of 200 additional
buses toprovide adequate service. Accord-ing to staff estimates,
the Districtwould require another $25,000 per
week to field the buses. Hahn re-commended that RTD come back
tothe Supervisors when the popularityof the 10-cent Sunday service
isfurther documented, and seek addi-tional funding.
Hahn went a step further in hissupport for public transit when
hementioned other desirable bus im-provements. "My aim is to see
thatwe greatly improve our grid systemthroughout the County and
elimi-nate all these fare zones," he said."I'd also like to see a
flat 25- or30-cent rate throughout LosAngeles, or the
implementation of atwo-zone rafe system. We shouldwork on
generating local fundingfrom the County, the City of LosAngeles,
and other cities and coun-
ties served by RTD. They all havesimilar Revenue Sharing
fundingavailable for improving bus service."
Orange County Supervisors votedtheir portion of the 10-cent
subsidyFeb. 5. San Bernardino and River-side Counties have also
been invitedto subsidize the program.
The resounding success of RTD'soriginal Sunday Sample Day Jan.
20has brought the program to the at-tention of the entire
SouthernCalifornia community. Ridership onthe 20th rose 82 percent
over thenormal Sunday passenger volume,from approximately 126,500
toabout 229,600. Typical Sunday re-venue amounts to
approximately$44,000 and the revenue receipts forSunday Sample Day
came to$19,962, creating a deficit of$24,038. Since the first
SundaySample Day, Sunday ridership hasalmost tripled.
The first meter readings have beentaken, and the results of
theDistrict's initial energy conservationefforts have been
tabulated. Butwould you believe a 26.6 percent re-duction in RTD's
electricity use?
"That's right," said Jack Walsh,the energy conservation
program'scoordinator, "twenty-six point six."
Since the program began, RTD's34 area monitors have led the
wayfor the rest of the employes, and thedramatic results indicate
how wide-spread employe participation hasbeen.
Now, in addition to electricity-w.....n I I r.tn es rn n I .-1.•
I est, aw
also been advised on ways to con-serve the District's precious
dieselfuel allocation.
Walsh described the energy re-duction with obvious pride in
theemployes' accomplishment, buthastened to add that the
programinvolves long-term conservation ac-tion as well. "Our
program is gearedfor more than quick, cosmetic re-sults," he said.
"We have set resol-ute, long-range goals because wefeel the energy
crunch will be with usfor a long time. There is nothingsuperficial
about our efforts. We'reserious about conservation," heconcluded,
"and the entire propertyis i initari in thic ciffnrt "
Plans for immediatebus improvementsgo to L.A. County
The Los Angeles County Board ofSupervisors, whose action
enabledthe continuation of 10-cent Sundayfares throughout the
county, may beinstrumental in RTD's implementa-tion of a dramatic
series of busimprovements affecting the entireLos Angeles
Basin.
RTD has put together an extensiveplan to expand and speed up its
ser-vice to the area, including a provi-sion for a District-wide
30-cent flatfare. If approved by the Supervisors,the fare plan
could be implementedliterally within days of their okay.
The flat fare proposal includes theestablishment of complete
transferprivileges between all District lines,and will permit
inter-agency trans-fers between RTD and lines oper-ated by the
municipal carriers withinthe District's service area.
Transferswould cost five cents.
After their preliminary look at azone reduction plan Jan. 17,
theBoard of Supervisors suggested thatthe District submit further
proposalsto improve bus service including theflat fare program, for
funding con-sideration. Consequently, RTD staffmembers prepared a
"shopping list"for the Supervisors, and as HowardBeardsley,
assistant manager of sur-face planning and rapid transit,happily
put it, "they can buy all theservice improvements they want forthe
people."
The additional proposals will bepresented to the Supervisors
withinthe next few weeks. They includeplans to implement commuter
railservice between Los Angeles andSan Diego along existing rights
of
(continued on page three)
• L.A.'s city councilapproves Spring St.contra-flow lane
The establishment of a buses-onlycontra-flow lane in downtown
LosAngeles was hailed bu RTD Managerof Operations George Heinle as
a"giant step forward in making publictransportation more
attractive."
The Los Angeles City Councilvoted Feb. 5 to establish the
experi-mental buses-only lane of SpringStreet between 9th Street on
thesouth and Macy Street on the north.Buses will run against the
flow oftraffic (Spring is one-way south-bound at present) on the
east side ofthe street in a specially marked laneon the 12-block
stretch. Implemen-tation is scheduled for early April.
• "Drivers of autos won't have prob-lems because of the
contra-flow op-eration," Heinle said. "They will stillbe able to
make turns at corners ac-ross the special lane, or enter park-ing
facilities by crossing it. It will bevirtually the same as a normal
two-way street, except only one lane willgo in the opposite
direction, and it isreserved for buses."
The contra-flow concept hasproven highly successful in
suchcities as Honolulu, Indianapolis,Chicago and San Juan, Puerto
Rico.
"The Spring Street program willnot only speed buses on their way
tothe El Monte Busway, but manyother commuter lines will use it
aswell," he said.
RTD lines that will use the SpringStreet contra-flow route are
the 24,52, 56, 60, 63, 67/68, 69, 70/71, 401,402, 403, 404 and
405.
Sam Olivito, of Government Af-fairs, said the Spring Street
contra-flow plan has the added advantageof moving major bus stops
off Main
-
UMTA grant provides two Neoplan buses for RTD.
page two
Double deck coaches headed for BuswayIf you think double deck
buses
went out with high button shoes andthe Model A, the District has
a sur-prise for you.
RTD is acquiring two newGerman-made double deck busesfor Los
Angeles. The sleek,79-passenger Neoplan coaches willbe purchased
with a grant from theUrban Mass Transportation Ad-ministration, an
arm of the U.S. De-partment of Transportation.
According to former Manager ofOperations George Goehler, who
iscoordinating the double deck pro-ject for UMTA as an officer of
theNational Transportation Center, thebuses are expected to be
deliveredlate this year, or early in 1975. "TheNeoplan buses will
be operated ini-tially on the El Monte-Los AngelesExpress Busway,"
Goehler said,"and demonstrated on other com-muter runs, such as the
District'sFreeway Flyer lines."
The double deck project was de-veloped in the belief that high
capac-ity buses are essential in the LosAngeles area due to the
already highvolume of traffic. "This project isparticularly
significant during theenergy crisis," Goehler added,"since these
buses deliver more
than 350 passenger seat miles pergallon of fuel. An average
carpool ofthree passengers gets about 45 seatmiles per gallon."
Goehler said theonly other public transportation veh-icle in the
country delivering asmany seat miles is a commuter trainon the Long
Island Railroad.
The Neoplan buses are equippedwith the latest American
engineer-ing components, such as the engine,transmission, and air
conditioningsystem, yet feature stylish Europeandesign. Each coach
is nearly 40 feetlong, the same length as the stan-dard transit bus
in service across thecountry.
RTD and the New York City TransitAuthority are jointly to
receive a $1million grant from UMTA to demon-strate the feasability
of using doubledeck buses in the United States.NYCTA will receive
four similarBritish Leyland coaches from Eng-land.
Considering the increased publicawareness of mass transit in
LosAngeles, Goehler said passengerswill find these buses to be one
oftoday's most efficient and comfort-able vehicles in public
transporta-tion.
The National TransportationCenter is a non-profit agency basedin
Pittsburg, Penn. Together withGeorge Heinle, manager of opera-
District employes will soon bewhistling to the tune of RTD's
ownadvertising theme music as the firstwave of a new campaign
reaches thepublic this month. Employing thetheme "RTD is Going
Places," theDistrict is embarking on a dynamicmulti-media
advertising programdesigned to inform present and po-tential
patrons of the District's ser-
vices, and to sustain the recent im-provement in RTD's public
image.
"The initial wave of radio spotsbegan February 11," said
Advertis-ing Manager Nancy Klein. "Thetheme music in the
commercials isupbeat, and provides pleasant lis-tening — just the
opposite to thosetension-building freeway traffic re-ports. We try
to place our ads nearthose freeway reports."
Klein said the commercials set thetone for RTD's latest effort
to displaya positive image of the District andits services. "There
is one basicradio ad, with a 15 to 25 secondspoken insert which
will address dif-ferent aspects of our service," shesaid. "We feel
this versatile ap-proach will best reach the potentialusers of RTD
— they are all out thereon the road, listening to their radiowhile
they are stuck in traffic."
The radio campaign will continuethrough the end of the
District's1973-74 fiscal year, and will "mostlikely continue beyond
that," Kleinsaid.
Beginning in mid-February, the"Going Places" theme will be
rein-forced in a series of large space ads
• I III •
tions, and officials of NYCTA,Goehler has worked for two
yearstoward acquiring the new buses foruse in the United
States.
ropolitan and suburban daily news-papers in the area. The print
ads areaimed at both users of RTD servicesas well as non-users.
They will de-scribe various commuter services inseveral
informational ads which willquickly capture the readers'
atten-tion. For example, one ad's headlinereads: "Introducing the
World'sLargest Economy Car."
Klein also noted that all the ads inthe campaign are designed to
tellRTD's story in a very straightforwardmanner. "As in our series
of EnergyCrisis ads, we made a point to exp-lain what the District
can and can'tdo. This approach will helpstrengthen our credibility
and ourimage, throughout the Los AngelesBasin."
The Energy Crisis ads were notpart of this newly-created
campaign,she added, but were rather a ven-ture designed to take
advan-tage of the readership afforded bythe unique energy
situation. As a re-sult, the Energy Crisis ads containedmuch more
copy than the print adswill feature in the new campaign.
The feasibility of utilizing televi-sion spot ads as part of the
current
campaign is now being explored forpossible placement late in the
fiscalyear. "We are also planning to breaka series of specially
developed Bus-way ads, based on the theme alreadysounded in the
Busway billboards,for placement later in the year," shesaid. "We
have a great story to tellabout the Busway, You really can
r— • I I - -7A
Promotion greets Operator of MonthDivision 5 operator
Charlie
Daniels receives "Operator of theMonth" honors from
DirectorGeorge Takei during presentationceremonies at the Jan. 15
meetingof the RTD Board. According toDivision Manager J. J.
McCul-lough, Daniels was greeted with apromotion to Operator/Extra
In-structor on the same day as the
presentation. A resident of LosAngeles, Daniels was selected
onthe basis of commendations fromhis passengers. A 14-year em-ploye
of the District, Daniels haslogged an outstanding driving re-cord
and has earned a 10-yearsafe driving award. Daniels oper-ates on
the South Normandie Av-enue Line 96.
Radio spots have employeshumming to campaign theme
-
System shake-up underwayBidding for the General System
Shake-Up began Saturday, Feb.16 at Division 3, located at 630
W.Avenue 28, Los Angeles, and willcontinue daily except
Saturday,Feb. 23, and Sunday, Feb. 24, untilthe completion of
bidding. TheShake-Up will become effectiveSunday, April 7.
Division Notices indicate theday and time of bidding for all
operators. System seniority listsand system schedules have
beenposted at all operating divisions.
A series of Transportation De-partment Notices have been is-sued
within the past few weeksexplaining schedule changeswhich will be
effective with theShake-Up, together with biddinginstructions.
page three
HE 58
I tarn. J I 1 1.111C I LinRTH BERTH BERTH
Litit. LINE 1NEBERTH BERTH BERTH
I 53ABERTH BERTH
LINE 60 LINE 60•E LINE 60 G LINE60•F LINE 120 36fLINE 58 . 5►
LINE 585 MAW§ LINE 178 NMBERTH BERTH BERTH BERTH
MEI
Contra-flow (continued from page one)Street and over to Spring
as re-quested by many of the District'spresent riders.
The experiment will be studied todetermine its effectiveness and
po-tential applicability as a means ofproviding early
implementation ofexpedited bus service as a responseto the current
energy crisis.
"If it proves successful, the RTDhas plans to expand the concept
forother downtown surface streets,"Olivito said.
LINE 36 is among those enjoying tremendous popularity as a
result of thenew 10-cent Sunday fare. Since the first Sunday Sample
Day Jan. 20,ridership on Sundays has nearly tripled. Hard working
Transportationsupervisors are shown on the left, and a busy Line 57
operator on the right.
Conservation kilowatt countThrough the hard work of the
District's energy conservation Area
Monitors and the cooperation of all employees, RTD is setting
the pace forLos Angeles' industry in energy reduction. Here are
RTD's first figures. Morecomplete figures will follow. "You're
doing it!"
Locations
BillingPeriod
MonitoredBase
Consumpt.Actual
Use % Reduct.Transit Bldg. 27 Days 110,403 KWH 71,940 KWH
34.8%Div. 1-11 6 Days 16,184 KWH 11,600 KWH 28.3%Div. 2 31 Days
102,400 KWH 78,000 KWH 23.8%Div. 4-5 20 Days 56,500 KWH 44,000 KWH
21.1%Div. 3 20 Days 45,840 KWH 37,025 KWH 19.2%Div. 6 6 Days 5,628
KWH 3,160 KWH 43.8%Div. 8 13 Days 10,413 KWH 9,000 KWH 13.5%So.
Park (14) 6 Days 19,200 KWH 14,000 KWH 27.0%
Totals: 366,568 KWH 268,725 KWH 26.6%
Bus improvement(continued from page one)way, the purchase of
more buses,and the funding of RTD's fiscal yeardeficit. Another
proposal calls forthe renovation of 50 retired Districtbuses which
would establish threenew local lines, four park-ride ser-vices, and
route extensions and ser-vice improvements on four existinglines.
Although the buses are ap-proximately 20 years old, Beardsleynoted
that they could be refurbishedand placed into service on an
interimbasis within a relatively short time.
Making headway. ..❑ Operator Johnny M. McKinneyof Division 7 and
his lovely wifeReniece are doing their share tobeautify Los
Angeles. Miss KelleyTamiko McKinney was born onNov. 8 at Queen of
Angels Hospi-tal, and weighed in at 5 lb., 5 oz.This is the
McKinneys' first baby,so the fuss Johnny's making isjustified.
❑ Engineering's John Anaya andLarry Hoccom are among the
47graduates of a training course forpublic works construction
in-spectors recently conducted atCal State • Los Angeles.
The36-hour course was sponsored bythe American Public Works
As-sociation and conducted byCSLA's school of engineering.Anaya and
Hoccom studied suchsubjects as inspection duties andrecords, legal
jurisdiction, soilsand subgrades, asphalt and con-crete paving and
construction,
APWA spokesmen, instructorsincluded specialists from
gov-ernmental agencies, publicutilities, industrial firms active
inpublic works and professors fromCal State L.A. The
12,000-memberAPWA is an international organi-zation of municipal,
county andstate engineers, public utility offi-cials, contractors,
and manufac-turers interested in public worksof all
descriptions.
❑ Operator Conway Strauss, Divi-sion 4, was among several
RTDemployes interviewed by thepress during the District's
firstSunday Sample Day, Jan. 20.Strauss was questioned by LeeBranch
of KTTV, Channel 11, whoasked about his passengers' re-sponse to
the experiment. "Well, Ihave had a lot of people today thatdon't
ride the bus regularly," hesaid. "I've also had many peoplewho
didn't know about the
10-cent fare and would have putin the regular fare in if I
hadn'tstopped them. But a lot of peopledo know about it and they're
veryhappy about it. They wish that itwould be in effect everyday.
Ithink this will probably get peopleout of their cars if it were a
regularthing."
❑ Joseph H. (Jack) Robinson, a34-year veteran of
SouthernCalifornia public transportation,died Jan. 16 in Los
Angeles at age69. He is survived by seven of hisnine children,
including sonDavid Robinson, a Districtoperator at Division 2,
currentlythe temporary administrator ofthe United
TransportationUnion-RTD Health and InsuranceBenefits Trust Fund;
son JamesRobinson, Division 5 operatorfrom 1968-71; and
daughterKatherine (Ann) RobinsonRhodes, who worked in the
Ac-counting Department in 1953-54.
A former foreman in TrackMaintenance, Robinson beganhis career
with the Los AngelesRailroad in 1931. Since then heworked for the
Los Angeles Rail-way, the Los Angeles TransitLines, the Los Angeles
Metropoli-tan Transit Authority, and finallythe RTD before leaving
the Dis-trict in 1965.
❑ Residents of Ontario and Up-land are now able to take
advan-tage of a new 10-cent fare on RTDLine 146.
The fare experiment, whichbegan Feb. 4, is subsidized by
thecities of Upland and Ontario as aneffort to attract more riders
to theline. Passengers may ride any dis-tance on the line for only
a dime;no transfers are issued.
Line 146 runs between SanBernardino Road in Upland andFrancis
Street in Ontario. The newfare offers riders a two-thirds
dis-count.
-
page four
72 pagesof transitnostalgia
Remember the singing trol-ley pole, the sound of steelwheels on
steel rails, the humof the electric motors, and theknock-knock of
the air com-pressor?
Steven L. Easlon has com-piled a history of Los
Angeles'streetcar system "guaran-teed" to take you back to thatera.
For more informationabout The Los Angeles Rail-way Through the
Years writeEaslon Publications, P.O. Box2261, Anaheim, Ca.,
92804.
Transfers and promotionsDiv./ Date Date Div./ Date Date
Name Classification Dept. Employed Effective Name Classification
Dept. Employed EffectiveBusse, Fredrick H. From: Asst. Chief
Supervisor
and Dispatcher3299 10-19-36 12-23-73 Leibowitz, Jonah From:
Temp. Multilith
Operator9700 4-22-57 8-13-73
To: Chief Supervisor 3299 To: Print Shop Clerk 9700and
Dispatcher Leibowitz, Jonah From: Print Shop Clerk 9700 4-22-57
11-16-73
Lawson, Clifton B. From: Foreman II Relief Supt. I 3399 1- 9-42
11- 4-73 To: Multilith Operator 9700To: Equipment Supt. I 3306
Rodriguez, Raul F. From: Mechanic "A" Leadman 3313 8- 1-58 11-
4-73
Rose, Vernon Robert From: Foreman II 3305 3- 3-42 11- 4-73 To:
Equip. Foreman I 3308To: Foreman II Relief 3399 Gutierrez, Roberto
Arroyo From: Cabinet Maker 3334 10-15-58 11- 4-73
Equip. Supt. I - To: Maintainer "AA" Leadman 3334Anderson, Edwin
M. From: Staff Instructor 3299 8-15-42 9-16-73 Holland, Robert A.
From: Supervisor of Trans. 3270 10-17-58 10-14-73
To: Asst. Chief Instructor 3299 StatisticsGrayson, Don C. From:
Operator 3204 9-28-43 8-26-73 To: Assistant Supervisor 3270
To: Operator-Extra 3204 of SchedulesDivision Clerk Chapman,
Rayford C. From: Asst. Supervisor 3270 10-20-58 9- 2-73
Stevenson, Charles Homor From: Mechanic "A" Leadman 3309 8-13-44
12-16-73 of SchedulesTo: Mechanic "A" 3309 To: Superintendent of
4200
Hartman, Ludwig Adam From: Mechanic "A" 3314 4-19-45 12-16-73
Surface PlanningTo: Cabinet Maker 3334 Lyle, Joseph A. From:
Transportation 4200 12-15-58 8-16-73
Cygan, Stanley J. From: Mechanic "A" 3314 5-17-45 8-26-73
Planning AnalystTo: Mechanic "AA" 3314 To: Transportation 4200
Patton, Otha R. From: Mechanic "AA" 3314 8-22-45 9- 1-73
Planning Analyst IITo: Mechanical Road Instructor 3399 Lowe, Wayne
D. From: Operator 3208 4-20-59 8-28-73
Banuelos, Elario M. From: Mechanic "A" 3309 10-19-45 12-23-73
To: Operator-Extra 3208To: Mechanic "A" Leadman 3309 Instructor
Farris, Ray From: Equip. Foreman I 3308 7-29-46 11- 4-73
Bernard, James E. From: Operator-Extra 3205 11- 2-59 11-25-73To:
Equip. Foreman II 3308 Instructor
Weimer, William C. From: Advertising Manager 4400 9-24-46 10-
3-73 To: Instructor 3299To: Operations Special 3099 Grayson, Emmit
Earl From: Mechanic "C" 3307 3-22-60 9- 9-73
Projects Manager To: Mechanic "B" 3307Headlund, Ellen Duncan
From: Typist Clerk 3399 3-10-47 12- 2-73 Koenig, Fred William From:
Utility "A" 3309 3-24-60 8-12-73
To: General Clerk II 3399 To: Traffic Man 3221Anderson, John R.
From: Operator 3211 6-24-47 8-27-73 Hardemion, Gene Franklin From:
Mechanic "B" 3307 4-12-60 8-12-73
To: Operator-Extra 3211 To: Mechanic "A" 3307Division Clerk
Taylor, Ernest W. From: Operator 3204 6- 6-60 11- 8,73
Vest, Gertrude N. From: Asst. Pass. Service 4200 8- 4-47
11-11-73 To: Operator-Extra 3204Representative Supervisor
To: Passenger Service 4200 Oliver, Robert E. From:
Operator-Extra 3201 7-11-60 8-26-73Representative To: Instructor
3299
Hicks, William Orbin From: Operator 3203 11-21-50 12-30-73
Dahlstrom, F.E. From: Asst. Advt. Manager 4400 10- 1-60 10-30-73To:
Traffic Loader 3221 To: Comm. Rel. Coordinator 4400
Gay, Joseph L. From: Schedule Maker II 3270 9-17-53 12-30-73
Allen, Marlene Gail From: Workmen's 6000 5- 8-61 8-23-73To:
Supervisor of Trans. 3270 Compensation Claims
Statistics RecorderPackard, William L. From: Asst. Chief
Instructor 3299 1-13-54 8-12-73 To: Insurance 6000
To: Chief Instructor 3299 RepresentativeMcGee, William M. From:
Instructor 3299 4-23-55 10-14-73 Jobgen, Bryan T. From: Schedule
Analyst I 3270 6-28-61 9- 2-73
To: Staff Instructor 3299 To: Schedule Maker II 3270Altig,
Lorain T. From: Instructor 3299 9-20-55 8-12-73 Lewis, Robert H.
From: Operator 3205 8-12-61 9- 9-73
To: Tariff Supervisor 3299 To: Operator-Extra 3205Johnson,
Carlton O. From: Mechanic "AA" Leadman 3334 1- 9-57 11- 4-73
Schedule Checker
To: Foreman II 3334 Lewis, Robert H. From: Operator Extra 3205
8-12-61 12- 9-73Palma, Joe A. From: Mechanic "AA" 3303 4- 9-57 12-
3-73 Schedule Checker
To: Equipment Foreman I 3303 To: Schedule Checker 3299
Southern California Rapid Transit District1060 South Broadway,
Los Angeles 90015 U.S. POSTAGE
paidFIRST CLASS
Los Angeles, Calif.Permit No. 28201
-HERDOWAISIVolume 1 Number 4
Published by and for the employesof the Southern California
RapidTransit District. Send stories,photos, or just the facts to
PatrickBarry, Editor, Public InformationDepartment, 1060 S.
Broadway,Los Angeles, California 90015.
Page 1Page 2Page 3Page 4
