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Southern California Rapid Transit District RTD 1r 111111 all H EAlUE)1111141%, All II. 3. Volume 7, Number 5 May 1980 RTD Board approves new fare structure with• 50-cent base charge, no transfers The RTD Board of Directors has pay only 25 cents or present their — Student monthly passes are riders and the taxpaying public," adopted a new fare structure pass between the hours of 9 a.m. now $15 on local lines and only said Board President Thomas G. which, despite lowering the base and 3 p.m., after 6 p.m. and on students in elementary and high Neusom. "lt will eliminate the mas- fare a nickel to 50 cents, incorpo- weekends. schools are eligible (previously sive abuses we now experience rates changes (such as no more — Cash riders on express trips pass was $14 and included college with improper use of transfers and transfers) which will result in will pay the basic 50-cent fare plus students). monthly passes, establish appro- higher fares paid by the majority of a 30-cent additional charge for — Pass riders on express trips priate levels of equity among all District passengers. each four-mile stretch of freeway will pay the basic $30 monthly types of RTD riders, and encour- Meeting in a special session travel involved. Thus, trips will charge plus a $10 additional age these riders who have discre- Saturday, May 12, just two days range in cost from 80 cents to $2. charge for each approximate four- tion about making their trips to ride after a marathon seven-hour pub- Changes for patrons purchasing mile stretch of freeway travel in- at non-crowded off-peak periods." lic hearing at District headquarters monthly passes include: volved (previously was $6 for each General Manager Jack Gilstrap on the proposed fare changes, the — Basic monthly pass, good on "step"). Thus, pass costs will range said it is the District's belief that the board approved the new rates and all local service, $30 (was $20 pre- from $40 to $80 on express lines. new fare aproach will generate the set May 1 as the effective date. viously). In other fare actions, the board funds needed to offset the addi- Changes for cash riders include: — Elderly and handicapped raised the fare of the Downtown tional $31 million RTD will need to — A 50-cent charge each time pass remains at $4, but if these Minibus a nickel to 25 cents, while balance its budget for the fiscal any person boards a regular serv- passholders wish to use the pass the legally blind and children under year ending June 30, 1981. ice bus, no transfers are involved. on local service during peak peri- five years of age with an adult con- Gilstrap cautioned, however, — The 50-cent charge applies to ods (between 6 and 9 a.m. and 3 tinue to ride free of charge. that the present 20 per cent-plus regular riders, students, elderly to 6 p.m. during the week) they will "This new approach will both rate of Inflation would have to fall and handicapped. The elderly and have to pay an additional 25-cent meet the District's financial needs to 12 per cent to achieve this bal- handicapped will be required to charge each boarding. and be fair and equitable to all our anced budget situation. RESPONSE — President of the RTD Board of Directors Thomas Neusom (right) responds to a question from a member of the standing room only crowd that jammed the board room at District headquarters during recent hearings on fares. ENERGY CONTINGENCY PLAN District girds for Jong-lasting energy crisis May, 1979. Long lines began tanks — turned in efforts to get to One year later, gasoline is more bers of the Planning Department forming at gasoline stations in work. Ridership jumped by more readily available (if you are willing staff of Project Coordinator Pat Southern California and eventually than 25 per cent that month, to pay the price), but the nagging Van Matre, have attended numer- stretched clear across the country peaking at more than 1.4 million feeling persists that a crisis could ous conferences and seminars, as our automobile-oriented society boardings from pre-crisis figures of strike again. RTD, which operates outlining the basic tenets of the realized that its long love affair with 1.1 million boardings. the largest all-bus system in the District's plan and telling other the auto was nearing an end. The District's Board of Directors country, has no way of predicting transit agencies what we are doing The situation reached crisis pro- responded to the crisis by approv- when that could happen or to what and what we hope to do in order to portions as commuters discovered ing portions of an Energy Contin- extent a crisis would effect the 10 successfully combat future energy that it was not merely a case of gency Plan, which staff had been million people living in the service emergencies. paying more for gas . gas was developing since March of that area. The essential elements of the just not available. year, which addressed itself to the Is the District better prepared to- plan were: Since RTD provides more than short-term availability of fuel for day to handle an emergency like — to obtain funds needed to es- 90 per cent of public transit trips District vehicles and the long-term the one that occurred last May? tablish and maintain a reserve fleet made in Los Angeles County, the problem of coping with increased RTD's Energy Contingency Plan of buses that could be called up on District was the first place commut- ridership using time-worn equip- was one of the first of its kind in the ers — stranded with empty gas ment and facilities. nation. During the past year, mem- (Please turn to page 10) Page 2 Headway THE GRADUATES Five more members of the RTD Security Department have com- pleted the Basic Police Recruit Academy at Rio Hondo College and were honored along with offi- cers representing 17 area law en- forcement agencies during gradu- ation ceremonies at the college on April 18. Among the 59 officers and six THE FORCE — Members of APTA's Transit Security from RTD and other companies are trained. The pre-service students receiving cer- Committee tour a mock tactical Operation center at committee viewed field training exercises designed tificates of completion were the Rio Hondo College where peace officer candidates to simulate street situations an officer encounters. District's Ranulfo Delgadillo, Gil- best Rascon, Jr., Donald G. San- chies, Floyd D. Shaw and Dennis W. Young. District hosts first West Coast • Students attending the recruit academy complete a 15-week pro- gram which provides 608 hours of instruction covering most major meeting of transit security chiefs areas of law enforcement. The Transit security chiefs and law because the system is designed to Members of RTD's Security De- course is certified by the California enforcement professionals from provide immediate and computer- partment are presently attending Commission of Peace Officer throughout North America gath- ized monitoring of fixed and ran- the 15-week Peace Officer Stan- Standards and Training and its ered in Los Angeles recently to at- dom route vehicles. dards and Training course in a pro- graduates have peace officer sta- tend APTA's quarterly Transit Se- In terms of security and safety to gram designed to give peace offi- tus. curity Committee Meeting, being passengers and employees the APRIL FOOL? cer status to the District's public hosted for the first time by the system offers such advantages as: Anyone who went looking for the safety officers. The committee Southern California Rapid Transit — Dispatchers can quickly de- RTD Lost and Found Department members toured the training facili- District. termine the location of a bus when at its traditional location on April 1 ties and witnessed cadets partici- During the three-day meeting a silent alarm is activated, a factor would not have found a thing .. pating in mock field problems set the nearly 40 transit district police in reducing transit crime. but the department was not lost. up by Field Training Officers. chiefs in attendance discussed — Location information can be Lost and Found, which collects the such topics as the feasibility of on- quickly relayed to security and law "RTD has made a commitment odd assortment of bricabrac left on board cameras to record incidents enforcement personnel. to security one of its top priorities," District buses, has moved its oper- which occur on a bus, the value of — The location of emergency ation from 425 S. Main Street (ad- explained General Manager Jack Ride-Along programs utilizing un- and service vehicles can be moni- Gilstrap in his welcoming address jacent to District headquarters) to dercover officers and a variety of tored, reducing response time. to the group. "Through programs the Wilshire District Customer ways to protect farebox funds. The final portion of the meeting like Automatic Vehicle Monitoring Service Center at 5738 Wilshire "We are extremely pleased to be was a tour of the Basic Police Re- Blvd. District officials cited the and by upgrading our security able to host this first West Coast cruit Academy at Rio Hondo Col- force to peace officer status, we need for more room and a more meeting of the Transit Security lege in Whittier, where cadets from hope to make public transit accessible location as reasons for Committee," said Jim Burgess, Di- more than two dozen state law en- Southern California safer, not on1111/ the switch. rector of Public Safety for the Dis- forcement agencies receive their for our passengers, but for our op- CO-OP RATES trict.

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