Public Transit Policy, Analysis, Advocacy and Education
Newsletter of the Southern California Transit Advocates
Vol 9, No. 12, December 2001

Disclaimer: The Southern California Transit Advocates is not affiliated with any governmental agency or transportation provider. Names and logos of agencies appear for information and reference purposes only. 

Our first bus was line 33, a Neoplan (#6519) at 8:55 p.m. We were the only passengers along with member Ken Ruben who by coincidence caught the same bus to go home. 3 boarded at Alameda and 5 at Spring (all ride counts in this report EXCLUDE SO.CA.TA members). We deboarded at Spring/Temple at 9:04 p.m. and bid farewell to Mr. Ruben.

As we waited for the next bus participants separated into small groupings to converse. At 9:14 p.m. we caught line 92, another Neoplan (#4544). As we made our way thru Silverlake and Echo Park we had a few boardings and deboardings. Upon hitting Auto Row (Brand Bl.) in Glendale things picked up, with 4 riders boarding at Chevy Chase and 3 more at Colorado. We deboarded at Brand and Broadway and just missed the line 180 bus we were hoping to catch.

Quickly schedules were pulled and contingencies considered as we sought options due to missing our connection. Meanwhile we noted how lively Brand Blvd. has become - people strolling, shops open late, an urban dynamism reminiscent of Old Town Pasadena. Also noticed was the uncomfortable metal wire seating for bus patrons - YOWCH! The bus braintrust decided to abandon riding line 156 from Hollywood and downtown, instead waiting for the line 181 to connect with the Red Line to get back on schedule. One problem with this plan is member Woody Rosner had arranged to join us mid-tour. Thankfully Charles Hobbs had brought along a cell phone and kindly let Dana Gabbard borrow it to call Rosner and give him instructions on how to catch up with the group at Gateway Plaza.

At 10:18 p.m. we caught line 181, yet another Neoplan (#6799) with 30 passengers. We made our way thru Glendale and the Los Feliz district, eventually having a few standees. We arrived at Hollywood Blvd. and Western at 10:40 p.m. The transfer was timed perfectly as a downtown-bound train appeared just after we reached the platform at 10:45 p.m. We boarded car #595, which had nearly a seated load. Once we hit Wilshire/Vermont the train began to empty out and by 7th/Metro it was nearly empty. We arrived at Union Station just after 11 p.m.

With about 20 minutes at our disposal before the next bus members made use of the restroom, scanned the schedule rack or just hung out. Dana went up to the Plaza and enjoyed the eerie quiet watching the wind gently sway the palms with the downtown skyline as a backdrop. Barely noticeable was the muted rumble of the nearby freeway.

Woody Rosner, following directions, arrived to join the tour. Also Phil Capo linked up with our group. Phil had tried to join us earlier but was stymied by bus detours around street closures in Silverlake for the Sunset Junction community fair. At one point Phil barely missed catching our line 92 bus as it passed under Sunset.

Due to Plaza construction the usual stop for the bus we wanted to catch was closed. And despite our standing at stop 6, its designated temporary stop, the bus nearly passed us. But a bit of hand waving persuaded the operator to stop (also Armando had a copy of the official notice about the temporary stop change which he showed the operator when we boarded). This was line 439 and (surprise) it was a Neoplan (#6581). We departed Gateway at 11:25 p.m. as the sole passengers (and would nearly remain so during our entire time on this bus). Near Staples Center there was heavy traffic (due to the WNBA finals). After that the trip was fairly high speed. At about 12:25 a.m. we arrived at LAX City Bus Center (Lot C).

A one hour break was scheduled for this location. We made our way to the Lot C shuttle bus station, and partook of the vending machines: coffee, snack foods, soda, sandwiches, candy plus a very cold water fountain. Dana dispensed snack sized candies he brought with him and soon most were engaged in animated conversation with fellow tour participants.

Around 1:15 a.m. we made our way back to the Bus Center since our next bus was scheduled to arrive soon. The bus didn't arrive until 1:32 a.m. but the operator driver hopped off, closed the door of the bus and hot footed for the bus station. Finally at 1:42 a.m. we attempted to depart--except that the back door interlock wouldn't disengage, which meant that the bus couldn't move. To our rescue came Charles Powell who used his knowledge as an MTA service attendant to fix it (to a round of applause from grateful passengers). Route 40 (a Neoplan #6579) departed with 9 passengers. As we traveled along we began picking up people until the bus was full with some standees.

Again we needed to modify our itinerary. Phil Capo suggested we ride the 207 and 30 to have our arrival downtown coincide with the 3 a.m. lineup. So we deboarded at Western and Martin Luther King Blvd. After about a 10 minute wait at 2:23 a.m. the line 207 bus (a Neoplan #6311) showed up. There were 17 passengers and a few more boarded before we got off at Western/Pico. This was a desolate locale except for a service station (open but closed up tight - you paid through a window). At 2:48 a.m. line 30 arrived. It was our first NABI low-floor of the trip (#7417) with only one passenger. No one else got on as we made our way to downtown.

After witnessing the bus lineup along Broadway and 7th, we boarded line 51. Our plan was to ride the 51/53 owl loop along Avalon and Central. The bus was a 1992 TMC RTS #1242 (former methanol/ ethanol). There were very few boardings during either segment of the loop. Also we saw few activity centers served by the bus. The surroundings were a blur, the atmosphere muted, and several of the tour participants nodded off briefly.

The last bus of the night was line 60 (downtown Los Angeles to downtown Long Beach). By the time we boarded it along 7th Street at 4:10 a.m,. it already had 15 passengers. The bus was a 1996 Neoplan #4720. The ambiance was much livelier than the prior bus, and before long the female driver was conversing with Dana and Phil about the owl trip and her experiences driving the 60 in owl hours. She told them a riot of 200 people the previous Saturday in the nightclub district of Huntington Park filled the street and forced her to gingerly have the bus make its way through the melee.

We arrived at the Long Beach Transit Mall at about 5:30 a.m. Five minutes later we boarded a Blue Line car (#128A) for the trip back to downtown L.A. Armando and Andy got off at Willow Station to have breakfast. Most of us continued to downtown L.A. and had breakfast at the Pantry.

This trip demonstrated the perils of bus connections and the value of being able to improvise. Our thanks to everyone who participated.

[This trip report drew upon Charles Hobbs' narrative, available at http://www.lerctr.org/~transit/owl2001.html.]