Public Transit Policy, Analysis, Advocacy and Education
Newsletter of the Southern California Transit Advocates
Vol 9, No. 5, May 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.
| Ventura County Excursion of 11/24/00 Dana Gabbard |
For our 2000 Day After Thanksgiving trip our members decided for the first time to visit an area we had previously visited. In 1995 for our first post-Thanksgiving trip we had visited Ventura County and ridden VISTA, Thousand Oaks, SCAT and Simi Valley bus routes. This year we decided to check out the new Conejo Connection service, ride some more VISTA and SCAT routes plus try out the Ojai Trolley. Member Kymberleigh Richards, a former resident of Ventura County, kindly consented to plan the trip. Please note all ride counts for this report INCLUDE our members.
And so it was at 5:34 a.m. on Nov. 23, 2000 I caught MTA route 20 (CNG Neoplan #6553) at Wilshire and Park View eastbound for a short trip to the nearby MacArthur Park station, and from there took the Red Line to Union Station. Depending on where you were coming from members could join the trip on the Red Line train to North Hollywood departing Union Station at 6:06 a.m. I arrived at Union Station about 5:45 a.m. and soon met members Russ Jones and Charles Powell on the platform. We boarded Breda car #545 which departed on time at 6:06 a.m. At each station I poked my head out the door to make sure members waiting to join us knew which train car we were on. And two did join us en-route: Armando Avalos (Civic Center), and Mark Strickert (7th/Metro). By now a critical mass of bus fans had assembled and soon we were all looking over some of the remarkable bus photos Russ had brought.
We arrived at Universal City station at 6:30 a.m. and made our way to the nearby bus plaza. Here two more members were waiting to rendezvous with us for the trip: Woody Rosner and Frank Schroder. At 6:41 a.m. we boarded MTA metro rapid line 750 westbound (CNG NABI #7010). With only 11 passengers ridership seemed light. The bus never became overly active. The heaviest activity was 4 boarding at Reseda and 6 deboarding at Topanga.
We arrived at the layover zone of Oxnard/ Owensmouth at 7:20 a.m. and met up with members Charles Hobbs and Kymberleigh Richards. There was some concern because there was no sign indicating the Conejo Connection (or any VISTA bus) served this location. But the schedule had a detailed map for the stops in the Warner Center area and this was clearly the location indicated. Plus around the corner a Antelope MCI charter bus (#6955) was parked, which we suspected was the bus that we would be taking running ahead of schedule and waiting to make the time point at its final stop before beginning its express segment. And indeed at 7:30 a.m. the Antelope bus pulled around the corner, opened its door and the driver confirmed it was the Conejo Connection.
We climbed aboard and paid the $2 fare. There were no other passengers. We had the bus and its driver all to ourselves! And what a bus - this was travel at its most plush: reading lights, heat, cushioned seats that leaned back, a luggage rack and a bathroom in the back. Just the sort of charter buses I sight all the time plying up and down Wilshire Boulevard full of gawking tourists. Except this time it was SO.CA.TA members who were the ones enjoying the passing view while in the lap of luxury. On our trip north we passed the MTA route 161 layover at Westlake/Townsgate and caught sight of our first VISTA bus stop information cube (much like those of Culver CityBus).
We arrived at the end of the line, the Esplanade Mall, at 8:31 a.m. Only there was no mall there, just a pile of rubble where it had stood (a new upscale replacement is planned as the latest salvo in the Oxnard/Ventura mall/sales taxes war described by William Fulton in "The Reluctant Metropolis"). At this location we found cubes for VISTA and SCAT.
Our next bus, SCAT route 6B, arrived at 8:36 a.m. with a load of 40 passengers. The bus was a Flxible #3506. We arrived at the Pacific View Mall bus stop at 9:10 a.m. This was a rather simple affair - a length of sidewalk with multiple stops, some benches and a kiosk with information on buses serving it (Kymberleigh later informed me while the route 12 schedule it displayed was correct the map was outdated). During the 20 minute wait for the next bus a nearby Sears Auto Repair Center provided some of us with the opportunity to get snacks or use the restroom.
At 9:30 a.m. our route 16 bus arrived, a Flxible #4000. We departed with a light load of 10 passengers (9 SO.CA.TA members and one civilian). We traveled along a stretch of Main Street which I would term commercial/residential. Then we entered the historic downtown of Ventura. A detour due to a community festival resulted in our going off route for 2 blocks. We also caught sight of Mission St. Buenaventura. Then we entered the Ventura Avenue district, the oldest part of the city. What began as a business district became industrial than rural as we left Ventura and commenced our journey to Ojai. Along the way we passed thru the small enclaves of Casitas Springs and Oakview. In Oakview we had 3 boardings and 1 deboarding. At the connection point with the Ojai Trolley Mira Monte route, 5 passengers deboarded. We continued on to the Ojai Transit Center, a rather generic bus pull-thru/turnaround, which had no seating but at least did have a coke machine. We next walked to downtown Ojai, taking in the sights (and some of us tried the outstanding ice cream one shop sold).
At Signal & Ojai we caught the Ojai Trolley on its Mira Monte route at 11:29 a.m. The driver was named Pete and the bus was a Startrans [made to look like a trolley] with wooden bench seating. There were 2 passengers (and 6 deboarded) when we boarded. The bus passed thru areas that were mostly residential with some stores scattered throughout. We also caught sight of some horses. I quickly decided while they added to the historic atmosphere of the vehicle the benches left a lot to be desired as to comfort.
At Highway 33 & 150 we deboarded to catch SCAT 16 for the return trip to civilization. The bus arrived at 11:55 a.m. (#4006). While it began with 18 riders soon the load swelled to 39 riders. In downtown Ventura we ate lunch at a local landmark, the Top Hat. This is a shack that serves basic tasty fare (burgers, etc.). Limited seating meant I ended up eating with my food placed on top of a post of some sort. But it was good.
After a bathroom break at an accommodating American Legion Hall we made our way to Main and Figueroa to catch route 6B at 1:17 p.m. (#3503) with 13 riders. We passed thru areas that were mostly residential, mixed with some commercial. Kymberleigh Richards tells me this segment of 6B is through an historic residential segment of Main Street. Ventura doesn't really have a lot of long business-only street mileage; virtually every street has some residential on it, with a high mix of single-family homes on arterials (the apartment buildings tend to be on lesser streets, an interesting commentary on the city's brand of urban planning.)
Next we took route 11, a Flxible 30 foot bus (#3000) with 15 riders. This passed through a varying landscape as Route 11 loops to/from a part of Ventura called Saticoy: commercial to industrial to rural. I had a conversation with a passenger who expressed concerns about security on buses and driver behavior, asking how to communicate complaints to management. After going thru a suburban upscale area we entered what appeared to be a somewhat older neighborhood. We returned as route 10 (which means we went out on Telephone Road and came back on Telegraph Road).
After a quick trip on route 6B to Seaward and Main (with a pitstop at a convenient doughnut store at the locale) we caught route 14, which only runs at peak hours. This first trip after swinging by the beach had a shortened route back to Pacific View Mall (which got us there in time for the 4:05pm trip to Oxnard via route 6A).
Now we undertook the trip between Oxnard and Ventura on route 6A on a Flxible (#3513). This is the busiest SCAT route and carried 34 passengers. As we enjoyed the trip between cities I reflected on how nice the drivers we had encountered were and also became aware things would soon be winding down for our trip (the sun already was low in the sky).
It should probably be noted that we rode the 6B branch from Oxnard to Ventura in the morning, and the 6A back in the afternoon; this is the only portion of the route that differs on the "A" and "B" branches. (6A serves Ventura College and Montalvo; 6B operates a more direct routing.)
After arriving at the Oxnard Transportation Center we took route 15 at 4:58 p.m. (#3504) with 23 passengers. The sun set and I glanced out the darkened windows as we made our way along the circuitous route. On the trip back to OTC there were 13 passengers. Upon arrival we called it a day and went for dinner at the nearby El Taco de Mexico. While eating we discussed the day of riding and I solicited suggestions anyone might have that we should make to the agencies based upon our experiences. These included:
So where should we go for this year's trip?