Quote:
Originally Posted by craigs
I've heard similar accounts recently. It may be that the line is less appealing to bums now that Metro requires everyone to "tap out" at downtown Santa Monica.
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I think that definitely helps, although there were cops AND security at the Santa Monica station doing nothing as a few people just squeezed through the gates and didn't tap out. But I did hear one guy who hadn't tapped stressing about it, so it's clearly at least a partial deterrent! We need tall faregates ASAP!
But another part of it was the staffing - Metro is clearly investing in 7th/Metro and that presence was felt. Hopefully the clean train wasn't a fluke and represents a trend resulting from increased cleaning staff.
To me, the formula for turning the system around is so simple:
- Tall faregates and hard fare enforcement + expanding tap-in/tap-out to all stations.
- A Metro police department (LAPD/LASD are trash) with a heavy presence (no sitting in patrol cars) that actively enforces code of conduct. No sleeping or antisocial behavior. It is NOT Metro's job to fix the homelessness problem, but they do need to keep antisocial behavior off of the system.
- Lots of cleaning
- I'm a broken clock on this one, but FULL SIGNAL PREEMPTION on light rail except for pedestrian signals - let that signal finish then default to the train every time. This will fix tons of operational issues and speed up the trains.
- Better frequency, especially during off-peak hours and especially on the D/B lines
- Off-hours maintenance
The good news is that Metro seems to finally be talking about all of those (except off-hours maintenance). Let's hope they follow through and that LADOT cooperates on signaling for light rail. All of that combined with the planned system expansion could create an awesome system for our city.