West Los Angeles College Proposes Reduced Summer Bus Schedule

West Los Angeles College is planning to reduce its on-campus bus service during the summer in order to meet the demands of a smaller student body. The plan comes on the heels of a school year in which there has been much contention in the community regarding Culver City Bus noise on campus.

 As long as there is no objection from the City Council at its June 13 meeting, the Culver City Bus will run every 40 minutes from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., Monday to Thursday, from June 20 to July 31. There will be no Friday or weekend service for the estimated 5,000 students who will be coming to the campus for the summer.

“We expressed our concern that some service was needed for the numerous students who will visit various student services and the bookstore over the summer,” Betsy Regalado, WLAC vice president of student services, said in a recent press release. “Most of these offices are at the furthest point away from the on-campus and off-campus bus stops. This was of particular concern during the hottest parts of the day during the summer.”

Bus schedules and consequential noise on the West LA College campus have been hot topics in Culver City, especially among some Lakeside Villa residents who have complain that the amount of bus traffic passing their houses makes their walls shake, impacts stress levels and makes conversation inaudible. City Council meetings during which community college bus issues have appeared on the agenda have seen as many as 30 residents coming out to express their opposition to city buses running on campus.

In a City Council meeting earlier this year, resident Elliot Axelband cited health studies finding that loud noises from city buses inflict stress on people. “[Bus noise] does impact health,” he said, adding that the health and safety of several residents should supersede the inconvenience of a handful of students who lack the physical ability to walk up the hill.

“Don’t get me wrong," he said. “I’m upset if even one student is affected, but you have to look at this from a numerical standpoint.”

In June 2010, direct bus service to the campus was cut per the request of former college President Mark Rocha, with the provision that the college provide a shuttle to transport students around campus. However, the city reinstated the bus service in August due to dwindling college funds for the shuttle service. In March of this year, the City Council voted to reduce the amount of on-campus bus service by the big green bus by 56 percent on a trial basis.

Many residents believe that city buses should not run on campus at all, and in light of the controversy surrounding bus noise around West LA College, some may not be pleased by the summer schedule.  

“As for the proposed summer schedule, buses running every 40 minutes strikes us as excessive for a campus that is not in session. There are convenient bus stops on Overland for the few campus visitors who might be expected to use the bus service,” said Bob Howells, chair of Lakeside Villas Ad Hoc Committee on City and College Issues.

“We have witnessed countless empty buses running uphill to the campus in summers past. The walk across campus is not difficult for anyone who is able-bodied, and transport for disabled students is a college responsibility, not a city responsibility, as the city has made very clear.”

Said resident Mark Salkin about the reduced schedule, "I like it, but I wish they would do it permanently."

The reality of how the surrounding area will be affected by the reduced schedule remains to be seen, as well as what the community response to the proposed plan will be at the June 13 meeting. However, Vice Mayor Scott Malsin has a positive outlook on the proposed schedule.

“The school schedule is different during the summer. In order to reduce the noise impact, this is a very good way of approaching it—by looking at the class schedule and calibrate the bus schedule as efficiently as possible,” Malsin said.