Big Blue Bus Booming

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Written by Healthy Newspaper

Friday, 27 March 2009 18:38

Santa Monica, California, March 2009 –The City of Santa Monica’s Big Blue Bus has announced it will receive $12.8 million from the federal government’s economic stimulus package, which will be used to upgrade the agency’s fleet and improve its infrastructure. What’s the Big Blue Bus? It’s the name of a fleet of over 200 energy efficient vehicles, which transports more than 80,000 passengers a day across a nearly 52-square mile service area. Nationally recognized for its long-standing commitment to a cleaner environment, the entire fleet operates on alternative fuels, including liquefied natural gas (LNG), which helps cut emissions by over 80 percent. Serving Santa Monica and the Los Angeles area since 1928, the Big Blue Bus has an 86 percent on-time performance record and has won numerous national awards for its customer service, safety and efficiency. Specific provisions in the grant require that this new money be used for capital expenditures and not for operating costs or service enhancements. Big Blue Bus will be contracting with a number of companies and manufacturers across the country to infuse much needed capital back into the economy, especially the local Southern California area. “It’s very rewarding to be a catalyst for getting dollars circulating back into both the local and national economy, and to be able to develop the infrastructure for better community service all at the same time,” said Stephanie Negriff, director of transit services for the Big Blue Bus. Negriff noted that Big Blue Bus Deputy Director, David Feinberg just returned from a successful meeting in Washington, D.C. where he met with staff members of California Representative Henry Waxman, and California’s Senators Dianne Feinstein and Barbara Boxer to review specifics of how the stimulus dollars would be spent by the agency, including the array of industries that would be positively affected by the new business. Negriff said the stimulus funds will allow the transit agency to solve several key community needs, including offering quieter and environmentally-friendly hybrid buses on its Mini Blue neighborhood routes, and also the ability to replace older diesel buses in the fleet and introduce new articulated buses on the agency’s busiest lines. Studies show that for every dollar invested in a transit capital project there is a three to one return on the investment. Santa Monica’s City Council was able to quickly respond to the current situation by getting the projects approved quickly so that the money can get back into the economy. According to the American Public Transportation Agency (APTA) in Washington, D.C., public transit use continues to rise across the country, even though gas prices have declined sharply from last year. APTA reports that Americans took 10.7 billion trips on public transportation in 2008, the highest level of ridership in 52 years, and up 38 percent since 1995. Based on the latest figures, it is estimated that a regular public transit rider can save as much as $708 a month (based on the cost of gas and parking) or $8,500 a year. In addition, employees whose companies offer monetary rewards for taking transit are now eligible for a higher transit benefit as part of the recent economic stimulus package approved by Congress. Learn more by going to www.bigbluebus.com. SOURCE: Big Blue Bus (Visual courtesy pico.robertson.com) < Prev   Next >