After announcing it would remove up to 31 bus stops across the city, Long Beach Transit has put those plans on hold, with executives deciding more study is needed, officials confirmed to the Business Journal.
In early May, the transportation agency proposed eliminating 31 bus stops along routes 8, 40, 91, 93, 121, 173 and 191. The majority of the stops slated for removal were in North, West and Central Long Beach.
Transit disseminated a survey to its ridership through its website as well as physically at bus stops for public feedback on the proposed stop removals. Comments were slated to be received through Friday, but the survey was pulled when the plans were put on hiatus.
“Internally we decided we needed to do more research and really look at what that looked like holistically,” LBT spokesperson Arantxa Chavarria told the Business Journal, “what that looks like in terms of ridership and what it looks like for our customers.”
“We want to take a deeper dive before we go out and start removing,” she added.
For now, the agency is focused on its annual summer transition, which sees service reduced in anticipation of students not riding buses to school. The services will ramp back up in September.
Schedule changes to bus routes are common, Chavarria said last month. The removal of stops, however, is more rare. Chavarria said the postponed proposal is only the second time in the agency’s recent history that this many removals have been proposed.
Long Beach Transit is, however, moving forward with its new route 141, which used to be run by LA Metro before the agency stopped servicing it. The route runs along the eastern portion of Artesia Boulevard in North Long Beach.
Long Beach Transit has conducted accessibility and safety assessments for the route, Chavarria said, adding that the number of stops is going to remain the same.
“And we did a 30-day survey to get [customer] feedback,” Chavarria said. “This was a route that was already in existence but we want to know what are some things we can do to improve it.”
Route 141 services are slated to begin again through Long Beach Transit on June 26.
For more information, contact Long Beach Transit at 562-591-2301 or visit ridelbt.com/servicechanges.