Foothill Transit

Foothill Transit

2003 Foothill Transit Orion V F1337 @ El Monte Station in El Monte, CA On Line 492 eastbound to Montclair Transit Center via Arrow Highway/Bonita Avenue
Founded	1988
Locale	San Gabriel Valley
Service type	bus service
Daily ridership	41,096 [1]
Fuel type	CNG
Operator	Transdev MV Transportation First Transit[2]
Website	foothilltransit.org

Foothill Transit is a joint powers authority of 21 member cities in the San Gabriel and Pomona Valleys. It operates a fixed-route bus public transit service in the San Gabriel Valley of Greater Los Angeles, California.

Overview

The impetus for the formation of the transit agency was Los Angeles County Supervisor Pete Schabarum. Schabarum, annoyed at the cutbacks of bus service by the SCRTD, wanted to secede from the larger agency and form his own transit agency. Schabarum, who hated the influence of trade unions, chose to use contractors to operate the service, and Foothill executives made the service essentially strike-proof by insisting that two different companies operate the two bus yards, even if it would cost more in the short term. However, due to bus industry consolidation, First Transit had operated both yards from 2001 to mid-2007. Currently, both Foothill Transit yards are represented by unions (Arcadia by the Amalgamated Transit Union and Pomona by the Teamsters Union), but past strikes at the agency have been less than successful due to the ability of one yard to operate the other yards' service. In addition, wages are less at Foothill than at other transit operators in the region.

All of Foothill Transit operations are contracted out. Bus service is operated by First Transit at Pomona and Arcadia/Irwindale. Effective July 1, 2013, due to expiration of the existing management services contract and continuing conflicts of interest between the executive director, staff, and board, Foothill Transit transitioned to in house management. Executive Director Doran Barnes became a direct Foothill employee, as well as planning, procurement, and other administrative functions. Transdev (formerly Veolia) staff continues to operate the transit stores and maintain bus shelters.^[3]

In 2002, Foothill Transit began purchasing Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) powered buses. By 2013, Foothill Transit was now a 100 percent CNG fleet.

Foothill Transit provides shuttle service for UCLA Football games at the Rose Bowl from the Parsons Corporation parking lot, located on Walnut St. and Fair Oaks Avenue in Pasadena.

Routes

All service operated as of June 1, 2014 with notes on upcoming service changes where indicated.

Express Routes

Express services operate weekdays only in the peak direction, excluding the Silver Streak.

Local Routes

School Supplementary Routes

Services operate weekdays only. Schedules subject to change June 1st - September 1st & December 22nd - January 3rd for Lines 853, 854, and 855.

Wireless Internet Access

On June 26, 2006, Foothill Transit installed wireless Internet hubs on six 1200-series Orion V buses (F1208, F1236, F1237, F1258, F1260, and F1262) that were exclusively assigned to Line 699. Downstream bandwidth of 300 kbit/s was available on each bus. The test program was discontinued and wi-fi service was installed on the Silver Streak until it was discontinued there in Late March 2009.

Fares

Fares as of October 1, 2012

Cash / TAP Card Fares

Passes

1. There are no discount fares on Line 481 or 690 as they only operate during peak hours.
2. Commuter Express fares apply to Lines 493, 497, 498, 499, and 699. Metrolink Tickets are not accepted; only the full fare of $4.90, the 31-Day Commuter Express pass, or the P5 EZ Transit Pass. Transfers are worth $1.25 toward the full fare. No discounts are given for seniors or the disabled as these routes only operate during peak hours.
3. Transfers can be purchased for $0.50 using cash or a TAP card with a cash purse loaded (a TAP card is required either way for Foothill-to-Foothill connections). The transfer is then loaded onto the TAP card and is good for up to two hours. The transfer on the TAP card can also be counted as base fare for any TAP enabled transit agency as well. Paper transfers may be requested for connections to agencies that do not use TAP. They can be counted as base fare for any transit agency to which Foothill Transit connects that accepts transfers.
4. A 31-Day Pass' lifespan starts when the pass is first used, not necessarily at the beginning of the month, unless the pass was first used at the beginning of the month. For example, if the pass is bought on March 6, but first used on March 12, the expiration date of the pass is April 12 at midnight, 31 days after it was first used.
5. Discount Silver Streak passes can be purchased by students, seniors, the disabled, and Medicare card holders. If the pass is used on Line 481, or Line 690, the difference must be paid in cash.
6. All Foothill Transit passes are now sold on TAP cards only.

Bus Fleet

1. Active

Year	Model	Length	Width	Numbers	Fleet	Picture	Fuel Type	Notes
2002	Orion V CNG	40'	102"	F1200-F1265	66		CNG	Suburban seating. Used almost exclusively during the weekday peak hours. Run from the Pomona Yard. Also used on 665 and 666 when they are not needed on express services to Rose & Hollywood Bowls. Some units are retired or are being purchased secondhand by Nassau Inter-County Express (NICE) in New York to replace their own batch of 2000 Orion V CNGs.
2003	Orion V CNG	40'	102"	F1300-F1350	51		CNG	Run from the Pomona Yard. Used on many local routes. Some units are retired or are being purchased secondhand by NICE to replace their own batch of 2000 Orion V CNGs.
2004/2005	NABI 40-LFW	40'	102"	F1400-F1474	75		CNG	Suburban seating. F1400-F1450 run from the Pomona Yard. F1451-F1474 run from the Irwindale Yard.
2005/2006	NABI 40-LFW	40'	102"	F1500-F1509	10		CNG	Suburban seating. Run from the Irwindale Yard. The first to have cummins engines.
2007	NABI 60-BRT	60'	102"	F1600-F1629	30		CNG	These buses are used exclusively on the Silver Streak, except on weekends. Run from the Irwindale Yard. Suburban seating.
2009	NABI 42-BRT	42'	102"	F1700-F1729	30		CNG	Suburban seating. Used on the Silver Streak on weekends. F1700-F1724 run from the Irwindale yard F1725-F1729 run from the Pomona yard.
2010	NABI 42-BRT	42'	102"	F1800-F1811	12		CNG	Suburban seating. Run from the Irwindale Yard. Used on the Silver Streak on weekends.
2010	Proterra BE35	35'	102"	F2001-F2003	3		Electric	Branded as "Ecoliners" by Foothill Transit. Most are used on route 291. It is the world’s first heavy duty, fast charging electric bus. One bus costs $1.2 million each.[39] Run from Pomona yard
2012	Proterra BE35	35'	102"	F2004-F2012	9		Electric	Branded as "Ecoliners" by Foothill Transit. Primarily used on Line 291 Run from the Pomona yard
2012	NABI 42-BRT	42'	102"	F1900-F1913	14		CNG	Suburban seating. Run from the Pomona Yard. Used on many express routes.
1999	NFI C40LF	40'	102'	8030-8035	5		CNG	Used for a training bus. Owned by Transdev Phoenix.
2013-2014	NABI 42-BRT	42'	102'	F2100-F2163	64		CNG	Suburban Seating. Run from the Pomona Yard. Used on many express routes.

Retired

Because Foothill Transit retires most of their buses at the 12-year FTA minimum standard, many of their buses are sold off or leased to other authorities and operate for years afterwards. Notable lessees include Valley Metro, Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority, Arizona State University, Monterey-Salinas Transit, Gold Coast Transit, Glendale Beeline, Santa Cruz Metro, Benicia Breeze, and Amtrak California (operated by SFO Airporter).

References

External links

• Official Foothill Transit website
• May 2006 Footnotes detailing Silver Streak service
• Electric bus order 2013 September