0.0%

10.0%

20.0%

30.0%

40.0%

50.0%

60.0%

70.0%

80.0%

90.0%

100.0%

Under18

18-24 25-40 41-64 65 andOver

First time

About once a month

About once a week

2 to 4 days a week

5 or more days a week

IIIIIIII

IIIII

I

III III

IIII

IILos Angeles

Long Beach

Glendale

CarsonTorrance

Pasadena

Whittier

Downey

Compton

Norwalk

Cerritos

Lakewood

Inglewood

Wes

Cypress

Alhambra

Gardena

South Gate

Santa Monica

Bellflower

HawthorneLynwood

Monterey Park

El Segundo

Rosemead

Paramount

Santa Fe Springs

Culver City

Beverly Hills

East Los Angeles

Redondo Beach

San Gabriel

Los Alamitos

Rolling Hills

Palos Verdes Estates

Sierra Madre

Manhattan Beach

South Pasadena

Lawndale

Ladera Heights

Bell Gardens

South El Monte

Rolling Hills Estates

Westmont

West Rancho Dominguez

Lennox

Willowbrook

Del Aire

West Hollywood

West Athens

Marina del Rey

Hermosa Beach

View Park-Windsor Hills

Walnut Park

Culver CityBus RoutesLINEPurple Line SubwayRed Line SubwayRed+Purple SubwayBlue Line Light Rail Station

I Expo Line Light Rail Station

I Green Line Light Rail StationGold Line Light Rail Station

Where CCB Riders Begin TripPercentage

0%1%2%3% - 7%8% - 15%

Source: Culver CityBus Passenger On-board Surveys (2011)

Where Culver CityBus Riders Begin Their Trips

Mid City

RAIL

Figure 1

IIIIIIII

II

I

I

III III

III

I

II

Los Angeles

Inglewood

Compton

Santa Monica

Gardena

HawthorneEl Segundo

Culver City

Beverly Hills

Vernon

Manhattan Beach Lawndale

Carson

Lennox

West Athens

Florence-Graham

Ladera Heights

Westmont

West Rancho Dominguez

WillowbrookDel Aire

West Hollywood

Marina del Rey

South Gate

Alondra Park

Huntington Park

TorranceRedondo Beach

View Park-Windsor Hills

Lynwood

Hermosa Beach

Culver CityBus RoutesWhere CCB Riders End TripPercentage

0%1%2% - 4%5% - 11%12% - 22%

Rail LineRed Line SubwayPurple Line SubwayRed+Purple Line SubwayBlue Line Light Rail Station

I Expo Line Light Rail Station

I Green Line Light Rail Station

Source: Culver CityBus Passenger On-board Survey (2011)

Where Culver CityBus Riders End Their Trips

LAX

UCLA

Downtown LA

Mid City

KoreatownCentury City

Figure 2

Culver CityBus RoutesLINEPurple Line SubwayRed Line SubwayRed+Purple SubwayBlue Line Light Rail Station

I Expo Line Light Rail Station

I Green Line Light Rail Station

Where CCB Riders Percentage

0%1%2%5% - 11%12% - 22%

End Trip

4%-

RAIL

SETTING THE RIGHT PRICE FOR BUS TRANSITCulver CityBus Fare Structure EvaluationFare policy is always complicated and difficult for transit operators to deal with, taking into account

funding for capital investments and operations, equity and operational issues including dwell time, network design and accessibility for new users. Two major operators sharing Culver CityBus’ service area have recently made major changes to fare policy to reduce operating deficit, moving in opposite directions. Santa Monica’s Big Blue Bus eliminated discounted local transfers and proposed to increase single ride cash fare to offset the increased cost in service associated with their response to Expo Line expansion in 2016. Los Angeles Metropolitan Transportation Authority (LA Metro) raised its cash fare to $1.75, raised the price of prepaid transit passes, and offered 2-hour free transfers to smart card users.

Culver CityBus’ fare structure is relatively complex, with a low cash fare, discounted fares for various groups, transfers discounted at different rates for intra- and interagency transfers, participation in the regional EZ pass monthly pass and the BruinGo program, under which UCLA students may ride at a steeply discounted rate using a flash pass. In addition, the expansion of the Metro Rail Expo Line Phase 2 in 2016 and Metro Rail Crenshaw Line in 2019 will affect transfer patterns and lead to redesigning Culver CiyBus feeder services and a review of Culver CityBus’ fare policy.

How should Culver CityBus change its fare structure to better serve its riders and maximize its ridership and revenue?

• Literature review tounderstand role of farepolicy in public transitsystems and find commonpractices public transitagencies generally use forchanging fare structures

• Selected case studiesto study impacts onrevenues and ridershipafter introduction ofvarious fare strategies

1. Findings fromCulver CityBusonboard surveys:

Figures 1 and 2 can help Culver CityBus staff better understand where their riders start/end their trips and to discover untapped markets outside their

Recommendations are made regarding fare structure and an evaluation is done on how the recommendation would affect ridership and revenue on Culver CityBus. The recommended fare structure raises cash fare trips and eliminates local transfers within the Culver CityBus network. Meanwhile, several fare media, such as monthly passes and day passes, are introduced to soften the impacts of fare increase and potential ridership decrease. The recommendation includes two new fare programs for participants at West LA College and Playa Vista that help to maximize ridership and revenue for Culver CityBus. A detailed recommended structure is illustrated in Table 2.

Based on my forecast, ridership would increase by 2% to 4% and revenue would rise by 16% to 17% if the recommendations were adopted, compared to the baseline fare structure. Farebox recovery ratio would increase from 20.9% to as high as 24.6%. Nevertheless, impacts on Fare Allocation Procedure could not be determined because there are some uncertainties accounted in the revenue forecast. The uncertainties include riders’ actual response to fare changes and deep discounted pass program.

RESEARCH QUESTIONSHow does the recommended fare structure affect ridership and revenue, as well as its funding opportunities from Formula Allocation Procedure?

1 2

METHODOLOGY

FINDINGS

FIGURE 1 -- WHERE CULVER CITY RIDERS BEGIN THEIR TRIPS

FIGURE 2 -- WHERE CULVER CITY RIDERS END THEIR TRIPS

• Evaluated Culver CityBus’ ridership statistics andonboard surveys to document ridership patternsand potential for innovative fare strategies

• Cross tabulations of onboard surveys andresearch into Culver CityBus ridershipdistribution by fare media and type of riders(adult, senior/disabled, students) to understandriders’ demographics and travel behavior

• Compared Culver CityBus’ existing fare structureto other fare structures used by selected agenciesin LA County to help Culver CityBus set pricing

programs that better align with fare policies of neighboring agencies

• Addressed how recommendedfare structure affects ridershipand revenue on Culver CityBus,and whether the recommendationwill greatly affect future fundingopportunities from FormulaAllocation Procedure

FIGURE 4 -- CULVER CITYBUS SERVICE NETWORK AM TRIPS DISTRIBUTION FIGURE 5 -- CULVER CITYBUS SERVICE NETWORK PM TRIPS DISTRIBUTION

CONCLUSION & RECOMMENDATIONS

Supplemental Table 1Culver CityBus Riders Characteristics

Frequency of Use Percentage First Time 2%About once a month 4%About once a week 4%2 to 4 days a week 29%5 or more days a week(Frequent Riders)

61%

Trip Purpose Percentage Going Work 33%Going Home 39%School/ College 16%Recreation or Social Activity 4%Shopping Center or Store 5%Medical/Dental Facility 3%Childcare 1%Other 4%Transit Dependency (Riders’ responses if Culver CityBusservices were not available)

Percentage

Use another bus agency 52%Drive alone 8%Walk 13%Driven by someone else 12%Would not make trip 12%Bicycle 8%Carpool/Vanpool 3%Taxi 3%Other/ I don’t know 3%Mobile Phone Ownership Percentage Smartphone with internet access

34%

Mobile phone with text messaging

30%

Mobile phone 23%None of the above 13%

Source: 2012 Line by Line Onboard Survey

existing service network. Moreover, they can provide insight into possible service expansion in response to the opening of the Expo Light Rail Phase 2 in 2016. However, cross tabulations from onboard survey data provide a more in-depth analysis in understanding riders’ travel behavior, which can help staff estimate riders’ response to fare changes. One of the analyses showed that 61% of riders on Culver CityBus were frequent riders (Table 1). Since fare elasticities are different among various age groups, I classified bus ride frequency by age groups to predict responses to a fare change from each age group of riders (Figure 3). For instance, price elasticities for riders under 18 are higher than riders over 64 years in general, indicating younger riders are more sensitive than elderly riders to fare changes (Cervero 1990, Deleuw, Cather & Company 1979). Culver CityBus could apply this analysis in deciding the right pricing scheme that potentially meets the needs of different rider segments.

2. Findings from LA Metro TAP Card Data:Figures 4 and 5 reflect weekday peak-hour ridership patterns in the morning and afternoon. Data extracted from the Metro TAP card database display average daily boardings in a “google-traffic” color scheme. Red represents higher boardings and green means fewer boardings. The graphs help to identify ridership patterns, the significance of interagency transfers and deep discount group pass programs in Culver CityBus service network. Currently, Culver CityBus has a deep discount group pass program with UCLA (6% of the ridership). Interagency agency transfers typically occur at major street intersections (15% of ridership). West LA College is also identified as a high-ridership area, and yet the college does not currently have a discounted bus fare program similar to UCLA BruinGo! that encourage students to use public transit.

FIGURE 3AGE VS.

BUS RIDE FREQUENCY

TABLE 1CULVER CITYBUS RIDER CHARACTERISTICS

CULVER CITYBUS RECOMMENDED FARE STRUCTURE

Source:

References: Culver CityBus Onboard Surveys, Metro TAP Card Data

Lewis Center Award Winner for Innovative use of Spatial Analysis and GIS in Policy Analysis

by Ching Yan Chan (Jane)Master’s of Urban & Regional Planning

:

Supplemental Table 2 Culver CityBus Recommended Fare Structure Rider

CategoryType Baseline Fare Recommended Fare % Fare

ChangeAdult Cash Fare $1.00 $1.25 25%

Local Transfer $0.25 - - Inter -Agency transfer $0.40 $0.50 25%Day Pass - $4.00 - Monthly Pass - $50.00 -

Senior/ Disabled

Cash Fare $0.35 $0.50 43%Local Transfer $0.10 - - Inter -Agency transfer $0.20 $0.25 25%Day Pass - $2.00 - Monthly Pass - $25.00 -

Student(K -12)

Cash Fare $0.75 $1.25 67%Monthly Pass - $30.00 -

ProgramBruinGo!

$33/quarter; or $0.50 copay

$33/quarter; or $0.50 copay -

Playa Vista Agreement with Developer -

2400 monthly pass each year at $20.83 -

West LA College - Free -

TABLE 2

"X"X

"X

"X

!6

!1

!7

!5

!3

! 4!2

!5

VENICE BLVD

W PICO BLVD

WILSHIRE BLVD

LINCOLN BLVD

S SEPULVEDA BLVD

OVERLAND AV

CULV

ER B

LVD

SANTA MONICA BLVD

PALMS BLVD

S BUNDY DR

W IMPERIAL HWY

VETERAN AV

W 3RD ST

ROSE AV

W MANCHESTER AV

W OLYMPIC BLVD

SAWTELLE BLVD

MOTOR AV

S LA

CIE

NEG

A BL

VD

INGLEWOOD BLVD

S BARRINGTON AV

OLYMPIC BLVD

S CENTINELA AV

S FA

IRFA

X AV

W 80TH ST

AVIA

TION

BLV

D

S RO

BERT

SON

BLV

D

W S

UNSE

T BL

VD

LA TI

JERA BLVD

W SLAUSON AV

BEVE

RWIL

DR

WESTWOOD BLVD

AIRP

ORT

BLVD

23RD ST

VIS DEL MAR

ALLA RD

NATIONAL BLVD

JEFF

ERSO

N BL

VD

MANNING AV

WASHINGTON PL

26TH ST

OCEAN PARK BLVD

SLAUSON AV

MCLAUGHLIN AV

W JEFFERSON BLVD

OHIO AV

W 18TH ST

S D

OHEN

Y D

R

S BEVERLY GLEN BLVD

PERSHING DR

W CENTINELA AV

ADMIRALTY WY

VIA MARINA

IDAHO AV

PACIFIC AV

WALGROVE AV

WASHINGTON BLVD

N VENICE BLVD

RODEO RD

BEETHOVEN ST

PENMAR AV

SHORT AV

N BEVERLY DR

BROOKS AV

LA BLVD

PICO BLVD

W WASHINGTON BLVD

W MANCHESTER BLVD

W 6TH ST

MONTE MAR DR

EMERSON AV

W FLORENCE AV

W CENTURY BLVD

WESTCHESTER PKWY

MIN

DANA

O W

Y

MARINE ST

MAI

N S

T

GATE

WAY

BLV

D

VIA DOLCE

SAN VICENTE BLVD

W 88TH ST

ARBOR VITAE ST

N JEFFERSON BLVD

W JEFFERSON BLVD

W OLYMPIC BLVD

S LA

CIE

NEG

A BL

VD

CULV

ER B

LVD

PICO BLVD

W WASHINGTON BLVD

WASHINGTON BLVD

S SE

PULV

EDA

BLVD

WASHINGTON BLVD

Los Angeles

Culver City

Beverly Hills

Santa Monica

Ladera Heights

Inglewood

El Segundo

Marina del Rey

Del Aire

UCLA

West LA College

Loyola MarymountUniversity

Santa MonicaCollege

VA Healthcare

LAX

Playa Vista

Century City

Palms

Mar Vista

Venice

Cheviot Hills

Culver CityBus Service Network AM Trips Distribution

Source: TAP Card Trip Data (November 2014)

"X Green Line Light Rail Station

"X Expo Light Rail StationColleges & UniversitiesAirportsExpo Line Phase 2Purple Line Alignment

West LA Transit Center

Culver CityTransit Center

LAXTransit Center

Low High

"X"X

"X

"X

!6

!1

!7

!5

!3

! 4!2

!5

VENICE BLVD

W PICO BLVD

WILSHIRE BLVD

LINCOLN BLVD

S SEPULVEDA BLVD

OVERLAND AV

CULV

ER B

LVD

SANTA MONICA BLVD

PALMS BLVD

S BUNDY DR

W IMPERIAL HWY

VETERAN AV

W 3RD ST

ROSE AV

W MANCHESTER AV

W OLYMPIC BLVD

SAWTELLE BLVD

MOTOR AV

S LA

CIE

NEG

A BL

VD

INGLEWOOD BLVD

S BARRINGTON AV

OLYMPIC BLVD

S CENTINELA AV

S FA

IRFA

X AV

W 80TH ST

AVIA

TION

BLV

D

S RO

BERT

SON

BLV

D

W S

UNSE

T BL

VD

LA TI

JERA BLVD

W SLAUSON AV

BEVE

RWIL

DR

WESTWOOD BLVD

AIRP

ORT

BLVD

23RD ST

VIS DEL MAR

ALLA RD

NATIONAL BLVD

JEFF

ERSO

N BL

VD

MANNING AV

WASHINGTON PL

26TH ST

OCEAN PARK BLVD

SLAUSON AV

MCLAUGHLIN AV

W JEFFERSON BLVD

OHIO AV

W 18TH ST

S D

OHEN

Y D

R

S BEVERLY GLEN BLVD

PERSHING DR

W CENTINELA AV

ADMIRALTY WY

VIA MARINA

IDAHO AV

PACIFIC AV

WALGROVE AV

WASHINGTON BLVD

N VENICE BLVD

RODEO RD

BEETHOVEN ST

PENMAR AV

SHORT AV

N BEVERLY DR

BROOKS AV

LA BLVD

PICO BLVD

W WASHINGTON BLVD

W MANCHESTER BLVD

W 6TH ST

MONTE MAR DR

EMERSON AV

W FLORENCE AV

W CENTURY BLVD

WESTCHESTER PKWY

MIN

DANA

O W

Y

MARINE ST

MAI

N S

T

GATE

WAY

BLV

D

VIA DOLCE

SAN VICENTE BLVD

W 88TH ST

ARBOR VITAE ST

N JEFFERSON BLVD

W JEFFERSON BLVD

W OLYMPIC BLVD

S LA

CIE

NEG

A BL

VD

CULV

ER B

LVD

PICO BLVD

W WASHINGTON BLVD

WASHINGTON BLVD

S SE

PULV

EDA

BLVD

WASHINGTON BLVD

Los Angeles

Culver City

Beverly Hills

Santa Monica

Ladera Heights

Inglewood

El Segundo

Marina del Rey

Del Aire

UCLA

West LA College

Loyola MarymountUniversity

Santa MonicaCollege

VA Healthcare

LAX

Playa Vista

Century City

Palms

Mar Vista

Venice

Cheviot Hills

Culver CityBus Service Network PM Trips Distribution

Source: TAP Card Trip Data (November 2014)

"X Green Line Light Rail Station

"X Expo Light Rail StationColleges & UniversitiesAirportsExpo Line Phase 2Purple Line Alignment

West LA Transit Center

Culver CityTransit Center

LAXTransit Center

Low High