Mass transit to Dodger Stadium?

Attentive readers may recall that Dodger Stadium is one of few in Major League Baseball that is not directly served by mass transit. The closest bus stop is down the hill from the ballpark on Sunset Boulevard.

On Wednesday, the Los Angeles City Council's transportation committee is set to discuss the issue -- and could potentially make a move toward resuming bus service the stadium hasn't had for several years.

City staff have been exploring the issue for months and now say it's possible to provide bus service for the 32 games, beginning in July, after the All-Star break. The route would go from Union Station to the stadium, using Cesar Chavez and Sunset boulevards. Service would be about every eight minutes before and after games, according to the city report.

But there's a potential glitch. The city would have to absorb the $70,000 cost of the service because the Dodgers don't want to fund it. That's what the team told me this spring for a story I wrote about parking at the stadium -- and that may give some council members pause, particularly at a time when some have seen bus service cut or diminished in their districts.

Here's the key passage in the report:

"As part of the ongoing task force discussions, the Dodgers have indicated that they are not interested in sharing the cost to operate the shuttle service with the City. The representative from the Dodgers expressed the opinion that it would be more appropriate for the public sector to fund the cost of the shuttle, especially in light of the significant previous and planned improvements to Dodger Stadium funded by the Dodgers ownership. The Dodgers did indicate that they would be willing to wrap the buses (subject to approval by the charter bus operator) with Dodger shuttle graphics, and would also take a lead role to help market the service to the public."

The idea would be to test the service for the rest of the 2008 season and see whether there's enough ridership to merit providing the buses next season.

More on this throughout the week.

-- Steve Hymon

Comments

[Tony Fernandez]

Bart, I don't buy into this just being corporate welfare. Traffic after Dodger games affects everyone near there, so it's not like all of the benefit is going to the Dodgers organization. At that marketing funding is no small amount. Hopefully the city puts a demand on how much marketing the Dodgers must do to get this shuttle, but it seems like a pretty even split to me.

[Bart Reed]

This is about a public bailout to a Private Business that shouldn't be happening. Last year the Dodgers raised parking prices $5 x 16M spaces for an increased yield of $80,000 / game. The Dodgers then spent $5,000 more on parking staff, so they increased their net yield $75,000 / game. Now this Private Business doesn't want to spend about $2,200 per game to show how civic minded they can be!

Something is wrong with Corporate Welfare and this is a shameful example.

[Tony Fernandez]

That would have been prohibitively expensive. But I think we can have the best of both worlds: stadium on top of the ravine and development around it (while protecting that pristine view of the hills from the stadium).

We just have to make sure that we develop it wisely, with plenty of parks, a rapid transit connection, and mixed-use density. Otherwise we might as well forget about it.

[n in studio city]

seems like this goes back to the smartest proposal for the cornfields - move dodget stadium down into the urban area of chinatown, next to the gold line and create a park and housing in the raven.

it was the only proposal with a long term vision...

[Anthony Fernandez]

The McCourts would be better off developing Chavez Ravine (and maybe even setting aside land for an NFL Stadium) as an urban village and then funding to get a light-rail line to go up there. Right now, there is no viable alternative to parking or a shuttle from Union Station (no reason to get it from multiple places with the plentiful parking there). So they need to expand their Next 50 Plan and start off by setting aside money for a rail link which would be a great catalyst for development.

And this is mixed-use, dense development with plenty of parks, not just the typical sprawl fill development. I don't see why McCourt doesn't go for it.

[Larry Scholnick]

I'm sure you all know how extensive the transit options are for performances at the Hollywood Bowl. There are express shuttles from remote lots throughout the Southland.

On a recent visit to Denver, I found that's what their local transit agency does for home games of the Colorado Rockies.. A single route from Union Station is far less than we would need - we would need a series of routes from parking lots around the Southland, all going directly to Dodger Stadium and coming back after the game.

It's no surprise that the Dodgers don't want to fund it - they have already invested their money in parking lots - the only way they can recoup their investment is for people to drive to the stadium and pay to park.

[Damon]

I've always thought it was funny that Anaheim stadium has always had train service right at its doorstep, an exception to the stereotype of sprawling suburbia. The only thing we need is to add more Metrolink trains at night so its a better option for travel to the games. Currently the only trains running after the game is over are Amtrak.

[Dan W.]

The Dodgers are benefiting from this. They shoulld pay something for this.

Eventually a $1 fare should be charged.

[Trolley Dodger]

Marketing isn't anywhere close to free -- a handful of billboards alone can wrack up tens of thousands of dollars in just a few weeks, so I don't think the Dodger contribution would be exactly negligible.

[Paul]

I don't see the point of it. People can't walk two blocks to the stadium? I do every time I go.