Q&A: De-car-ing in the Valley

Your eco-questions answered:

Question: I was reading your blog and noticed that you've been hanging out in the 818 (the Valley).  I recently just got rid of my car (long story, but it was a lemon) and have been somewhat car-less for the last couple of weeks and enjoying it. I freelance, so I commute only about twice a week and for those occasions I carpool with my husband (he still has his car, hence the "somewhat" car-less).

Anyway, I was curious how you traveled to the Valley from Santa Monica. I ask only because I'm trying to gather other recommended modes of transportation from fellow car-less folks.  Did you cab it or do that hourly car rental thing (forgot the name)?  I live in the Valley and I love to hear the best way you've found to travel between the Valley and Santa Monica. Cheers, Liza

Answer: First of all, congrats on the de-car'd lifestyle! Second, it's car-free, not car-less :)

Third, to say I've been "hanging out in the Valley" is not quite accurate, especially as I have many readers who get angry because I allegedly don't give the Valley enough attention or because I make fun of it (my ribbing's just jovial teasing, people).

In any case, I only go to the Valley a few times a year! It's simply that I happened to make two trips last month. Once in a blue moon, I have to rent a car for the weekend -- and when I do, I make a trip to a relatively faraway L.A. spot and hit all the places there I've been meaning to visit. That's why I have a buncha recent posts highlighting places in the Valley -- all of those were from one trip.

The second trip was to a party at my friend's who'd just moved to the Valley. I did that by bus, and it wasn't a happy trip due to the buses not showing up or being late.

This also answers your main question: No, it is not easy getting from Santa Monica to the Valley sans car, IMHO. However, I did notice that the Valley itself has gotten somewhat nicer, with lively shopping and arts districts, colorful sidewalks, etc. The main concept of de-car-ing isn't so much about taking public transit to far-off places, but being able to avoid having to travel far at all because you have everything you want and need near you. For ex., lots of people in less-than-lively places in the Valley (and the O.C.) drive into Santa Monica and spots in L.A. because they have no good shopping/restaurants/bars near them -- at least not more than 1 or 2 (which one can get tired of relatively quickly).

What I'm saying is, if you really need to get to Santa Monica or environs relatively often, not having a car may not work so well right now, unless you have a masochistic streak. (Though I'd say any driver who fights traffic to cross that distance on a regular basis also must have a high threshold for pain.) A cab ride between the Valley and Santa Monica's gonna be quite pricey -- and Flexcar, the car-sharing service you were referring to -- has pulled all the cars out of its L.A. locations except at USC and UCLA.

So what I'm wondering is if you live in a part of the Valley where you have easy access to important amenities. If so, definitely stay car-free and just borrow your hub's car once in a while when you need it.

Part of the de-car-ing effort might simply be an adjustment in your habits, i.e., finding more fave restaurants in the Valley instead of sticking to the tried-and-true ones you may have in the Westside. It may take a lil more effort at first, but over time, you are likely to derive more satisfaction from discovering nice neighborhood spots that become your new favorites that you can walk or bike to.

Lastly -- If you bike and can do the bike-plus-bus thing, you may very well be able to travel between the Westside and the Valley with relative ease. Zach Behrens, editor of LAist, lives in the Valley and manages to get all over L.A. sans car. He does, however, still own a car...

Earlier: Freeways have failed us -- Valley girls

Photo of Sherman Oaks' gas station by Gregg Moscoe

Comments

[markl]

to get from the valley to santa monica there is only 1 bus that makes the trip.It is the 761 red bus and you catch it at van nuys/ventura or sepulveda/ventura.The last bus back to the valley is around 9pm...there is apparently another bus that goes overnight but it may be a myth.There is an overnight bus that does the hollywood-valley trip but it is inconsistent.
Pretty pathetic.And they think building more lanes on the 405 will alleviate traffic jams???The sepulveda and cahuenga passes are the first place where a real light rail should be built to run 24/7.

[Carlos]

There are practically no one-seat rides from the Valley to Santa Monica. Here are several options that might be of some help:
From Van Nuys Orange Line Station, take the 761 Rapid Bus that terminates at UCLA on Westwood and Wilshire Blvd in WESTWOOD, not Santa Monica.
From there you can hop on the 20 bus to Santa Monica

Another option would be to take the Red Line from North Hollywood to Hollywood/Highland and then transfer to the 720 bus to Santa Monica/Fairfax and then either get the 4 bus which makes every stop or take the Rapid 704 that takes you right to Santa Monica

Unfortunately there are very VERY few options to getting to the Westside from the Valley. I know there is a DASH something or other but I'm not familiar with the routing or schedules. Best of luck.
Carlos

[LA MapNerd]

If you're travelling over the hill during weekday rush hours, you might want to check out LADOT's Commuter Express Route 573 (Mission Hills to Westwood/Century City) or Route 574 (Sylmar to Westchester/LAX).

I'm not sure how they'd compare to the Metro Rapid - I used to use them when I lived in Sherman Oaks, back before the Metro Rapid lines existed. (And how useful they are would depend heavily on exactly where you're starting from.)

Another more peculiar option might be to use LAWA's Van Nuys to LAX Flyaway Bus - though again, its usefulness would depend heavily on your exact origin (and destination) points.

[Dan Wentzel]

Through its actions, Metro just doesn't take travel between the Valley and the Westside seriously when it comes to public transit.

The "Rapid 761" is misdesigned and rarely "rapid'. On the Southern end It poops out at Wilshire/Westwood, requiring multiple transfers. Also, the "local" service is provides the back end of Westwood and Brentwood helps prevent itfrom being a Rapid.

The first thing to do is to spin off the local Brentwood and Westwood service by either giving the service area over to the Big Blue Bus or bringing back the MTA 21 bus, and run it from Vermont/Wilshire to Getty Center (to maintain service hour neutrality), which would allow the 761 to run farther south, reducing the number of transfers necessary between the Valley and the Westside.

There really needs to be a Sepulveda Light Rail from LAX up to Metrolink in the Valley. That's pretty much a no-brainer even for those people who aren't transit advocates.

Metro does have in the unfunded portion of its Long Range Transportation Plan a busway project through the Sepulveda Pass, similar to the Orange Line, from the Green Line to the Valley. Popular use of the busway could be a way of demonstrating support for a rail project. I think the support is already there for one (not to mention the need).

Contact the MTA and let them know you want the MTA to put a higher priority on providing quality and convenient public transit between the Valley and the Westside.

[Cassandra]

Since I wrote the little bit on the valley earlier, I thought I'd let you know that:
a) I do still go out to the valley (shh, don't tell anyone)
and
b) it takes planning

You didn't mention which side of the valley you are on, so I'll try to cover both the North Hollywood and San Fernando sides. If you're riding the bus, it is difficult (think at least two hours) to go very far past the 101 on the valley side, or very far past Wilshire on the Santa Monica side. But it can be done (and bicycling can help too).

If you're going to NoHo/Burbank/etc, your best choice is the Red Line subway (pick it up at the Noho station), connecting to the Rapid 704 on Santa Monica Blvd. This is probably both the quickest and most dependable route to/from the valley. Both the subway and the 704 run regularly, and as long as you are within operating hours, they don't leave you stranded. Also, the stops are generally well lit/populated, so you can feel safe. I would advise against taking the 4 bus, since it usually terminates at Westwood (ditto for the 20). MTA doesn't run local busses through Santa Monica except during off-peak hours, because of the Blue Bus.

If you are coming from San Fernando, I would take the 761. I see a lot of people have complained about that line, but personally I have no complaints. As long as you know the schedule ahead of time, you can go from Westwood to the Valley in about 45 minutes (faster if it isn't rush hour, slower if it is). The route it takes through UCLA is annoying, but really doesn't take as long as it seems to (again, unless it is rush hour). I can't stress enough how important it is to know the schedule ahead of time for the 761. The bus runs about every hour, and has been know to leave a few minutes early.

When you get to Westwood, take the 720 down Wilshire. You can walk to Santa Monica Blvd from Wilshire fairly easily, especially in downtown Santa Monica, so I wouldn't worry about transfering from one to the other. Again, you would be hard-pressed to take the MTA 20 from Westwood, since it doesn't go past Westwood until fairly late at night.

Things to know: MTA bus fare is $1.25 per trip, but all of these trips require at least one transfer, so you would be better off just buying the $5 day pass (or a monthly pass, if you're doing this a lot). Riding the Big Blue Bus in Santa Monica is $0.75 per ride, and MTA passes will not cover your ride.

You can use the Orange Line to get to either the NoHo subway or the Rapid 761. Making a circuitous trip, rather than repeating the same route, can make the trip less of a drag.

If you are riding a bike in Santa Monica - Bicyles here are comparitively common, but I still prefer riding the "back way" rather than braving Santa Monica Blvd or Wilshire. If you're going from the 405 to the beach, Iowa is a great street to ride, with light traffic and bike routes (Okay, most of the time the bike route is a sidewalk, but it is better than nothing), and you don't get tourists who aren't paying attention driving down Iowa. Bonus: Iowa can connect you from Westwood to Santa Monica - it goes under the 405, and is less hilly than Wilshire or Santa Monica.

The 24 hour service mentioned earlier in the comments is MTA's Night Owl service, although I don't know of a single route that would take you, non-stop, from the Valley to Santa Monica.

I would also like to point out that, while all of this seems complicated, going "over the hill" in either direction via car is nearly as annoying and time-consuming, unless you are driving at 4am.

[KateNonymous]

Cassandra, when you say the 761 runs every hour, what time period do you mean? It looks like it runs much more often than that for most of the day--do you just mean in the evening hours, after rush hour?

[Dan Wentzel]

http://www.metro.net/riding_metro/bus_overview/700_799/761.pdf

Here's a link to the time table. The "Owl" service is hourly with the 233.

The 761 is scheduled at 20 minute intervals during the weekday.

[KateNonymous]

That's what I thought based on the schedule, Dan. Thanks for the confirmation.

[Dan Wentzel]

Just to confirm, I rode the 761 yesterday and it actually matched the schedule, so I'm assuming the link is correct.