Residents Take a Look at Transit : Discussion: Six people who use various means to get around address a possible sales tax, roads and their general concerns on local transportation.

Grappling with the problems of maintaining Ventura County’s roads, buses and trains keeps legions of bureaucrats busy with a seemingly endless list of of complex problems.

But for residents who simply need to get around in Ventura County, the concerns are more basic: Will the bus arrive on schedule? Are the Metrolink trains running on time? Are the roads congested--and if so, where? How long will it take to get from Point A to Point B? What’s the best route? Will leaving the car at home and hopping aboard the public transit system pay off?

And how much will it all cost?

For the county’s voters, a larger question could loom in November: For the second time, they might be faced with the question of whether to approve a half-cent sales tax to fund transportation projects.

Here, six residents who use a variety of means to get around discuss the sales tax, public transit, roads and their general concerns on transportation in Ventura County.

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Patton Leaver, 38, of Moorpark. Leaver, a mortgage broker, drives every day to his job in Westlake.

Since I moved to Moorpark six years ago, I’ve seen the freeways in Ventura County become more crowded, more stressful, and generally more L.A.-like.

It’s very distressing, but what I’m seeing is less considerate drivers and more accidents, especially on the 23 (Moorpark Freeway) and 101 (Ventura Freeway).

Something needs to be done to improve the freeways and cut down on the number of cars on the road. But I would not consider taking a bus unless it was much more convenient than it is now. It just takes too long. And half the time you can’t get anywhere near where you want to go.

If I had to choose between cutting funding for buses, trains or roads, I’d cut Metrolink. It can take years to build ridership on that kind of service, and we just don’t have a dense enough population to make it work.

I don’t think a sales tax is the answer. Voting for a tax would be a real leap of faith. I just don’t have a lot of trust in the way the funds already available are being used.

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Regina Chavez, 16, of Ventura: During the school year, Regina takes the bus to St. Bonaventure High School, where she has just completed her sophomore year.

Right now I ride the bus every day, but I’m hoping to get a car soon, which will be a lot easier.

I am concerned about smog and pollution. I’m in the environmental club at school and I’ve trained my family to recycle.

When I get a car, I’ll be driving my brothers and sisters as well, so it will be like a car pool.

The bus isn’t bad. I take it at the same time every day, so I know the driver and some of the other regular riders. Only sometimes weird people get on, and you just have to sit there and try to ignore them. Once I get a car, I’m not going to take the bus anymore.

My mom takes Metrolink and it’s really expensive. So if I was old enough, I’d vote for a sales tax if it would bring the fares down.

I would not vote for a tax that would give more money to road work. It really bugs me when I see those road crews with 10 guys just standing around doing nothing. I think they could save a lot of money if they didn’t have so many extra people out there.

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Sue Simms, 52, of Thousand Oaks: Simms works as a travel agent in downtown Los Angeles. She takes Metrolink to work every day.

I’ve lived in Thousand Oaks for 21 years and I would not have my job if it weren’t for Metrolink.

When I applied last spring, my bosses said I lived too far away and that I would be crabby from sitting in traffic. But I told them about Metrolink and they hired me.

For the 2 1/2 hours I sit on the train each day I can do paperwork, sleep and meet people. I’ve met some really nice people on the train. I call them train mates or Metrolink mates.

Metrolink is expensive, and it makes my day a lot longer, but it helps people like me get from areas where there are no jobs to areas where they can find work.

I would definitely vote for a sales tax, if it would improve public transportation and get cars off the road.

For me, the train is a blessing, but buses aren’t as important. The only way I would take the bus is if I didn’t have a car. Except for work, I live close enough to the places I have to go that it’s faster to get there by car.

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David Schachte, 37, of Camarillo: Schachte rides his bike to his job as an instructor at the Naval Construction Battalion Center at Port Hueneme.

I’ve been riding my bike to work every day for 10 years and I have no beef with the roads around here. The freeways are great and I’m pretty happy with the streets.

I ride everywhere: to Thousand Oaks, Moorpark, Ojai and Ventura.

My main concern is that somebody might rear-end me, but I try to ride as carefully as possible to keep that from happening.

I would not support a sales tax. What do we need it for? I don’t use public transportation and the roads look great to me.

I really have no need for the buses, but I did try to take Metrolink once. I was taking my daughter to Van Nuys for an 11:30 a.m. appointment. But the trains left at 6:30 in the morning.

The only way I would take the train is if it ran during the day. The way it is now it doesn’t do me any good.

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Doris Young, 72, of Simi Valley: Young, whose vision is impaired by diabetes, has been unable to drive for about a year. She depends on Simi Valley’s Dial-A-Ride service to get around.

The Dial-A-Ride concept is great, but in practice, it’s really very hard to get around.

When I need to go somewhere, I have to plan well in advance. I call and put in a request for a pickup. Two or three days later they call back to tell me whether they can fit me in on the bus schedule.

It seems like it would be very simple for someone to keep a log so you could call them directly and they could tell you right away whether or not they could come and get you.

Another problem I see is that those Dial-A-Ride vans carry 15 people, but 99% of the time I’m the only person on the bus when they come to get me. That seems like a waste of money.

I might vote for a sales tax, but I would be very skeptical about it. Since I rely on public transportation I would like to see the money used to improve it.

The roads seem just fine to me. If you have a car, you can handle a few potholes. But if there are no buses, people like me have no way to get around.

If I could drive, I would continue to drive. I would feel bad about the pollution, but I’ve already discovered how difficult it is to get anyplace on public transportation.

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Virginia Boyles, 51, of Simi Valley: Boyles is a writer who lives in Simi Valley. She blames the death of her son, who was killed in a car crash last year, on Caltrans’ removal of a stop sign at a freeway off-ramp.

Obviously, safety is uppermost in my mind. My son died because Caltrans removed a stop sign at a freeway off-ramp near Simi.

It seems like if enough people complain, Caltrans will cave in and change things to make them less safe.

I’m sure Caltrans is concerned with safety, but I think their major concern is with expediting traffic.

I can tell you, it’s much better to sit in traffic an extra 15 minutes and get home safely.

It seems like there are a lot of people out there who don’t think twice about safety. It makes the roads more dangerous than they should be.

But I’m a typical Californian and I have a love affair with my car. It symbolizes my freedom and independence. I would not give it up to take Metrolink or the bus.

As far as taxes go, I think we’ve been taxed to death and yet there never seems to be enough money. I would not vote for a sales tax for transportation.

Getting Around in Ventura County

Ventura County has 277 miles of state highways and eight city bus systems, with a countywide bus service called Ventura Intercity Service Transit Authority, or VISTA, slated to start July 5. VISTA will link most cities in Ventura County for the first time, with unprecedented service to Point Mugu and Camarillo State Hospital. Commuter train service is offered on Metrolink’s recently expanded Ventura County line, which includes stops in Oxnard, Camarillo, Moorpark and Simi Valley, before continuing to the San Fernando Valley and Downtwon Los Angeles.

Traffic Projects

1) With the completion of the Simi Valley-Moorpark Freeway connector, traffic levels are expected to decrease in the 1994 report, due out in the fall.

2) A project to widen California 118 and build a new Saticoy bridge is expected to reduce traffic. The project is scheduled for completion in August.

Countywide Stats

Daily bus ridership: 9,700

Total average daily ridership on the eight bus services in Ventura County for 1993.

Daily Metrolink ridership: 1,860

This is the average daily ridership for the month of April for the Oxnard, Camarillo, Moorpark and Simi stops.

Vehicles on the road per day: 542,000

Sources: Ventura County Transportation Commission information compiled in 1993); Ventura County Air Pollution Control District.