Bus Line Reinstatement Shows Citizens Can Win

* I recently wrote an article describing frustration over the termination of commuter bus service from the Antelope Valley to Century City and Beverly Hills by the Antelope Valley Transit Authority (Valley Commentary, July 24).

Many of the affected commuters took off work, attended a regularly scheduled board meeting July 25 and, armed with a list of riders and other proposals, petitioned it to consider reinstating the service to West Los Angeles. The board asked AVTA staff to return to the drawing board and report back at a special meeting on Aug. 8. In the meantime, a second group of Westsiders met with the AVTA executive staff on a Saturday for a true working meeting.

On Aug. 8, in response to the AVTA staff recommendation, the board of directors voted to reinstate the commuter bus service from the Antelope Valley to West Los Angeles beginning Aug. 22.

The Westside commuters appreciate this opportunity to give due praise to the members of the AVTA executive staff, the authority’s board of directors and to transportation staffers Herb Balian and Rosa Fuqua for county Supervisor Michael Antonovich.

These representatives of our local governments listened to the case presented, immediately acted on the facts and reversed their earlier decision.

There is a lesson here. Citizens and government representatives are not mutually exclusive. They can work together to produce sound, tangible solutions which benefit everyone.

BILLIE DICKEY

Pearblossom