An active city like Santa Monica requires robust public transportation options, something the City’s dedicated department continued to work towards this past year.
This past week, the Santa Monica Department of Transportation released its annual report of actions during the 2023-24 Fiscal Year, aligning with City priorities like sustainability, connectivity and safety. The report includes statistics on Big Blue Bus ridership, as well as updates on new bike lanes and upgrades to buses.
“I’m proud to reflect on the remarkable progress we’ve made in creating a more connected, safe and sustainable transportation network,” Department of Transportation Director Anuj Gupta said. “From expanding our pedestrian and bike infrastructure to deploying our electric bus fleet, our efforts have been guided by a commitment to equity, safety and environmental stewardship. These achievements are a testament to the collaborative spirit of our team and our partners, working together to make Santa Monica a model for resilient urban mobility.”
The commitment to the environment starts with the electric bus fleet, expanded to 19 in service this year serving Big Blue Bus routes. This accounts for 10% of the total fleet, with the buses running for 333,561 miles in total. Reduced greenhouse emissions from this action were estimated to be over 22,000 pounds, and the department’s long-term plan is to include charging infrastructure on the entire fleet.
Electrification is part of the zero-emission movement for the department, aided by a $22.9 million grant from California’s Transit and Intercity Rail Capital Program. The grant added five battery electric buses to the BBB fleet, part of the effort to have a zero-emission fleet by 2030.
Advances to BBB also extend to the new Transit Safety Officer program that was implemented last year, providing real-time assistance on both high-traffic buses and at key stops. The improvements led to an 11% growth in BBB ridership in 23-24 as compared to the prior year, reaching 8.6 million riders in total. Ridership spiked the highest on weekdays, going up 12% in daily average from the prior year. The average Saturday and Sunday had 6% and 9% more traffic, respectively.
The department isn’t just BBB, however, also turning its attention to security and sustainability enhancements on the vehicle and bike fronts. To promote biking city-wide, roughly 3.8 miles of new and upgraded bike lanes were installed, as well as 39 new curb extensions. To keep riders safe on the streets, the department refreshed 222 crosswalks, added two new ones, and added new stop signs at key intersections.
For driver safety, the department installed 37 new security cameras in various Downtown parking structures, also adding a security firm to patrol the areas. A collaboration with the Santa Monica Police Department and Metro Los Angeles also led to more transit security, which went hand-in-hand with Metro’s 2024 introduction of the TAP-to-Exit program at the Downtown Expo Line station.
The 24-25 plan for the department, aside from implementing the BBB Brighter Blue plan, is to continue increasing battery electric buses, as well as collaborate with regional partners on transportation options for the 2026 World Cup and LA28 Olympic Games.
To view the full report, visithttps://www.santamonica.gov/departments/samodot.
