Torrance Transit

Torrance Transit is a transit agency primarily serving the South Bay region of Los Angeles County.

Torrance Transit

Founded	1940
Service area	South Bay
Service type	bus service
Routes	11
Fuel type	Diesel, Gasoline, CNG
Chief executive	Kim Turner
Website	Official site

History

Torrance Transit inaugurated service on January 15, 1940 using three leased 1931 Mack-33 buses.[1] The new agency provided primarily municipal transit and maintained a bus terminal in downtown Los Angeles until 1959, when the City Council voted to discontinue bus service entirely. Mayor Albert Isen vetoed the council's action, arguing that "every first-class city has its own bus system."[2]

Fleet

In the early 21st century, Torrance Transit's fleet was made up of Gillig Phantom (delivered in 1992, 1996, and 1997) and Gillig Advantage (delivered in 2000 and 2002) buses.[3] Each bus is numbered 4--. The fleet is maintained at the facilities department on Madrona Avenue, constructed in 1986.

Gillig Phantom (left, red and white livery) and New Flyer C40LFR (right, new livery) buses for Torrance Transit (2012)

In 2010 Torrance Transit began replacing its bus fleet with a purchase of 10 gasoline-electric hybrid New Flyer (NFI) GE40LFRs; 20 compressed natural gas (CNG)-powered NFI C40LFRs were delivered in 2011, joined by 9 more CNG NFI XN40s in 2012.[3] The new buses were delivered with a new paint scheme which marked the start of a rebranding effort by the agency.[4]

ZEST

In 1993, Torrance Transit rolled out the Zero Emissions Surface Transit (ZEST) bus, a 25-seat, 29-foot coach which was the largest battery-powered transit vehicle in the United States at the time. ZEST was built by Specialty Vehicle Manufacturing Corporation (SVMC) using a Hughes Aircraft Company-developed powertrain, at a cost of US$300,000 (equivalent to $531,000 in 2019).[5] SVMC in turn had subcontracted the assembly of ZEST to the ACL Technologies division of AAI Corporation, a defense contractor.[6][7] ZEST had a claimed range of 75 miles (121 km) or 10 hours of operation, and the battery pack was designed to be easily replaceable to minimize the time spent out of service while charging.[8]

After several years in operation, service was trimmed back from the morning and afternoon peak commutes to just a lunchtime shuttle from employers to restaurants in order to extend its life.[9] In an interview, John Hall with Torrance Transit stated "[The battery technology] is a long way from where it needs to be. Its useful hours [of service] are not enough. We have learned a lot making this a worthwhile investment. It has a ways to go before it gets to an everyday transit application."[10]

Hybrids

In 2000, Torrance Transit took delivery of two Orion VI hybrid buses equipped with Lockheed-developed HybriDrive series hybrid powertrains. One of the buses, fleet no. 401, was damaged beyond repair in a fire that occurred on September 25, 2002; nearly four years later in June 2016, Orion Bus Industries agreed to buy back the burned hulk from Torrance for $80,000.[11] The remaining Orion VI continued to serve through at least 2010,[12] but was dropped from the fleet by 2014.[3]

The ten gasoline-electric hybrid New Flyer GE40LFR buses delivered in 2010 were procured as part of a joint purchase with other California transit agencies, with Montebello Bus Lines serving as the lead agency. Under the terms of the pilot program, the federal government subsidy was increased from 80% to 90% of the cost of each hybrid bus.[13][14]

Routes and operations

Torrance Transit does not operate on Thanksgiving, Christmas or New Year's Day. Service on Memorial Day, Independence Day and Labor Day operates on Sunday schedule.

Route	Terminals		via	Notes	Refs.
1	Del Amo Fashion Center Carson Street and Hawthorne Boulevard	Harbor Freeway Station	Figueroa Street, Vermont Avenue, Torrance Boulevard	Operates daily Also serves the Harbor Gateway Transit Center
2	Del Amo Fashion Center Madrona Avenue and Carson Street	Harbor Freeway Station	El Segundo Boulevard, Crenshaw Boulevard, Artesia Boulevard, Inglewood Avenue, Anza Avenue	Operates weekdays and Saturdays Also serves the South Bay Galleria
3	Redondo Beach Pier	Long Beach Transit Mall	Carson Street, Main Street, Pacific Coast Highway	Operates daily Operates alongside Rapid 3
Rapid 3	South Bay Galleria Artesia Boulevard and Kingsdale Avenue	Long Beach Transit Mall	Hawthorne Boulevard, Carson Street, Avalon Boulevard, Pacific Coast Highway	Operates weekday rush hours only See also: Metro Rapid
4X	Downtown LA Union Station	Torrance Hawthorne Boulevard and Pacific Coast Highway	In Downtown LA: Grand Avenue and Olive Street Express Portion: Harbor Transitway In the South Bay: Vermont Avenue, Torrance Boulevard, Hawthorne Boulevard	Operates weekday rush hours in the peak direction (northbound in the AM, southbound in the PM)	[15]
5	Crenshaw C Line Station	Torrance Airport Pacific Coast Highway and Crenshaw Boulevard	Van Ness Avenue, Arlington Avenue, Narbonne Avenue	Operates weekdays and Saturdays
6	Del Amo Fashion Center Carson Street and Hawthorne Boulevard	Artesia Station	190th Street	Operates weekdays Also serves the Harbor Gateway Transit Center
7	Redondo Beach Pier	Carson Sepulveda Boulevard and Avalon Boulevard	Sepulveda Boulevard	Operates weekdays and Saturdays
8	LAX City Bus Center	Torrance Pacific Coast Highway and Hawthorne Boulevard	Aviation Boulevard, Hawthorne Boulevard	Operates daily Also serves the South Bay Galleria Metro Local Line 344 provides limited stop service on Hawthorne Boulevard
9	Del Amo Fashion Center Carson Street and Hawthorne Boulevard	Carson Lomita Boulevard and Avalon Boulevard	Lomita Boulevard	Operates weekdays and Saturdays
10	Crenshaw C Line Station	Torrance Pacific Coast Highway and Crenshaw Boulevard	Crenshaw Boulevard	Operates weekdays and Saturdays

Discontinued routes

Discontinued routes of Torrance Transit

Route	Terminals		via	Notes	Refs.
4	Del Amo Fashion Center Carson Street and Hawthorne Boulevard	Torrance Beach	Madrona Ave, Sepulveda Blvd, Palos Verdes Blvd	Replaced by Line 4X, which began service on October 2, 2017.	[16]
MAX 2	Rancho Palos Verdes Palos Verdes Dr. West and Hawthorne	El Segundo Imperial Hwy and Douglas	Hawthorne, Anza, Aviation Blvd, and El Segundo Blvd	Municipal Area eXpress (MAX) commuter service was a joint venture of the cities of El Segundo, Lawndale, Lomita (joined 1990), Los Angeles, Rancho Palos Verdes, Redondo Beach (withdrew 1993), Torrance, and Los Angeles County, with Torrance Transit as the lead agency. MAX Route 1 ('Beach Cities') discontinued in 1993 after withdrawal of Redondo Beach. Operated during peak commuting hours on weekdays only. Service began on April 18, 1990 and was discontinued on June 30, 2013.	[17] [18] [19] [20] [21] [22]
MAX 3	San Pedro/Torrance Pacific at 36th		PCH, Crenshaw, Aviation Blvd, El Segundo Blvd, and Sepulveda
MAX 3x	San Pedro Pacific Crest		Pacific Ave, El Segundo Blvd, and Sepulveda

References

1. "Torrance Transit marks 70 years with new gasoline-electric fleet". Metro Magazine. August 10, 2010. Retrieved 9 June 2019.
2. Shanahan, Dennis F.; Elliot Jr., Charles (1984). Historic Torrance: A Pictorial History of Torrance, California. Legends Press. ISBN 978-0960880812. as quoted in the In motion newsletter, volume 1, issue 1
3. "Table L-2: Fleet Inventory as of June 30, 2014". Short Range Transit Plan, FY2015-2017 (Report). City of Torrance. October 2014. p. 29. Retrieved 9 June 2019.
4. Green, Nick (December 10, 2009). "Torrance buses going green inside and outside". Daily Breeze. Archived from the original on March 8, 2016.
5. "Torrance: 25-Seat Electric Bus Joins Public Transit Fleet". Los Angeles Times. September 21, 1993. Retrieved 9 June 2019.
6. "AAI Transportation Systems: Electric Vehicles". AAI Corporation. Archived from the original on 23 October 1996.
7. White, David Allen (May 1997). Networks and Business Development: Analyzing the efforts to Start an Electric Bus Manufacturing Plant in South Boston (PDF) (Master in City Planning thesis). Massachusetts Institute of Technology. p. 38. ACL/AAI, located in California, was hired by SVMC to assemble several electric buses. Unable to pay ACL/AAI for their work, ACL/AAI never completed all of the buses.
8. "Zero Emissions Surface Transit" (PDF). The Transit Advocate. Souther California Transit Advocates. October 1993. p. 6. Retrieved 9 June 2019.
9. Looper, Mark (24 May 1999). "[Alternative fuel vehicles] at the Torrance City Yards Open House". altfuels.org. Retrieved 9 June 2019.
10. Realizing Electric Bus Deployment for Transit Service (Report). University of South Florida, Center for Urban Transportation Research. April 1998. p. 30. Retrieved 9 June 2019.
11. Turner, Kim (June 13, 2006). Sale of Bus #401 to Orion Bus Industries (Report). City of Torrance. Retrieved 25 June 2019.
12. "Table L-2: Fleet Inventory as of June 30, 2010". Short Range Transit Plan, FY2010-2012 (Report). City of Torrance. October 2010. p. 15. Retrieved 25 June 2019.
13. Transit - Approval of a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to participate in a Cooperative Procurement Pilot Program (Report). City of Torrance. October 17, 2006. Retrieved 25 June 2019.
14. "City of Montebello adds to hybrid bus fleet". Los Angeles Daily News. December 12, 2008. Retrieved 25 June 2019.
15. "Line 4X Kick-Off Ceremony". Torrance Transit. Retrieved 9 June 2019.
16. "Route Four" (PDF). City of Torrance, Torrance Transit. September 19, 2000. Archived from the original (PDF) on April 13, 2003.
17. "MAX". Torrance Transit. Archived from the original on August 15, 2002.
18. "MAX Line 2: Palos Verdes Peninsula". MAXbus. Archived from the original on 11 October 2002.
19. "MAX Line 3: San Pedro/Torrance". MAXbus. Archived from the original on 11 October 2002.
20. "MAX Line 3x: Freeway Express". MAXbus. Archived from the original on 14 December 2002.
21. "About MAX: History". MAXbus. Archived from the original on 15 February 2003.
22. Turner, Kim (August 27, 2013). "Transit - Authorize the sale of surplus/obsolete transit buses and equipment". City of Torrance. Retrieved 10 June 2019.

External links

• Official site
• "Torrance Transit". CPTDB wiki.