8/14/2019 Transit Times Volume 2, Number 11S
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CITIZENS TRANSIT INFORMATION COMMITTEETO TIlE RESIDENTS OF SAN
PAgio, RICHMOND, EL SOBRANTE,ROLLINGWOOD, EAST AND NORTH RICHMOND,
AND PARCHBSTER:The findings of the four-month bus study by our area
' s Cit izens Transi tCommittee were reported in the March 1960
issue of Transi t Times .Fortunately , we were able to obtain a
supply of th i s issue and we aremailing i t to you.In discussing
th is Citizen study, three questions are most frequentlyasked:1 -
Question: HOW CAN OUR AREA ANNEX?
By vat ing "YesH on Measure "B" on June 7. Our c i t izens who
votedto annex in 1956 (pnly to have the Court reverse the i r vote
whenthe absentee vote count was completed) now have a second
chance,thanks to the City Councils of San Pablo and Richmond and
theBoard of Supervisors who have consolidated th i s measure with
theJune 7 sta te primary elect ion.2 - Question: IS THIS THE RAPID
TRANSIT PROGRAM?No. I t is a bus program serving two counties only
which wouldcontinue the present routes of Key System and Beninger
withmodern equipment and would extend them into new outlying are
'asnot now served . The Rapid Transit program serves f ive
countiesand i t proposed a high speed elect r ic mainline ra i l
service.Eventually, bus routes wil l t ie in to the Rapid Transi t
program,much the same as local s t ree ts now t i e into freeways.
Anotherdifference is that at present our area is within the
boundary ofthe Rapid Transi t Distr ic t but is not within the
boundaries ofthe Alameda-Contra Costa Dist r ic t .
3 - Question: WHAT WILL THIS COST?I f a majority in each three
jur isdict ions vote in favor of annexa-t ion, we wil l be subject
to a maximum tax ra te of one cent . Byagreement, the area would
then be placed into the bus operatingZone where the tax ra te is
without l imit , as i t would have beenfor any al ternat ive solut
ion . The Dis t r i c t projects self-f inancedoperation without
direct tax subsidy dependence, plans to unifyKey System and
Beninger routes, and extend them to outlying areaswi thin a
year.San Pablo and Richmond wil l not pay back taxes, wil l only
paywhatever Distr ict-wide tax levy is made next year, and wil l
dividea $10,000 payment to cover engineering and legal costs .
Sincemoney to buy modern b u s e ~ for our area was in a recently
approvedDistr ic t bond issue, we wil l assume a pro-rata share of
bond costs .
J . Ed Gall i , County ChairmanManuel Mello, San Pablo
ChairmanAl Furrer , Richmond Chairman
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OAKLAND, MARCH, 1960
PEOPLE TO DECIDECitizens' Committee Urges WesternContra Costa to
Join Transit Distr;ctThe return of western Contra CostaCounty t@
the Transit District has beenrecommended by a citizens' committeeof
Richmond, San Pablo and unincorporated area residents.
The committee, concluding four m@nthsof study, asked the
Richmond and SanPab>lo City COlincils and the Contra CostaBoard
of Supervisors to allow residentsof the area to vote on the
question of annexation at the June 7 primary election.
West Contra Costa is faced with theloss of local transit service
when the District takes ov'er the 0peration of Key System TraNsit
Lines October 1.Acting upon the c0mmittee's final report, the three
Contra Costa public bodiesapproved terms of an annexation agreement
with the District this month andcalded for a public vote on the
matter atthe June election.Annexation AgreementOnly by the full
cooperative effort ofthe three Contra C@sta public b@dies andthe
Transit Dish'iG!t were the legal deadlines met to place the measure
on theJune IDallCiJt.
The committee, which was appointedby Mayors Leo Viano of
Richmoll(!l andC. L. Blanton of San Pab10 and Supervisor James
Kenny, considered 10 different possibilities for providing
service.The group narrowed the choice to establishment of an
autonomous local district
or becoming part of the Alameda-ContraCosta Transit
District.Richmond and San Pablo originallywere part of the
District, but were removed in 1958 by court action.
The committee heard two proposalsinvolving a new local district
and privateoperators.Private Tax SubsidyOne came fmID Beninger
TransportationService @f El Sobrante. The firm offered a service
comparable to that whichwould be provided by the Transit District,
but wflich would require a tax subsidy of from 13 to 55 cents per
$100 ofassessed value for the first year of operation depending on
whether new or usedbuses were 1.!lsed.
The San Mateo-Burlingame TransitCompany sUIDmitted a proposal
for service which would approximate that nowprovided by Key System,
but on a fiveday a week basis. I t was estimated that asubsidy
would CQst fmm 4.8 to 27.6 cents.Upon annexation to tht;l
Alameda-Contra Costa Transit District, West ContraCosta would be
subject to a tax limitedby law to 1 cent. Residents alSo couldvote
on three of the seven members onthe transit boardCiJf directors.
Terms oftwo of the three directors expire the endof this year.A
simple majority vote would resultinannexation.
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District Ready to Buy New Bus FleetSpecifications Draft:ed for
Ult:ramodern 'Transit: Liners;'Coaches t:o Mark Great:est: Transit:
Improvem ent: in 20 Years
Specifications fo r 300 streamlined,newly-designed motor coaches
to be purchased by the Transit District have .beencompleted and are
now undergoing review by the transit board of .directors.The new
city and suburban "Transit
Liners"-many of them to be air-conditioned-will cost an
estimated $8,000,000,and will be purchased during the firsttwo
years of district operation.The ultramodern transit equipmentwill
contain latest features in motor coachdesign, including large
"picture win dows," new air-cushion suspension, wideseats, modern
colors, low entrance step,new push-type doors, and bright,
fluorescent lights .
John R. Worthington, district generalmanager, told the transit
directors thismonth that the purpose of the specifications is to
provide a "new-look transit bus,sharply changed in appearance from
theconventional design of past years.
"The n e ~ coach design, which makes2
a complete break with the past, is thefirst completely new bus
design in nearly20 years," he added.Following study of detailed
specifications, directors are expected to authorize
the General Manager to call for bids onthe new coaches.
The new "Transit Liners" will proVidebasic service on all of the
73 lines to beoperated by the District. Acquisition ofused buses
from Key System TransitLines will augment peak hour serviceduring
the first years of operation.
The used equipment will be replacedby new buses, containing
other improvements as developed, beginning with thethird year of
operation. .
Funds to purchase equipment wereprovided by a general obligation
bondissue, approved by the voters last October. The District
expects to commenceoperations October 1 of this year, replacing Key
System and Beninger Transportation Service in the area.
ALAMEDA-CQNTRACOSTATRANSIT DISTRICT
LEG ENDPROPOSED NEW L l r ~ E S
S Elo:TENTIO NSLINES REC OMMENCE D f OR
IN CREASED FR EOUENCYEX IST ING TRANSaAY 80LOCAL ROUTES TO
BE
CONTINUED IN OPERATION
RICHMOND INNER HARBOR
TRANSIT ROUTES-Map shows existing Key System lines in West
Contra Costa, plusnew routes and other service improvements
recommended for area by transit districtengineering consultants.
Transit service would closely adhere to basic engineeringproposals
should West Contra Costa annex to the District.
Maior Service Improvements OutlinedNew local transit service is
proposedfor recently developed residential and
shopping districts in West Contra Costa.At present, no
satisfactory local serviceexists in these areas, according to
John
R. Worthington, district general manager, and it is considered
an utmost necessity to inaugurate new lines or extendexisting lines
of Key System and Beningerinto these growing areas.The improved
service would facilitateb'avel between residential sections and
the downtown business districts of Rich-
mond and San Pablo, as well as the outlying shopping districts,
and would makecommute travel on public transit moreattractive to
substantial numbers of residents in the area, Worthington said.
New routes or line extensions wouldserve the areas of Mira
Vista, East Richmond Heights, North Richmond, Parcheste r Village,
Rollingwood, the ContraCosta Junior College, San Pablo, and
EISobrante, including the DeAnza WhiteClifIcS and Fairmede College
Highlandsdistricts of the city of Richmond.
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