LA County Mayor Michael Antonovich makes motion to enhance fare collection, provide safer environment on Antelope Valley Line

LOS ANGELES - Los Angeles County Mayor Michael Antonovich Thursday introduced a motion at the Metro Board of Directors Meeting to allocate an additional $1.7 million for the purpose of ensuring 100 percent fare enforcement on all Metrolink Antelope Valley Line trains through June 30, 2015. This funding allows continuation and augmentation of a pilot program being implemented by Metrolink which began on October 31, 2014. The Metro Board approved the motion unanimously.

"We have known for too long that we need to address this issue, and now we have committed the resources to make certain everyone on Antelope Valley Line trains have paid the proper fare and are following the rules," Antonovich said. "Customer service and safety continue to be the highest priorities for Metrolink, and this support will allow the agency to strengthen that pledge."

Antonovich is also a Metro appointee to the Metrolink Board. Metro is one of five county transportation agencies which govern Metrolink.

The $1.7 million will come from Metrolink-specific sources (Proposition C 10% and Measure R 3%).

In October, Metrolink launched a full fare enforcement pilot program on the Antelope Valley Line to curb fare evasion on the system, adding assistant conductors to trains to help check for tickets. Metrolink also instituted a policy at Los Angeles Union Station to prevent people without a ticket from boarding the train, and provided aggressive fare inspections at the Glendale and Burbank stations to prevent passengers from making "short-buys", where a passenger buys a ticket for a shorter (and less costly) trip than they intend to make.

The effort has also involved multiple conductor announcements, prominent signage at all stations and periodic security sweeps by Los Angeles County sheriff's deputies at intermediate stops along the line.

The initial program was scheduled to conclude in December, but with the support of Mayor Antonovich and the Metro Board, the program will continue through June 2015.

Metrolink staff will return to the Metro Board by the June 2015 Board meeting to provide an evaluation of the program and its effectiveness in improving the quality and security of Metrolink's Antelope Valley Line service. Metrolink's goal is to secure funding and resources to have 100 percent fare enforcement on all its lines spanning more than 500 miles of track in Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, Ventura, and San Diego counties.

The initial exercise has allowed Metrolink to ensure people on the trains have valid fare, while improving the travel experience for passengers. As a result, revenues collected in November were higher than expected and customer satisfaction is higher on the Antelope Valley Line as fares are being checked more regularly and security is more prevalent on trains.

The Antelope Valley Line serves the cities of Los Angeles, Glendale, Burbank, San Fernando, Santa Clarita, Palmdale, and Lancaster, along with unincorporated areas of Los Angeles County.

Additional assistant conductors provide significant benefit in terms of fare enforcement, passenger communications and customer service.

For additional details on Metrolink, please visit www.metrolinktrains.com.

ABOUT METROLINK (www.metrolinktrains.com)

Metrolink is Southern California's regional commuter rail service in its 22^nd year of operation. The Southern California Regional Rail Authority (SCRRA), a joint powers authority made up of an 11-member board representing the transportation commissions of Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino and Ventura counties, governs the service. Metrolink operates over seven routes through a six-county, 512 route-mile network. Metrolink is the third largest commuter rail agency in the United States based on directional route miles and the eighth largest based on annual ridership.

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