City of Santa Ana
The Orange County Transportation Authority is partnering with the cities of Santa Ana, Garden Grove, Anaheim and Fullerton for the Central Harbor Blvd. Transit Corridor Study to envision the future of transit on Harbor Blvd.
Harbor Blvd. provides a vital north-south connection linking residents, businesses, schools and visitor destinations and has the distinction of being the busiest bus routes in the County. Continue reading
The proposed OC Streetcar is one milestone closer to becoming the county’s first modern light-rail system, after President Barack Obama included $125 million for it in his proposed federal budget for the 2016-17 fiscal year, according to the O.C. Register.
The OC Streetcar project still needs to come up with another $20 million dollars. OCTA officials believe they can do so from state programs or local state tax dollars.
The streetcar will have 10 stops in each direction concentrated in Santa Ana’s Civic Center area running to the eastern edge of Garden Grove. Continue reading
The Orange County Board of Supervisors are conducting a special meeting tomorrow, January 29, 2016, at 3 p.m. at the Hall of Administration.
They will be discussing one item – the approval of a lease with the Orange County Transit District for emergency shelter services to the homeless during expected El Nino weather at the Santa Ana Transit Terminal, located at 400 W. Santa Ana Boulevard, Santa Ana. Continue reading
City of Santa Ana, Downtown Orange County
Community Alert: Public Hearing – OCTA Proposed Bus Service Plan
OC Bus 360° is an initiative that looks at improving the bus system from all angles. As part of OC Bus 360°, OCTA is proposing to add, reduce, and/or eliminate services in 2016 to optimize the efficiency and effectiveness of the overall bus system. Your input is important to us. Please attend one of the public meetings and give us your comments on the Proposed 2016 Bus Service Plan. Continue reading
The OCTA’s CEO, Darrell Johnson, responded in writing to Santa Ana Mayor Miguel Pulido regarding the Proposed 2016 Bus Service Plan, on January 8. The OCTA is considering getting rid of the bus lines 51, 145, and 76 that serve the people of Santa Ana.
The problem that the OCTA is contending with is that bus ridership has gone down quite a bit. That may be due in part to the large number of immigrants who have left Santa Ana, heading to other cities and states and even returning to Latin America.
Here is Johnson’s letter to Mayor Pulido: Continue reading
By: Phil Bacerra
On Monday, January 25, 2015, at 9 a.m., the OCTA will hold a public hearing that could ultimately take bus lines away from Santa Ana, the city with the most transit ridership in Orange County, and reallocate those resources to areas with less than half the ridership of Santa Ana.
According to SCAG and the US Census, 11% of Santa Ana’s residents take transit. Only 6% of Anaheim’s residents use transit. Only 4% in Fullerton, 3% in Orange, and 1% in Irvine. Continue reading
OCTA Offering Free Bus Rides on New Year’s Eve
Free bus rides on New Year’s Eve is back! So go ahead and plan a fun night on the town and OC Bus will get you there and back safely. OCTA is providing free rides on any fixed route bus beginning on Thursday December 31st at 6 pm and extending through 2:30 am on Friday January 1st.
Taking the bus is pretty easy. Even after a great party you can probably figure things out. Just in case, you can find everything you need to plan your trip in OCTA’s how to ride section. OCTA encourages you to plan ahead using the Google Trip Planner since not all routes run past midnight. Remember it is free after 6 pm, so bring $2 bus fare if you are getting an early start. Continue reading
OCTA CEO Darrell Johnson speaks to a crowd of OCTA employees who served in the U.S. military during a veterans appreciation event at the OCTA’s Garden Grove base
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Joel Zlotnik, (714) 560-5713, Eric Carpenter (714) 560-5697
FOR MORE INFORMATION: Nov. 12, 2015
OCTA Honors Veterans in Annual Event
Nearly 10 percent of transportation agency’s workforce is made up of those who served in the military
ORANGE – The Orange County Transportation Authority this week honored employees who have served in the military and employees with relatives currently serving during OCTA’s sixth annual Veterans Day Appreciation event.
OCTA employs more than 100 veterans from the Army, Air Force, Navy, Marines and Coast Guard, representing nearly 10 percent of the workforce. OCTA has been recognized by military organizations as a military-friendly employer for its efforts to actively recruit veterans. Continue reading
An unidentified man in his mid-20s landed on the roof of a moving OCTA bus at about 10 a.m. this morning, after trying to kill himself by jumping from the top of a five-story parking garage, next to the northbound 5 Freeway at the 1st/4th street exit, according to the O.C. Register.
The man fell about 100 feet before landing on the OCTA bus. The bus driver heard the impact and he saw a portion of the man’s body, as it had crashed through the roof. The bus driver immediately pulled over the bus, which was empty at the time.
Several firefighters from the O.C. Fire Authority used ladders to climb onto the top of the bus where they deployed a Stokes basket to safely lower the victim to the ground. Continue reading
ORANGE COUNTY DISTRICT ATTORNEY PRESS RELEASE
Case # 15WF1519
Date: October 8, 2015
WESTMINSTER, Calif. – A man was sentenced to six years in state prison today for trafficking an 18-year-old woman and physically assaulting her, including burning her leg with a blow torch, and attempting to force her to work as a prostitute for his benefit. Richard Jordan Sandoval, 24, Garden Grove, pleaded guilty today, Oct. 8, 2015, to one felony count of assault with force likely to produce great bodily injury, one felony count of domestic battery with corporal injury, one felony count of false imprisonment by menace, violence, fraud, or deceit, one felony count of human trafficking, and one felony count of criminal threats. Continue reading
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Oct. 2, 2015
FOR MORE INFORMATION: Eric Carpenter (714) 560-5697
NEWS ADVISORY: Poodles, labs and more to ride OCTA buses for service training
WHAT: Service and therapy animals in training are invited to join their handlers in making bus rides a familiar and relaxed experience during the Orange County Transportation Authority’s Service Animal Training Day.
Roundtrip training buses, not in service to the public, will depart every 20 minutes from the ARTIC station in Anaheim to the Downtown Disney District and the Anaheim Garden Walk. Participants can take unlimited rides during this event for free. Continue reading
Ronnetta Johnson, of CSP, OCDA Tony Rackauckas, Irvine Deputy Police Chief Mike Hamel, OCTA Chair and Mayor Pro Tem of Irvine Jeffrey Lalloway, Lita Mercado, of CSP, OCTA CEO Darrell Johnson, OC Assistant Sheriff Lee Trujillo, and Anaheim Deputy Chief Julian Harvey
IN THEIR OWN WORDS: 2015 HUMAN TRAFFICKING REPORT DOCUMENTS WHAT SURVIVORS OF SEX AND LABOR TRAFFICKING WANT LAW ENFORCEMENT AND SERVICE ORGANIZATIONS TO UNDERSTAND
In Conjunction with Anaheim Police Department, the Orange County Human Trafficking Task Force Issues Call to Action to Train More Sworn Officers to Curtail Human Slavery; Task Force also Launches Faith-Based Advisory Council to Assist Survivors with Every Day Needs
SANTA ANA, Calif., Aug. 20, 2015 — Every victim removed from a dangerous human trafficking situation is cause for celebration, as overwhelmingly evident in the victims’ own words about these heinous crimes and captured in the latest report from the Orange County Human Trafficking Task Force (OCHTTF).
The 2015 Human Trafficking Victim Report also documents the successful evolution of the OCHTTF into a fully operational multijurisdictional task force. Although fewer reports of human trafficking were documented during this transition, the more than 80 partners comprising the OCHTTF now have the coordinated structure and systems in place to better identify, investigate, prosecute and provide services to human trafficking survivors. Continue reading
In a bid to win federal approval and matching funds, the OCTA agreed Thursday to commit $56 million toward a new light-rail line connecting Santa Ana and Garden Grove. By making the commitment, the OCTA stands to gain up to $144 million from a competitive federal grant program called New Starts to spend on a planned $289 million light-rail line, according to the O.C. Register.
Santa Ana had a streetcar years ago but it was removed – in part to mollify the automobile manufacturers who wanted folks to drive instead of using light rail. It was part of the Pacific Electric rail system, which was a privately owned mass transit system in Southern California consisting of electrically powered streetcars, interurban cars, and buses and was the largest electric railway system in the world in the 1920s. Organized around the city centers of Los Angeles and San Bernardino, it connected cities in Los Angeles County, Orange County, San Bernardino County and Riverside County, according to Wikipedia. Continue reading
City of Santa Ana, Orange County’s Downtown
OC Streetcar Project Takes Next Step
A Memorandum of Understanding was authorized between OCTA and the City of Santa Ana
The OC Streetcar project marked its latest milestone this week as the Orange County Transportation Authority Board of Directors agreed to a memorandum of understanding with the city of Santa Ana outlining the roles and responsibilities associated with the development, implementation, operations and maintenance of the project.
The OC Streetcar is planned to travel through the cities of Santa Ana and Garden Grove, intended to provide easy connections for people traveling from trains and buses to employment, retail and recreational areas. Continue reading
OCTA Chair and Irvine Mayor Pro Tem Jeff Lalloway and OCTA CEO Darrell Johnson stand in front of the redesigned OCTA bus
FOR MORE INFORMATION: FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Joel Zlotnik (714) 560-5713 June 22, 2015
Eric Carpenter (714) 560-5697
New Bus Design Set to Hit OC Streets
OCTA’s refreshed concept features a prominent blue and Orange wave and “OC Bus.”
ORANGE – A new look for OCTA buses will soon be rolling through Orange County streets.
The Orange County Transportation Authority board voted Monday to roll out the colorful new design for its buses as part of an ongoing and comprehensive effort to maximize service, retain riders and get the attention of new customers. Continue reading