LOS ANGELES—A shortage of bus drivers in Los Angeles resulted in around 10,000 canceled DASH routes a month over the last two years, or an average of 15 percent of scheduled trips, a Department of Transportation representative told the city council’s Transportation Committee Jan. 25.
It’s part of a nationwide trend in which 96 percent of 190 transit agencies across the country reported a workforce shortage, according to a motion filed by Council President Paul Krekorian last week. Krekorian requested a report from the department on the city’s bus driver shortage.
While ridership on downtown routes has recovered to 75 percent of pre-pandemic levels, the mid-city route is missing about a quarter of drivers necessary to run at full service. As a result, there are longer wait times and a lack of ability for the transportation agency to meet its expansion goals….