‘Why You Ride (or Don’t Ride)‘ is a series where you, our faithful readers, share your transportation routines in L.A. and your thoughts on how to make things better – read more about the concept here.

Want to share your story? Take the survey here if you ride transit regularly, or take this one if you don’t ride.

Who You Are:

Name: Peter Elder
Occupation: Accounts Payable Clerk
Location: West Hollywood

Your Transit Routine:

How often do you take transit and for what purpose?

Every morning and evening to get to work, and some weekends to go out to the bars in Silverlake… love that the 4 runs 24 hours!

Where are you typically traveling from and going to?

West Hollywood to Santa Monica.

What lines/routes do you take?

704 and 4. 720 if I’m making a stop in Westwood.

How long does it typically take?

30 minutes in the morning, an hour in the evening going to and from work.

Briefly, how would you describe your typical transit experience? Love it, deal with it, or hate it?

I deal with it.

On average, what do you spend each month on transportation?

$50 – $100

Why do you take transit?

Save money and help the environment, and because I got sick of maintaining my car and paying for insurance.

Other Transportation:

Do you use any other forms of alternative transportation?

No, but I’m thinking about getting a bicycle.

Are you car-free? If so, why? If not, why not?

I am not really car free since my partner has a car, but most of the time I take the bus.

Your Perspective:

If you could make one change to improve your transit experience, what would it be?

I want a re-loadable transit pass that holds cash value, not just a monthly pass. It is more expensive for me to buy a monthly pass every month. I do tokens right now but a card I could reload with cash fare would be better, especially if I could do that online.

Given limited funds, how would you address L.A.’s transportation issues?

Subways or elevated trains. There are already too many buses!

Do you think L.A. transit is better or worse since you started riding? What’s changed?

Haven’t been riding that long. It is better right now because the students are all on summer break.

How would you encourage Angelenos to use transit?

Give them a free pass to try it out for a couple of weeks.