Passengers Praise New OCTA Bravo! Bus Service

Bravo! Route 560, the Orange County Transportation Authority’s new faster service from Santa Ana to Long Beach, has recorded more than 2,700 daily average boardings during its first month of service.

The Bravo! route launched June 13 and was made possible by a $2.3 million grant to OCTA from California’s Transit and Intercity Rail Program. The grant is part of the state’s cap and trade funding program, which was created to fund capital improvements that cut greenhouse gases by reducing the number of miles that people drive. Buses on the route run on clean-burning compressed natural gas.

“I want to thank the state for recognizing the importance of this new bus service that has already significantly improved connectivity throughout Orange County. We couldn’t have launched it without the grant,” said OCTA CEO Darrell Johnson. “Bravo! 560 allows our residents to reach major destinations faster, which takes cars off the road to improve traffic and protect the environment.”

The new service provides a quicker commute along the popular Route 60 between Santa Ana’s busy transit center and the VA Medical Center in Long Beach. Bravo! 560 has been embraced and praised by passengers in its first few weeks.

Arlene Ho, a Tustin resident who graduated from UC Irvine in May, said she enjoys taking the bus with her family and friends to go shopping, to the beach and to her favorite dining destination in Orange County’s Little Saigon.

“OC Bus is the safest, most relaxing and quickest way to get to your destination,” she said.

The specially branded orange and blue Bravo! bus runs along Westminster Avenue and 17th Street making fewer stops. It targets key transfer points and destinations, including the Santa Ana Regional Transportation Center, Santa Ana College, Cal State Long Beach and the VA Medical Center. The service also improves regional connectivity with its links to Metrolink, Amtrak’s Pacific Surfliner and Bravo! 543. That bus route travels from the Fullerton Transportation Center to Santa Ana along Harbor Boulevard, OCTA’s most heavily traveled transit corridor.

Compared to Route 60, the Bravo! 560 gives commuters an average travel-time savings of 15 percent over the existing service, which currently takes more than 90 minutes from Santa Ana to Long Beach. The route operates on weekdays from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. and costs the same as regular service – $2 per boarding, or $5 for a one-day pass.

College student Alejandra Bonilla said the bus can get her and her friends to class on time without the hassle of driving or searching for a parking spot, a difficult task on a busy campus.

“OC Bus takes us to school,” Bonilla said. “We don’t need to worry about traffic.”

Bravo! 560 is part of OC Bus 360°, OCTA’s ongoing effort to improve bus service and increase the efficiency of bus travel throughout the county.