The lowdown on shopping carts and strollers on Metro buses



It’s not often enforced, and most riders probably don’t know about it, but it’s a Metro rule to fold up your carts and strollers on buses, trains, and subways when they’re crowded.image

The Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transit Authority, which operates buses, subways, and light-rail trains maintains a customer code of conduct governing customer safety on its vehicles. Its most recent update, from June 2011 (http://www.metro.net/about_us/ethics/images/Customer-Code-of-Conduct-rev.pdf) states, “During crowded conditions or peak hours, remove children from strollers and materials from carts, and collapse, or wait for the next Metro vehicle that has room for the cart or stroller. This provision does not apply to wheelchairs or other mobility devices for persons with disabilities.”

The rule is enforced by drivers, conductors, or any other authorized Metro representative, at their discretion.

Mark Littman, Metro Deputy Executive Officer for Public Relations, said that bus drivers could call in Metro Transit Police should a patron refuse to comply with an order to empty and fold a cart or stroller. Littman also said that sheriff’s deputies at rail stations do actively monitor folding carts during peak hours. He emphasized that there is no outright ban on carts or strollers. Patrons can also wait for the a less-crowded bus if they don’t want to empty their carriers, he said.

imageFor those living in South LA and wondering how to get their groceries home without violating the rule, one grocery store in the area offers a shuttle for shoppers: The Ralph’s at Vermont and Adams has shuttle-vans that will take customers home within a five-mile radius of the store if they have purchased at least $25 worth of groceries. Customers can sit under a canopy while waiting for a van. The store operates the service from 9:30 a.m. – 10 p.m. daily and is the only Ralph’s in the area to offer shuttle service.