Meanwhile, plans were underway to reestablish a light rail train network in the Los Angeles basin. On July 14, 1990, eighty-eight years after the first Pacific Electric Red Car rumbled from Los Angeles to Long Beach, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority's first light rail train, called the Blue Line, began operation; but this time with air-conditioned trains that glided 55 miles an hour! Nine months later, Long Beach Transit responded to the swelling downtown business congestion by implementing a frequent downtown shuttle service called the "Runabout", just in time to help with the crowds of the 1991 Grand Prix. As dependency grew on the part of the business community for the service to attract and maintain patrons, the city decided to subsidize the shuttles by offering free fare downtown. Far surpassing Long Beach Transit's expectations, annual ridership grew from 200,000 to over 1.5 million customers in just three years. To meet the growing demands and support the city's reemergence as one of the West Coast's most dynamic tourist and business centers, the Runabouts evolved into a comprehensive system called The Passports. The fleet of shuttles grew from ten to 28, and service expanded to connect downtown with trendy Belmont Shore, the Queen Mary, Catalina Landing, the new Aquarium of the Pacific and Long Beach State University. Today, The Passports carry nearly three million passengers a year.

The anticipated travel time to Los Angeles from Long Beach on the Light Rail is 52 minutes. Not bad when the projections for average speed on the freeways in the year 2,000 are about 17 miles per hour!

Adding to the trend of new and innovative transit alternatives, Long Beach Transit introduced two new services in 1998. One was a water taxi service called the Passport AquaBus, and the other was a downtown circulator called the Village Tour D'Art. The AquaBus, a 40-passenger vessel completely wheelchair accessible, offers travelers a unique water experience on Queensway Bay, the water body that was once a part of the playground of the former "Coney Island of the West Coast." The Village Tour D'Art shuttles visitors to the historical sites of old Willmore City, Long Beach's impressive old and new architecture, the emerging art district and the highly acclaimed Museum of Latin American Art.

Working Harder, Making Things Easier
As more people enjoyed the new services around downtown and to the attractions along the nearby waterfront, the demand increased. Another, larger water taxi was added to Long Beach Transit's family of services in the summer of 2001 called the AquaLink. A high-speed catamaran that comfortably seats 70 passengers, The AquaLink connects downtown's waterfront with Belmont Shore's in the most southern end of the city, docking at Alamitos Bay Landing. The ride offers an affordable opportunity to enjoy an extraordinarily beautiful and unique view of the city's skyline, plus the fun of travelling on the water!

Then, later that year, the Passport service spun off a new shuttle in downtown named the Pine Avenue Link. Now there is a stand-alone shuttle service, painted bright purple, making it even easier to travel around downtown. The purple Pine Avenue Links travel up and down Pine Avenue, downtown's main thoroughfare, connecting all the major transit services, including the Blue Line light rail train and the water taxis, to the Long Beach Convention Center, The Aquarium of the Pacific, the New Pike development project, and Shoreline Village. The hub of these shuttle services, called "Passport Center," is conveniently located adjacent to the Transit Mall on Pine Avenue.

Today, Long Beach Transit's fixed route system serves the communities of Long Beach, Signal Hill, Lakewood, Cerritos, Los Alamitos, Hawaiian Gardens, Seal Beach, Artesia, Bellflower, Paramount, Compton and Carson, carrying a total of nearly 28 million passengers annually. The recipient of numerous national awards and honors, Long Beach Transit has been recognized for its outstanding efficiency, safety and customer satisfaction. Long Beach Transit's mission is to continue its fine tradition of providing public transit services that enhance and improve the quality of life for the people in its community.