OLYMPIC PARK-AND-RIDE ADVANCE RESERVATION SYSTEM

The Games of the 23rd Olympiad were celebrated in Los Angeles July 28 to August 12, 1984. The Southern California Rapid Transit District (RTD) operated a dedicated fleet of 550 buses during the Games for spectators at the Olympics. Described in this paper is one aspect of RTD's Olympic services, the advance reservation system designed for the Olympic park-and-ride lines. The goals of this reservation system were twofold: one goal was to provide an attractive service to patrons; the other goal was to enable the level of service provided to be tailored to demand. Both goals were achieved. Patrons were pleased with the service and cost savings were realized because of efficient use of personnel and equipment. Ticketron operated the reservation system and processed nearly 190,000 reservations during the 72-day sales period. Reservations were available by mail (37 percent of total orders), over the telephone (36 percent), and in person (61 percent). Sales began slowly and peaked at more than 7,500 per day.