Transit Ambassador Pilot Program approved last summer

Transit

Continued from Page A2 stench, encounters with mentally unstable individuals, avoidance of human waste, trash, open drug and alcohol use, aggressive behavior towards passengers and indecent exposure.

Many commuters reviewing LA Metro this year commented that they would not return to the trains. The Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority knew things had to improve. On March 6, the first 300 transit ambassadors were deployed. Their goal is to “play a critical role in making our system feel welcoming for all and in bringing back ridership.”

It’s a tall order when the transportation authority recognizes that rape, assault, robbery and murder have risen by 24% in the last two years. The number of people who died riding the LA Metro has already reached 21 for 2023.

The Transit Ambassador Pilot Program was approved last summer to “provide a dedicated staff of diverse, specially trained individuals to offer in-person support to Metro Bus and Rail riders.”

Ambassadors will ride in pairs on the Metro system from

5:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. during the week and from 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. on weekends. They’ll help customers find their bus or train, connect the homeless to appropriate services, assist with fare payments and greet riders. The transit ambassadors will work with community-based crisis management teams and be equipped with cell phones and radios to quickly contact appropriate Metro staff for assistance and report issues of safety and cleanliness. Transit ambassadors are not security forces and are unarmed. The program is estimated to cost $123 million over five years, i.e., around $24.6 million per year, with $95 million going to RMI International Inc. and around $28 million going to Strive Well-Being Inc. for recruitment, screening and training of ambassadors in cultural and situational awareness, unconscious bias training, disability awareness, customer service, traumainformed response, and other personal and public safety courses.

The pilot program looked at the Bay Area Rapid Transit in San Francisco (BART), and Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority’s (SEPTA) transit system to model the customer support program.

Harald H. A. Hulsebusch, after a full and remarkable life of 89 years, passed away at 4:44 PM on February 28, 2023, with his loving stepdaughter, Julia Jane Di Sieno, at his side. He followed his wife, Wanda, who left us in December of 2021. Harald was born in Ovelgonne, Germany on December 2, 1933, to Lili and Heinrich Hulsebusch.

After a 35 year career at sea, as an engineer on ocean going ships, he retired as chief engineer on a tuna clipper. He was a partner in an ambitious and forward thinking lobster fishing venture in which he was also chief engineer on a vessel specially designed to catch, prepare, clean, freeze, and hold the catch. In 1961, he settled in Santa Barbara. Harald invested in local real estate and was, hands down, considered the most generous landlord his tenants ever had, always making sure families were housed safely. He and Wanda had a fabulous life, travelling the world together. His love of the sea continued, and for 20 years, in his sailing yacht, “Eagle”, Harald, first mate Wanda, stepdaughter Julia, and many friends cruised the coastal waters, with many trips to Catalina and the Channel Islands. Harald was a proud member of the Santa Barbara Elks Club, the Santa Barbara German Club, and the Edelweiss Club. In his later years he enjoyed playing the game of Bunco.

After he lost Wanda, the last 14 months of his life were not spent in loneliness. He lived with Julia during most of that time, and she watched over him day and night. They took frequent day trips and dined at Harald’s old haunts and favorite restaurants. He is survived by his brother, Immo (Else) of Rodenkirchen, Germany, and his 2 sisters, Siegrid (Horst) Ilchman of Flensburg, Germany, and Edith (Jeff) Frank of Gig Harbor, WA. He is also survived by 11 nieces and nephews and 12 grand nieces and nephews, as well as a stepson and stepdaughter.

He will be interred at the Santa Barbara Cemetery next to his wife, Wanda, on a hill overlooking the sea. A graveside service will be held at 10:00 am on Friday, March 17th. A luncheon will follow at “The Anchor Rose” , 113 Harbor Way, Ste 180 Santa Barbara, CA 93109.

Please make any donations in Harald’s honor to Animal Rescue Team Inc. and the Santa Barbara Elks Club.

Shorty, how lucky am I to have something that makes saying goodbye so hard. There is only one happiness in this life, to love and to be loved. Too dearly loved to be forgotten. See you and Mutti on the other side. Prost!

Love, Julchen

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