City Council
Report
City Council Meeting: September 30, 2025
Agenda Item: 4.E
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To: Mayor and City Council
From: Anuj Gupta, Director of Transportation, Department of Transportation, Transit Planning & Performance
Subject: Adoption of Big Blue Bus Title VI 2025 Program Update Recommended Action
Staff recommends that the City Council adopt the Big Blue Bus 2025 Title VI Program update.
Summary
Big Blue Bus (BBB), a division of the Santa Monica Department of Transportation (DOT), operates 194 transit buses across 58 square miles of greater Los Angeles. BBB provided 10 million rides in FY2024-25 to a diverse population and is committed to serving all riders fairly and equitably, ensuring no riders are denied service or discriminated against on the basis of race, color, national origin, consistent with Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
As a recipient of federal funds, BBB must submit a Title VI Program every three years.
The Title VI Program demonstrates that BBB is complying with the requirements of Title VI, and ensures that the level and quality of public transportation service is provided in a nondiscriminatory manner, promoting full and fair participation in public transportation decision-making without regard to race, color, or national origin, and provides meaningful access to transit-related programs and activities by persons with limited English proficiency.
BBB presents this Title VI Program update to the City Council for adoption as required by the Title VI Circular 4702.18. This program update includes updated demographic data, updated Transit Service Guidelines, an updated Limited English Proficiency plan, 2 of 3
supplemental documentation of various public outreach and equity analyses, and other required updates.
Discussion
Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 protects people from discrimination based on race, color, and national origin to ensure that individuals are not excluded from participation in, denied benefits of, or subjected to discrimination under any program and activity receiving federal financial assistance. The Federal Transit Administration requires the governing body (i.e. City Council) of a transit agency to adopt its Title VI Program every three years as a recipient of federal funds.
Big Blue Bus’s Title VI Program has been updated to include the following:
• A review of all routes and the census block groups they operate within to determine whether they are considered minority or low-income routes for the purposes of Title VI analyses.
• The latest Fare Equity Analysis conducted in Spring 2025 in anticipation of fare increases planned through 2027 and approved by the Council in May 2025. • The recently updated Transit Services Guidelines adopted by Council on March 11, 2025.
• The Service Equity Analysis completed in Spring 2024 as a part of the latest Comprehensive Operations Analysis (Brighter Blue), adopted by Council on July 9, 2024.
Past Council Actions
Meeting
Date
Item
Number
Description
09/24/2019 #3729 Adoption of BBB Title VI Program
10/25/2022 #5363 Adoption of Title VI Program
07/09/2024 #5617 Big Blue Bus Comprehensive Operational Analysis (COA) 03/11/2025 #6723 Transit Service Guidelines Update
05/13/2025 #6754 Big Blue Bus Fare Policy
Environmental Review
The Title VI Program is not a “project” subject to CEQA. The Title VI Program is administrative in nature. Pursuant to CEQA Section 21065, the Title VI Program update does not meet the definition of a “project” subject to CEQA as it will not “cause either a direct physical change in the environment, or a reasonably foreseeable indirect physical 3 of 3
change in the environment.” Additionally, per Section 15378(b) of the CEQA Guidelines, a “project” does not include continuing administrative or maintenance activities, such as purchases for supplies, personnel-related actions, general policy and procedure making. Therefore, the Title VI Program updates are not subject to CEQA.
Financial Impacts and Budget Actions
There is no immediate financial impact or budget action necessary as a result of the recommended action.
Prepared By: Brianna Moran, Executive Administrative Assistant Approved Forwarded to Council
Attachments:
A. Adoption of the Big Blue Bus Title VI Program (Web Link) B. Attachment_2025 Title VI Update_FINAL