Why Don't Elected Officials Take The Bus?

"From the moment he took office nearly 18 months ago, Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa made traffic gridlock a cause celebre -- exhorting Angelenos to help solve the problem by forsaking their cars whenever possible. 'You've got to use public transit,' Villaraigosa said just last week while unveiling an automated signal system to help unclog busy intersections. 'You can't keep on pointing to someone else and saying it's their responsibility.'

But Villaraigosa's own travel habits don't match his public pronouncements.

The mayor rarely, if ever, takes the bus or the train to work. Instead, he rides around town in a GMC Yukon chauffeured by a Los Angeles police officer who doubles as a bodyguard.

Unlike many others in Los Angeles, Villaraigosa has easy access to public transportation."

A reporter from the LA Times clocked the trip from the Mayor's home to City Hall at 44 minutes.

Villaraigosa counters that his schedule is too hectic to use transit. While a few other LA City Hall officials make more of an effort, they agree that being a citywide public servant makes it difficult to take the bus or train.

Villaraigosa's counterpart in New York, billionaire Mayor Michael Bloomberg, has made it a point to ride the subway to work everyday.