Metro Board Approves 21 Contracts with Tow Truck Operators to Boost Metro Freeway Service Patrol Service

Thursday January 28, 2010

The Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (Metro) Board of Directors, Jan. 28, approved 21 contracts with tow truck operators to patrol congested LA County freeways and reduce traffic by getting disabled cars to run again or remove stranded autos before traffic backs up.

The contracts, totaling $30.5 million, will support the Metro Freeway Service Patrol (MFSP), a free service for motorists sponsored by Metro, CHP and Caltrans. MFSP helps minimize freeway traffic congestion on approximately 450 freeway miles by helping motorists get their disabled cars and trucks moving after they have stalled because of minor incidents such as flat tires or running out of gas , or if necessary, towing, the disabled vehciles off the freeway. Stalled vehicles cause more than 50 percent of traffic congestion.

There are a total of one-hundred fifty two MSFP tow trucks that patrol Los Angeles County freeways with service operating from 6 a.m. to 7 p.m. on weekdays and 10 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. on weekends. Service on weekends and mid-day 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. are provided with a reduced number of tow trucks compared to the normal weekday morning and afternoon commute rush hour traffic.

The MFSP currently assists an average of 25,000 motorists each month, approximately 300,000 a year. Statistics show that on more than 70 percent of the assists made, the wait time for tow truck service is less than five minutes.

The Metro Freeway Service Patrol was started in 1991 and is jointly managed by Metro, CHP and Caltrans and is funded by state highway funds and local Proposition C transportation sales tax monies.