Click above for a larger chart.
With Ramp Jam likely to trigger a downgrade in the already bad traffic in the Sepulveda Pass corridor, I thought this would be a good day to look ahead — specifically to the day when the Sepulveda Pass Transit Corridor project is built to help better connect the San Fernando Valley to the Westside.
As many of you likely know, the project is one of the transit projects set to receive funding from the Measure R sales tax increase approved by county voters in 2008. At the time, the project was a concept yet to be defined. However, a systems study is underway by Metro planning staff to determine some concepts for the project. The study below (pdf here) lists the interim findings.
There are six over-arching concepts offered (shown on the chart above), including bus rapid transit, rail transit and managed and/or toll lanes that could be used by buses and/or rail. Among the concepts: building a tunnel that could be used by both private vehicles and transit. Interesting!
Perhaps most intriguing and heartening, I think, is that the study area is a big, big area — all the way from the Sylmar/San Fernando Metrolink station in the northern San Fernando Valley to Los Angeles International Airport.
Funding will obviously be a challenge, as Measure R is scheduled to provide $1 billion for a project that could potentially cost a lot more than that. Even with the (usual) funding challenges, I’m pleased to see that everything is on the table — as it should be in such an important corridor.
Please give the report a read. There are maps for each of the overall concepts. This is still the earliest stage of project development that precedes the traditional alternatives analysis and environmental impact studies that will follow.
While I think a tolled tunnel with both rail and cars could be good (why not charge motorists and and get some extra revenue if you’re already digging a tunnel?)… not sure I like the idea of it being a privately operated shuttle. I think it’s gotta tie into the Metro system and not be run by a private company with a different fare structure and policies.
And 16-18B is a heck of a lot of money. A rail line with a tunnel under the mountains seems positively a bargain in comparison!
Unfortunately it doesn’t look like there can/will be any sort of connection to the Getty for rail, as they’re all (understandably so) going under the pass.
The intro says HRT is one of the options but I don’t see it in the matrix. Given the talk early in the document about just how congested the corridor is, it seems the load could justify an HRT option.
I think, it’s a no-brainer:
CONCEPT #5 “FIXED-GUIDEWAY L.R.T.” will be the winner.
Yes, it will cost more. Yes, it will take more time to create. But it’s well worth it.
It’s time to part with mediocre transit “quick-fixes”,
but rather invest in creating a world-class mass transit system for LA!
Please don’t make the same mistake that was done to the Orange Line
(by downgrading the corridor to a lousy B.R.T.)
Light-rail will be the most efficient, reliable, and attractive mode of all proposed.
LRT or HRT. If not, then bust. This needs to be done right. I’m in complete agreement with Alexander the Great.
Is concept 5 primarily street running or does it have its own private ROW?
HRT by taking the Purple Line northward from its VA stop off to the Sherman Oaks Galleria and downtown Van Nuys. HRT is higher speed and would handle thousands of people, with no transfer to Westside job destinations. Plus I don’t think Santa Monica is interested in the high density that would be required to fully justify investment in the subway to the sea. It also makes the VA stop less of a white elephant, as it would be were the subway to continue west of the VA.
The other issue with LRT is that there are no connections to the rest of the LRT system so a separate facility would be required, unless you want to tie in with Crenshaw near LAX which causes a whole other set of problems.
This has to built as one seamless project from Sylmar to LAX with the ESFV project.
Has to be rail for the traffic load and has to be tunnel at least south of Ventura Blvd to make it all work. This line in the really big picture, will be as important as the Wilshire Line and whatever else line gets to LA. Please do it right, right from the start !!!!
I think the LRT #5 would be much better than the BRT options. Unfortunately, its a bit expensive.
Concept #5 — rail — is the only sane choice. All the others are excuses to pour asphalt for cars. They won’t improve the environmental situation at all, and they won’t improve mobility much either. But #5 will start building a true “passenger rail grid” in LA.
The “rail shuttle” idea sounds like troll bait for the vocal privatization fans, which means it will be hard to get rid of.
However, a project of this size absolutely needs to link with the existing Metro Rail network. Light rail or subway would make the most sense.