Category Archives: Projects

Upcoming and ongoing construction alerts along the Gold Line Foothill Extension corridor from Pasadena to Azusa

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Click on the map above to visit the interactive construction map on the Construction Authority's website.

Click on the map above to visit the interactive construction map on the Construction Authority’s website.

Here’s the latest from the Gold Line Foothill Extension Construction Authority, the agency building the 11.5-mile project from eastern Pasadena to the Azusa/Glendora border:
Upcoming Construction Alerts

Lane Closures on Santa Anita Ave. – Arcadia to Start 
end of April/beginning of May 2013
Construction of the new bridge over Santa Anita Ave. is anticipated to begin at the end of April/beginning of May; following completion of work on Colorado Boulevard. This work requires long-term lane closures on north and southbound Santa Anita Avenue. The lane closures will continue through the end of October 2013. A construction notice is forthcoming.


Full Closure of Azusa Ave. – Azusa to start April 29, 2013
Crews will be constructing grade crossing improvements at Azusa Avenue between 9th Street and Foothill Boulevard. This work requires a full closure of Azusa Avenue at the railroad crossing through mid-July 2013. This work is anticipated to begin on April 29, 2013. A construction notice is forthcoming.

Colorado Blvd. – Arcadia to Re-open by the End of April 2013
Work is nearing completion on the new railroad bridge over Colorado Boulevard. Although the main superstructure has not yet arrived, Colorado Boulevard is anticipated to re-open to traffic by the end of April 2013. A future one-day closure of Colorado Boulevard is anticipated to install the superstructure.

REMINDER: Ongoing Construction Activity

California Ave. – Monrovia: Mar. 9 through July, 2013
Construction of the grade crossing improvements on California Avenue at the railroad corridor will continue through the end of July 2013.

Foothill Blvd. – Azusa: Jan. 14 through Sept. 2013
Construction of new bridges over Foothill Boulevard continues. This work requires lane closures on east and westbound Foothill Boulevard from January 14, 2013 through the end of September 2013.

Goodbye Olympic Boulevard railroad crossing: Expo Phase 2 new bridge rising

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Photo by Steve Hymon/Metro.

Photo by Steve Hymon/Metro.

I never noticed the old railroad crossing markings on Olympic Boulevard in Santa Monica until driving past this weekend. It really doesn’t matter: that’s the bridge that will take the second phase of the Expo Line over Olympic in the distance; the same bridge will also span Cloverfield Boulevard.

The second phase of the Expo Line will extend the line for 6.6 miles from its present terminus in Culver City to downtown Santa Monica. The project is mostly funded by the Measure R sales tax increase approved by Los Angeles County voters in 2008. The line is currently scheduled to open in 2016.

Alameda Corridor – East Construction Authority breaks ground on Nogales Street Grade Separation Project

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The crossing as it exists now.
Getting started on the work!

This morning, Alameda Corridor – East Construction Authority broke ground on the Nogales Street Grade Separation Project. The project will construct a six-lane roadway underpass on Nogales Street between San Jose Avenue and Gale Avenue/Walnut Drive to separate trains and vehicles.

Currently, the crossing is used daily by about 40 freight trains, 12 Metrolink commuter trains and over 42,000 vehicles. The construction of the underpass will eliminate collisions and delays for emergency responders, motorists and pedestrians, create nearly 2,000 jobs, reduce vehicle emissions from idling cars and trucks waiting for trains to pass, and mitigate impacts of growth in trade transported by train.

Metro contributed $30.5 million in Prop C funds to the Nogales Street Grade Separation Project, which is 28% of the total project cost. With the Measure R funds, Metro’s total contribution of $671.4 million covers more than one-third of the overall estimated $1.6-billion Alameda Corridor East program.

Read the full press release from the Alameda Corridor – East Construction Authority after the jump.

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Gate latching tests to continue at some Metro Rail stations

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As many Source readers are keenly aware, Metro is preparing to latch the gates at Red and Purple Line stations this summer.
In the meantime, you may encounter testing of latched gates at some station or station entrances over the next few weeks. These tests have already been underway and have gone well. There’s nothing extra you need to do — just ‘tap’ your TAP card to pass through the turnstiles — just as you’re already doing! Metro staff will be on hand to help Metrolink ticket holders and others without TAP cards pass through the turnstiles.
As for Metrolink riders, there will be new TAP-enabled Metrolink tickets available before the gates in the subway are latched. In plain English, don’t worry Metrolink riders. You’re not going to be latched out!

Dodger Stadium Express ridership is up this season

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Here are some quick numbers:

•Ridership on Opening Day on Monday was 5,787 boardings. In 2012 on Opening Day there were 4,326 boardings.

•Ridership so far this season is 9,750 boardings for three games — the exhibition game against the Angels last Friday and two games against the Giants. Ridership at this time last year was 7,157 after two exhibition games and two regular season games.

Another very big crowd is expected for tonight’s 7:10 p.m. game against the Giants, the rubber game of the opening three-game series between the two teams expected to contend for the western division title. 

The shuttle is free to those holding game tickets. Click here for the Dodger Stadium Express home page and below are the basics:

dodgers_map_revised (1)

•Board the Dodger Stadium Express at Bus Bay 3 of the Patsaouras Transit Plaza at Union Station. The plaza is at the other end of Union Station if you enter on Alameda Street.

•Service leaves Union Station every 10 minutes, starting 90 minutes before game time through the 3rd inning for all home games. We recommend arriving early; crowds are heaviest near game time.

•Your Dodger ticket is good on gameday for the Dodger Stadium Express fare*; otherwise, regular Metro fares apply.

•You’ll be dropped off inside Dodger Stadium behind Center Field. Service will run the same route in reverse after the game.

METRO EXPRESSLANES

Driving to Union Station to connect with the Dodger Stadium Express? Beat traffic on the 10 and 110 freeways with Metro ExpressLanes. They’re toll-free for carpools, vanpools and motorcycles; solo drivers can use them too, by paying a toll. All users except motorcycles need a Fastrak® transponder. Learn more at metroexpresslanes.net.

PARKING AT UNION STATION?

Pay for parking before returning to your car. Use the automated machines located in the elevator lobbies of P1, P2 and P3.

Rep. Janice Hahn holds press event to announce grants to help people land jobs at Metro

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Rep. Janice Hahn (center) and local officials, Metro bus operators and Metro CEO Art Leahy at this morning's event. Photo by Luiz Inzunza/Metro.

Photo by Luiz Inzunza/Metro.

Rep. Janice Hahn (D-San Pedro) held a press event this morning to announce $443,000 in new grants from the Federal Transit Administration to Community Career Development, Inc., the nonprofit operatore of the Compton and Wilshire Metro WorkSource Centers.

The Centers provide job training to low-income minorities who are seeking employment as Metro bus operators. The goal of the new funding is to help hire at least 200 new operators, according to the FTA. Here is the FTA’s news release on the grants.

From left in the above photo: Gregory Irish, Interim G.M. city of Los Angeles Community Development Department; Michael Dolphin, Division Chief, Employment Development Department, L.A.-Ventura Workforce Services Division; Jerry Gaines, Chairman, County of Los Angeles Workforce Investment Board; Gloria Moore, Executive Director, Community Career Development, Inc.; Manuel Nevarez, Metro Bus Operator; Rep. Janice Hahn; Tracy-Bell Moultrie, Metro Bus Operator; Art Leahy, Metro CEO; Will Bratcher, Board Chair, Community Career Development, Inc.; Ray Tellis, Team Leader, Federal Transit Administration.

Slideshow: construction work on the Gold Line Foothill Extension project

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Construction on the Gold Line Foothill Extension has been well underway for some time; the project is extending the Gold Line from the Sierra Madre Villa station in eastern Pasadena for 11.5 miles to a station adjacent to Citrus College on the Azusa and Glendora border.

The photos run from west to east along the alignment and include aerial views of the bridge over the eastbound 210 that was finished last year, the new maintenance facility in Monrovia, work at the California Avenue crossing in Monrovia, the frame for the Duarte station platform and new tracks across Highland Avenue in Duarte, work at the Dalton Avenue crossing in Azusa and work on a new bridge that will cross a northern extension of Citrus Avenue in Azusa.

The project is being built by an independent agency, the Gold Line Foothill Extension Construction Authority and is being funded by the Measure R sales tax approved by L.A. County voters in 2008. The project is currently scheduled to open in 2016 and will be operated by Metro.

Related posts: 

Foothill Extension offers construction updates and detour info

Gold Line Bridge over EB 210 is complete!

Foothill Extension awards third and final contract

Route approved for second phase of Foothill Extension

Metro Board to consider change to Measure R expenditure plan as part of latest project acceleration effort

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UPDATE: The item will be considered at April’s meeting of the Metro Board of Directors.

In 2010, the Metro Board of Directors approved the 30/10 plan, the idea being to build 30 years worth of Measure R projects in the next decade. Although it hasn’t yet worked out, that policy is still very much on the books — and Metro staff are still trying to advance Measure R road and transit projects.

The first part of a new acceleration strategy will come before the Metro Board at its monthly meeting on Thursday. In particular, Metro staff are recommending that the Board approve a public notice of a planned change to the Measure R expenditure plan that would allow second- and third-decade Measure R projects to begin receiving funds this decade.

If approved, the proposal would then be vetted by a three-judge panel that provides oversight for Measure R. After the judges release their findings, the plan is for the Metro Board to vote on the new dates for the expenditure plan and a new acceleration plan at the Board’s May meeting.

And what will the acceleration strategy be this time around? I don’t know the details beyond what’s in the staff report issued last week (the report is below). The report shows that Metro is looking at assembling funds from a variety of sources — Measure R, America Fast Forward loans and bonds (30/10 was renamed America Fast Forward in 2011) and possibly revenues from Prop A and C, the half-cent sales tax increases approved by L.A. County voters in 1980 and 1990, respectively.

So stay tuned. As always there’s a lot of balls in the air, particularly at the federal level, where Metro is trying to lock down New Starts money for the Westside Subway Extension and Regional Connector while also getting getting Congress to fully adopt and fund the America Fast Forward plan.

MyFigueroa to present updated streetscape designs at a community meeting on Tuesday, April 9

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Looking north on Figueroa from the intersection with 11thStreet. Rendering: city of Los Angeles.

Looking north on Figueroa from the intersection with 11thStreet. Rendering: city of Los Angeles.

Looking south on Hope Street from 11th; that's the Starbucks on the right. Rendering: city of Los Angeles.

11th & Hope; that’s the Starbucks on the right. Rendering: city of Los Angeles.

The ongoing effort to redesign Figueroa between downtown Los Angeles and South L.A. is a city of Los Angeles project. But I wanted to post the project’s news  release here as Figueroa is also a critical corridor for transit service, including many bus lines (including the Silver Line) and the Expo Line that runs one block east on Flower Street.

In its present condition, Figueroa is one of those big, wide Los Angeles streets that resembles a freeway stuffed into the midst of a city. Los Angeles Councilwoman Jan Perry and the city’s Department of Transportation have been pushing efforts to transform Figueroa into something better — and I think it’s already improved somewhat. Judging from the above renderings, a lot bigger changes could be on the way to Figueroa and surrounding streets. I love the protected bike lane!

From LADOT:

The Figueroa Corridor Streetscape project (MyFigueroa) is moving forward with an ambitious plan to transform four miles of the Figueroa Corridor in Downtown and South Los Angeles. The complete, multimodal street will provide a safer, sustainable, more comfortable local environment for pedestrians, cyclists, and transit riders while still accommodating drivers. The project’s updated designs will be presented to the public at a Community Meeting on April 9 from 5:30 to 8:00 p.m. 

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