Category Archives: Safety

Metro statement on letter from state PUC regarding track at Expo Line-Blue Line junction

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Metro CEO Art Leahy and Expo Line Construction Authority CEO Rick Thorpe issued a joint statement Monday regarding a letter recently received from the California Public Utilities Commission requesting a replacement to a piece of track work at the Metro Expo/Blue Line junction.

Both Leahy and Thorpe also talked with the media regarding the next steps that will include better defining exactly what the CPUC wants and how both agencies can work together to develop a plan of action and implementation. Below is the joint statement issued today:

Metro and the Expo Construction Authority have received from the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) a directive to replace a piece of track work at the Metro Expo and Blue Line junction and finish the implementation of the automatic train protection. Our two agencies will work closely to develop and implement a plan that satisfies the concerns of the CPUC.

Our first step is to correct a defect in a small portion of the track commonly called the “frog” as it relates to the junction where the new Expo Line meets the Metro Blue Line at Washington and Flower near downtown Los Angeles. This was completed last Friday.

Separately, we will focus on ensuring the automatic train protection system is operating consistent with the requirements of the CPUC.

We want to assure the public that Metro and the Expo Construction Authority have been monitoring these issues for some time, and at no time was safety ever compromised. Trains have made over 100,000 trips through this junction area traveling less than 10 miles per hour. Daily inspections will continue while we resolve this issue with the CPUC.

Metro and the Expo Construction Authority will ensure the work is performed to the highest standard and will accept nothing less.

 

Sobering and powerful rail safety PSA from New Jersey Transit

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Our friends at New Jersey Transit have a safety campaign underway to address a long-standing problem in the Garden State and pretty much everywhere elsewhere in the United States — people walking on train tracks.

The two new videos — each just 30 seconds — do not mince words or images. It’s every bit as applicable to our light rail lines and commuter rail lines here in Southern California.

 

Metro helps combat human sex trafficking

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County Supervisor Don Knabe at the event this morning. Photo by Anna Chen/Metro.

Los Angeles County and Metro Board Member Don Knabe will join local law enforcement officials, Metro executives and local businesses Thursday morning to unveil a multimedia awareness campaign aimed at informing the public about the heinous crime of child sex trafficking.

The press event will take place Thursday, May 31, at 9 a.m. outside the main entrance of the Kenneth Hahn Hall of Administration. Joining Supervisor Knabe will be:

  • Leroy D. Baca, Los Angeles County Sheriff
  • Jim McDonnell, Police Chief, City of Long Beach
  • Art Leahy, CEO, Metro
  • Lee Ann Muller, President, Clear Channel Outdoor Southern California Division President
  • Chris Kelly, Former Chief Privacy Officer at Facebook & Founder of the Safer California Foundation

The campaign, originally called for by Supervisor Knabe, will appear at Metro train stations and bus stops, rail cars and buses. The information will also appear on Metro’s website.

Thanks to a generous donation by Clear Channel, over 50 digital displays and 15 traditional billboards will broadcast the message across Los Angeles County.

Metro bus operator killed in West Hollywood

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A Metro bus operator was allegedly shot and killed by a passenger on Sunday morning shortly after leaving a bus layover for the 105 line at Santa Monica Boulevard and La Cienega Boulevard in West Hollywood. The operator, who was 51 and a five-year veteran of Metro, was transported to a nearby hospital and pronounced dead at approximately 9:30 a.m.

His identity has not been released.

At the scene, Metro CEO Art Leahy told media that this was a highly unusual incident and that his chief concern was for the welfare of the operator’s family, as well as the Metro family of bus operators. He could not recall a fatal shooting of a bus operator at Metro or at the Southern California Rapid Transit District.

Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department Capt. Mike Parker said this morning that a suspect has been detained.

Here is a brief story published by the Los Angeles Times and here is a story by KABC News.

 


Update on effort to provide cell service in subway

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We frequently hear from readers and riders who want to know if Metro will be providing cell phone service and/or wi-fi in the Red and Purple Line subway.

Answer: the agency is working on it and has recently received proposals from several firms. The hope is to choose a winning firm in late summer.

The Metro staff report to the Board of Directors is below (pdf here):

Cell service in subway report

90-day closure of two I-405 freeway ramps — i.e. 'Rampture' — set to begin June 22

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Adding a northbound carpool lane may be the most known part of the I-405 Sepulveda Pass Improvements Project. But the project will also rebuild the Wilshire Boulevard ramps to and from the 405 to eliminate a conflict on both sides of the freeway in which traffic trying to enter the freeway gets tangled with vehicles trying to exit to Wilshire.

Here are an overview of the ramp work on the project home page and two renderings show what the project aims to do. There is also a good story on ZevWeb, the website for County Supervisor and Metro Board Member Zev Yaroslavsky.

Click above for a larger rendering of the new Wilshire ramps to be built.


The news release announcing the beginning of construction follows:

Advance Notice Motorist Travel Advisory
90-Day Closure of Two I-405 Freeway Ramps at Wilshire Boulevard Planned Beginning June 22, 2012

Los Angeles, Calif. – Plan Ahead, Adjust Travel Times, or Share the Ride. That’s the new message public officials are advising motorists in the greater West Los Angeles region to help reduce severe congestion resulting from the first extended, 90-day closures of key Wilshire on- and off-ramps to the I-405 now scheduled to officially begin Friday, June 22, 2012.

The Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (Metro), Caltrans and Los Angeles Department of Transportation are giving the public advance notice that the I-405 Sepulveda Pass Improvements Project contractor must begin demolishing and reconstructing eight heavily traveled freeway ramps at Wilshire Boulevard in order to complete the construction project schedule. This single interchange is where one of the nation’s busiest boulevards meets the nation’s busiest freeway, where tens of thousands of freeway-bound motorists travel on a daily basis.

Demolition and reconstruction of the Wilshire ramps is required to build a 10-mile carpool lane on the northbound I-405 between the I-10 and U.S. 101.

Ninety-day closures for the first two Wilshire Boulevard ramps are as follows:

•Westbound Wilshire on-ramp to the Northbound I-405. Detour: Motorists should travel northbound on Sepulveda Boulevard to access the Moraga on-ramp or travel southbound on Sepulveda to access the Santa Monica Boulevard on-ramp.

•Northbound I-405 off-ramp to Westbound Wilshire. Detour: Motorists should exit freeway using Santa Monica off-ramp, then proceed northbound on Sepulveda to Wilshire Boulevard. Other alternatives include the off-ramp at Sunset Boulevard.

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Metro Orange Line Extension testing continues

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Traffic control officers were deployed to ensure vehicular safety during the busway testing.

Metro Orange Line Extension testing is now in its third week. Buses continue to run intermittently on their very own dedicated right-of-way between Canoga Station and the Chatsworth Metrolink/Amtrak Station.

Metro reminds motorists, pedestrians and bicyclists to watch out for buses as they pass intersections to ensure a safe operation. (see this previous Source post). The extension is still on track for a June 2012 opening.

See Damien Newton’s post on Streetsblog, including video here.

Here are a few photos from the testing now in progress:

 

Metro Liner arrives at the Southbound Roscoe Station.

 

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No time for midlife crisis: Innovative rail maintenance shop keeps Blue Line rail cars in shape

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Rail Fleet Services team oversee the rail car overhaul program at the Metro Blue Line maintenance facility. From left, Brian Rydell, Nick Madanat, Russell Homan. Photos by Gary Leonard.

Rail Fleet Services team oversee the rail car overhaul program at the Metro Blue Line maintenance facility. From left, Brian Rydell, Nick Madanat, Russell Homan. Photos by Gary Leonard.

The hefty Metro Blue Line rail cars make a hard day’s run between Long Beach and downtown Los Angeles, running the 22-mile stop-and-go course to the tune of 87,000 trips a year, 1.7 million service miles and 26 million boardings. Although the rail cars of the Blue Line’s original fleet are not slowing down — some have been running for two decades now – the cars are in the midst of a comprehensive overhaul of rail car components and systems that impact safety and reliability and appearance.

In the works for more than a year now, the $30-million rail car overhaul program will enhance and extend the revenue service life through the projected 30-year life span of the cars.

Fresh out of the paint shop, this rail car is refurbished inside and out.

Fresh out of the paint shop, this rail car is refurbished inside and out.

The work is being done in the cavernous vehicle maintenance buildings of the Blue Line rail yard in Long Beach. Scores of maintenance specialists are poring over rail cars that pull in and out of the rail yard pit stops. With only six years to accomplish the overhaul, the tasks are handled one set of components at a time — in a fashion that keeps the overhaul process moving while providing cars for service each day.

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Metrolink receives $3.7 million to enhance safety at busy crossing in Glendale

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Here’s the news release from Metrolink:

Late last week, the California Transportation Commission (CTC) allocated $ 3.7 million to fund safety enhancements to one of Metrolink’s busiest crossings, the Broadway/Brazil crossing in Glendale.

“Approximately a hundred trains and thousands of cars travel through this intersection every day. This funding will be used to enhance safety at one of the region’s busiest crossings,” said Glendale City Councilman and Metrolink Board Member Ara Najarian. “Working with cities such as Glendale and Los Angeles, this is part of Metrolink’s initiative to upgrade rail crossings across its system to create a sealed corridor of safety.”

The enhancements are designed to improve safety at the crossing by adding warning devices and barriers that make it difficult for drivers or pedestrians to circumvent gate arms when a train is approaching. Enhancements include additional exit and pedestrian gates, new raised median islands, flashing signals and right of way security gates. Rail signals will also be interconnected with traffic signals to further pre-empt a sequence that ensures the two systems work together to direct safe movements among vehicles, pedestrians and trains.

These funds come from the Highway-Railroad Crossing Safety Account (HRCSA), approved by voters as Proposition 1B for the completion of high-priority rail safety projects. Work on this crossing is expected to begin in the second quarter of 2012 and be complete by the third quarter of 2013.

ABOUT METROLINK

Metrolink is Southern California’s regional commuter rail service in its 19th year of operation. The Southern California Regional Rail Authority (SCRRA), a joint powers authority made up of an 11-member board representing the transportation commissions of Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino and Ventura counties, governs the service. Metrolink operates over seven routes through a six-county, 512 route-mile network. Metrolink is the third largest commuter rail agency in the United States based on directional route miles and the seventh largest based on annual ridership.