Metro to receive more than $390 million to improve public transit and air quality

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Excellent news for L.A. County this evening. Metro will receive funds to support a variety of notable projects. Here’s the release:

This week Metro was awarded more than $390 million from the California Transportation Commission (CTC) and the California Department of Transportation (CALTRANS) to support construction of new rail, upgrade existing transit service, buy much needed rail cars, repair and improve buses and create jobs. The money comes from Proposition 1B, the 2006 voter-approved transportation bond, Proposition 1A, the voter-approved High-Speed Rail Bond, and the State Transportation Improvement Program (STIP). The High-Speed Rail Bond program targets some funds at connectivity with future high-Speed rail service. Metro used its Measure R funds, approved by Los Angeles County voters in 2008, to aid in leveraging state funding to Los Angeles County.

Projects benefiting from $390 million in state bond funds include $264 million for the Regional Connector project, which will improve connectivity county wide by linking Metro’s Blue, Expo and Gold lines via a 1.9-mile extension of light-rail tracks beneath downtown Los Angeles, and $61 million included in the current Life of Project for the Crenshaw/LAX Transit Corridor, an 8.5-mile light-rail line that will connect the Metro Green Line with the Metro Exposition Line and provide a link to LAX. Another portion of the funding — $45.4 million — will aid in the purchase of 78 light-rail vehicles for system-wide service expansion and for use on future light-rail lines that will open during the next few years. The state also released $19.9 million for Metro’s Bus Rehabilitation Program to repair and improve up to 321 buses.

“These funds will help us continue to expand and upgrade the Metro system,” said Metro CEO Art Leahy. “They are slotted for bus and rail projects that will work together to buy us improved mobility and move us closer to our goal of creating a 21st Century transit network for our region.”

The projects were included in the Metro Long Range Transportation Plan and were chosen because they already are underway and the new round of funding will ensure they stay on schedule.

The Caltrans funding comes from Proposition 1B, the 2006 voter-approved transportation bond, which is providing $3.6 billion over a 10-year period to improve public transit in California. To date, Proposition 1B has provided more than $2 billion in funding to approximately 750 transit projects statewide, with 340 completed.

Amgen Tour of California stops in Santa Clarita during Bike Week LA

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Cyclists with Magic Mountain in the background. Photo from Santa Clarita Tour of CA 2013 Official Facebook

Cyclists with Magic Mountain in the background. Photo from Santa Clarita Tour of CA 2013 Official Facebook

The City of Santa Clarita will be one of the host cities for the 2013 Amgen Tour of California next week, which also happens to be Bike Week LA. The city will be the site of the Stage 3 Finish on Tuesday, May 14, and the Stage 4 Start on Wednesday, May 15.

There will be a series of events to celebrate the bicycle race, including a viewing party at Salt Creek Grille, SENSES Rock the Bike, and Bike to Work Day. Don’t miss the Lifestyle Festival on Tuesday, May 14, which will take place at the Westfield Valencia Town Center at the corner of Citrus and Magic Mountain Parkway, from 11:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Check Santa Clarita Transit for public transportation routes.

Traffic will be impacted on local roads during the course of the event, keep reading after the jump to see the details.

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Transportation headlines, Tuesday, May 7: What does Mickey Mouse have to do with streetcars? Improved bike parking at Dodger Stadium? Does Foxx know enough to be transpo secretary?

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Here is a look at some of the transportation headlines gathered by us and the Metro Library. The full list of headlines is posted on the Library’s Headlines blog, which you can also access via email subscription or RSS feed.

Is Mickey Mouse driving up costs of Anaheim streetcar? (Voice of OC)

The costs look to be higher than expected for the Anaheim streetcar project. Is this worthy of attention here in L.A.? Only if we’re considering a downtown streetcar project for our own.

Improved bike parking at Dodger Stadium: No home run yet (StreetsBlog LA)

One bicyclist cruised the scene looking for improved bike access and services and offers a little coaching. Perhaps better — at least for the moment — to take the Dodger Stadium Express from Union Station. 

What does Anthony Foxx know and what should he know? (National Journal Transportation Experts Blog)

As mayor of a major city, the Transportation Secretary nominee Anthony Foxx obviously knows something about transportation issues. But is it enough for this time in history when a wrong step could be critical to public momentum in favor of mass transit? What should Foxx be fighting for in the administration and in Congress? What can he learn from LaHood’s experience? What do you think Foxx ought to know and push? And, finally, will it do any good?

Update: New I-5/SR-170 connector will open on May 8

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map

Rain has delayed the connector opening and related closures by one day.

Here’s the press release from Caltrans:

The California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) will open a new I-5/SR-170 connector on Tuesday, May 7, at 5 a.m. The connector is a three-lane, mixed-flow connector going from the northbound Hollywood Freeway (SR-170) to the northbound Golden State Freeway (I-5). Northbound SR-170 traffic will merge with the three outside lanes of northbound I-5.

Construction began on the 2,400-foot connector in late 2010. It is part of a project that is also constructing a high occupancy vehicle (HOV, or carpool) lane in each direction of I-5 between SR-170 and the Ronald Reagan Freeway (SR-118), a distance of 3.4 miles, and a direct HOV connector between I-5 and SR-170. The direct HOV connector will enable freeway-to-freeway transfers without exiting the carpool lane.

The project will alleviate congestion, encourage carpooling, improve air quality, and provide a smoother ride for motorists. The work is part of Caltrans’ effort to provide motorists with a seamless carpool lane network in California.

Work began in August 2010 and is on track for completion in mid-2014. Caltrans thanks motorists for their patience and understanding during construction.

For more information, visit www.I-5info.com.

Upcoming Closures Related to This Project

The week of May 6, crews will remove remaining falsework and complete striping on the new I-5/SR-170 connector, requiring night closures of northbound I-5 between Sheldon Street and Osborne Street and southbound I-5 between the I-5/SR-170 interchange and Sheldon Street, as well as night closures of southbound I-5 on-ramps at Terra Bella Street and Osborne Street. Closure details:

Where

Northbound I-5 between Sheldon Street and Osborne Street
Southbound I-5 between the I-5/SR-170 interchange and Sheldon Street 

When

Northbound I-5 Closure
Tuesday night, May 7, through Wednesday morning, May 8, 2013
11:59 p.m. to 5 a.m.

Southbound I-5 Closure
Wednesday night, May 8, through Friday morning, May 10, 2013
11:59 p.m. to 4 a.m.

DETOURS (see map below)

Northbound I-5 detour: Traffic will be detoured off the freeway at Lankershim Blvd. and onto San Fernando Road. Motorists will re-enter northbound I-5 from Osborne Street. Detour signs will be posted.

Southbound I-5 detour: Traffic will be detoured off I-5 at the I-5/SR-170 interchange and onto southbound SR-170. Motorists will reenter southbound I-5 from Laurel Canyon Blvd. Detour signs will be posted.

@Metrolosangeles Twitter Tuesday, May 7 shortstack

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Welcome to Twitter Tuesday, our roundup of the latest Metro related tweets. To get our attention, add the #MetroLosAngeles tag to your tweets and subscribe to our feed if you haven’t already. For specific complaints and customer service, please use the Customer Comment Form on metro.net.


Update on Crenshaw/LAX Line construction contract

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For the folks out there following this: Metro CEO Art Leahy has informed the Metro Board that agency staff will not release a recommendation for a contract award to build the Crenshaw/LAX Line light rail project in time for this month’s Board meeting.

Please stay tuned and we’ll let you know when the bidding information will be released.

Support pole installation on Expo Line completed

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Photos by Metro

This past Saturday, a portion of the Expo Line was shut down so crews could replace the support pole damaged by a wrong-way driver last month. Before the pole was replaced, trains had to stay under a 5 mph speed restriction between the Expo/Blue Line junction and 23rd Street Station. Trains may now go back to operating at normal speeds.

A bus bridge was in place to help Expo riders get from 23rd Street to DTLA, and post-game bus shuttle service ran from 9-11 p.m. between Pico and 23rd Street to accommodate those who were at Staples Center for the Blues/Kings game.

If you went to the game on Saturday, did you use the post-game shuttle? And if so, how did you find it?