Transportation headlines, Monday, Dec. 21

by Steve Hymon , December 21, 2009

Let’s start the holiday week in Sin City — where else? — with a fun story by Metropolis Magazine taking a critical look at the monorail that is supposed to serve the Las Vegas Strip but is mostly out-of-view and slow. The author’s conclusion: if you’re trying to get around in Lucky Town, you might as well take the bus.

The California High Speed Rail blog has a post on a rumor making its way around transit circles: that California is one of four finalists to receive billions of dollars in funding for high-speed rail. Metro CEO Art Leahy also reported the rumor in his daily brief to staff. The rumor was pparently started with some remarks from Rep. John Mica, but the U.S. Department of Transportation won’t confirm. Stay tuned. The other three supposed finalists are Illinois, Florida and Texas.

Meanwhile, a scathing editorial in the San Diego Union-Tribune questions some of the assumptions about ridership by the California High Speed Rail Authority. Specifically, the newspaper notes that ridership estimates have decreased now that the election for the high-speed rail bond is over — and estimates ticket prices have increased.

Using emails obtained under the California Public Records Act, USC Neon Tommy’s Christine Trang reconstructs some issues that she says delayed the Eastside Gold Line Extension from opening this past summer, as was orginally planned.

The rest of today’s headlines from the Metro library are after the jump.

Americans Still Driving Less
New Republic

The Art Of Moving L.A.: A Conversation With Metro’s New CEO, Art Leahy (January 15, 2010)
Westside Urban Forum

Backdoor Tour: The Curious Route Of The Las Vegas Monorail Is The Product Of An Equally Bizarre Planning And Development Process
Metropolis Magazine

California One Of 4 HSR Stimulus Finalists?
California High Speed Rail Blog

Delays Won’t Derail Expo Project
Santa Monica Daily Press

Editorial: High-Speed Myths – Business Plan Shows Deceit Of Bullet Train Push
San Diego Union-Tribune

“Final” Expo Line Plans Across Westside Unveiled
Los Angeles Wave

Future Mobility In California: The Condition, Use And Funding Of California’s Roads, Bridges And Transit System, December 2009 (24p. PDF)
TRIP National Transportation Research Group

Expo Line Corridor Brings Development, Santa Monicans Worry
LA Curbed

Expo Releases FEIR For Phase II Chooses Alignment Along ROW And Colorado Avenue
LA StreetsBlog

Final Environmental Report Issued For Proposed Expo Line Extension
Southern California Public Radio