Transportation headlines, Wednesday, Feb. 17

by Steve Hymon , February 17, 2010

And the top five rude behaviors on Metro buses and trains are….well, if you want to know read the Plus Metro blog post. Spoiler alert: one of them involves people who insist on barging onto the train or bus before letting passengers exit. This is one of my pet peeves because I can’t imagine what those people are thinking. That the exiting passengers will simply change their mind and decide to stay on the train or bus? Or spontaneously combust? Either way, I still think buses and trains should follow hockey’s lead and install a penalty box for passengers who need some time to, uh, reflect.

An occasional complaint I’ve heard about the Westside subway extension is that it will bring development to neighborhoods near the stations, thus making life unbearable for those already living there. I don’t give that argument much weight because I often find such fears to be overblown and new development should go near transit. On a similar note, researchers recently look at mortgages of about 40,000 property owners and found the risk of foreclosure goes up the more a property is dependent on driving, according to the Chicago Sun-Times. The thinking is that homeowners who have to drive get hit especially hard by the cost of maintaining and fueling all their vehicles, especially when gas prices spike.

The beach bike path near Dockweiler State Beach. Credit: Graham King, via Flickr

Here’s a study in contrasts. LAist reports on the Los Angeles City Council resolving in support of a $30-million plan to extend the bike path along the beach two miles north of Temescal Canyon, where the path currently ends. A city of Los Angeles report says the path would have to be elevated, thus the high cost. Meanwhile, the Pasadena Star News has a story about the city’s master plan that seeks to add 16.3 miles of bike lanes to the city — at a cost of $6.2 million to $7.9 million. Most of the lanes would be along streets, but the city also wants to install barriers to keep through traffic off some streets that will become designated bike routes.

To review: $30 million for two miles of bike path along the beach versus up to $7.9 million for 16 miles of bike improvements in Pasadena. Hmmmmmmmmmm.

For no cost, miles more of transportation headlines, compiled by the Metro library, await you after the jump.

$70M Transit Breakthrough In Restoring Civil Rights Title VI
Labor/Community Strategy Center

Airport Transit Center Advances: Commissioners Move Measure Centralizing Transportation To Burbank Council
Glendale News Press

Among Large Cities, San Jose And D.C. Lead In Well-Being (8 out of 10 metro regions ranked “happiest” by new Gallup well-being index have transit networks)
Gallup

Can Living Near A Train Station Save You From Disclosure? Mortgage Defaults Higher In Neighborhoods Dependent On Driving, Research Shows
Chicago Sun-Times

Catching A Bus? There’s An App For that (Chicago’s CTA launches “Transit Genie” iPhone application)
Chicago Flame
Transit Genie

The Economic Potential Of Portland’s New Bike Plan
DC StreetsBlog

FTA Kills Plan To Use Stimulus Funds For Oakland Airport Connector: $70 Million Will Be Redistributed For Operating Funds At Cash-Strapped Local Agencies; Fate Of $422 Million More Also Committed To The Project Is Unclear
Transport Politic

Gas For $8.87 A Gallon? You’ve Got To Be Kidding
Pasadena Star-News

Is Bigger Better? “Monster” Trains Vs. Freight Trains: In January, Union Pacific Tested A 3.5-Mile Long “Monster” Train, Using Extra Locomotives To Distribute Power Efficiently – Just What Are Monster Trains, And How Are They Different From Conventional Long-Haul Freight Trains?
Popular Mechanics

L.A. City Council Approves Support For A $30 Million 2-Mile Beach Bike Path
LAist

Mass Transit Announces Top Tech Innovations
Mass Transit

Meters Made Better: Poles As Bike Racks
New York Post

The OC Register Trots Out An Oil Company Executive To Attack HSR
California High Speed Rail Blog

Pasadena To Unveil Master Bike Plan
Pasadena Star-News

Pico & Sepulveda Hot Again
CityWatch

Reader Response: Finding Extra Benefits To High-Speed Rail
Public CEO