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 blog.

Buses Add Car Racks to Ease L.A. Drivers’ Uneasy Transition to Transit (Planetizen)

Planetizen looks at Metro’s plans to replace bike racks on buses with car racks in hopes that it can attract more car-addicted Angelenos to public transit. Some riders have complained that the effort is lacking – the car racks can only hold two cars and are often full, prompting some riders to ask whether they should be allowed to bring their cars onboard in such cases. Also: Happy April Fools day!

L.A. public transit moves in wrong direction (L.A. Times)

In a column on the June bus service changes, David Lazarus writes that he’s pleased that Metro is balancing its budget and that Metro’s fares are amongst the lowest in the nation. But he also adds that Metro’s service reductions in the name of improved efficiency are a bad thing and that he’d gladly pay “a good deal more” to live in a region in which mass transit was much more prevalent and convenient to ride. Our two cents: that’s precisely why Metro is pushing hard to accelerate the construction of 12 rail and bus transit projects to be funded by the Measure R sales tax increase approved by voters in 2008.

Study Finds Access to Real-Time Mobile Information Could Raise Status of Public Transit:  Part I, Part  II, and Part III (Next American City)

We covered part I of this series in a previous transportation headlines roundup, but with part III the series is complete and worth a review. Based on a study that took drivers in Boston and San Francisco out of their cars and onto public transit for a week this report has some great insights on the need and desires of the so-called discretionary riders. The information and recommendation on mobile apps could be of real help to developers taking Metro’s Developer Challenge and Metro staff looking for ways to reach an increasingly tech connected customer base.

Our View: Riding the rails to the ballpark (Pasadena Star News)

The editors at Pasadena Star News are very happy that L.A. has suddenly become a place where you can get to  baseball games via mass transit – and they’d like to see that kind of accessibility extended to more special events around town. Thanks to the Dodger Stadium Express and the new Metrolink service to Angels games at Anaheim Stadium Angelenos now have the ability to go to the ball game without fretting about traffic and parking. The Star News calls it a transit triple play: fans save money, traffic is reduced and air quality is improved.