On the off chance that you haven’t yet encountered the above video on social media. Too bad he didn’t get the chance to be the next Batman and/or Robin.
Art of Transit:
My first encounter with a clown on a train at Union Station today. Photo by Steve Hymon/Metro.
With legal challenges completed, what’s next in Beverly Hills subway drama (Streetsblog LA)
Metro subway project through Beverly Hills can continue, judge says (LAT)
Purple Line subway extension to Westwood beats another lawsuit (Curbed LA)
Metro says ruling won’t slow subway under school (KPCC)
Metro must answer $200-million question after Judge Wu maintains federal approval (BH Courier)
As we reported Friday, a U.S. District Judge upheld the federal approval for the Purple Line Extension project (in government jargon it’s known as the “record of decision”). Some interestingness in the comments. The Courier’s news pages, FWIW, have been very supportive of the lawsuits.
Key excerpt from the LAT story that succinctly sums up the latest ruling:
Over the last five years, the city and the local school district have spent nearly $10 million fighting the Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s plans to tunnel beneath Beverly Hills High School for a nine-mile heavy rail link between Westwood and Koreatown, where the subway line currently terminates.
That legal battle moved toward detente Friday, when a U.S. District Court judge issued a ruling that chided federal officials for several missteps during the environmental review process but stopped short of delaying the subway’s construction.
Hypoerloop and our misplaced love of futuristic technology (Guardian)
It’s perhaps better to get excited about incremental but meaningful advances in existing technologies, so says the Guardian. They give a couple of examples. Personal rapid transit (i.e. podcars) never really took off whereas ride sharing companies are advancing the way some folks use roads.
Claremont drops plans to build Gold Line bridge over Indian Hill Boulevard (Inland Daily Bulletin)
The Claremont City Council voted 4 to 1 to have the Gold Line cross the busy street at street level instead of building a bridge. Community members had expressed concerns that a bridge would amount to a giant wall between the north and south side of the tracks.
An extension of the Gold Line between Azsua and Claremont is currently unfunded but the Foothill Extension Construction Authority is completing design work. Metro’s sales tax ballot measure to go to voters on Nov. 8 has funding for the project.
This 1980s horror film will make your imperfect subway extension look great (Citylab)
Very hilarious video that I can’t post here because it shows a superbreed of rat attacking public officials during a subway opening and there’s some mild violence and gunplay.
Things to read whilst transiting: With Rafer Johnson greeting Metro customers, the New Yorker hopes that University of Oregon grad Ashton Eaton can raise decathlon back to what it was several decades ago: one of the premiere events at the Olympics.
And for those wondering about how Expo Line service to the Rams big win over Dallas went:
https://storify.com/metrolosangeles/taking-metro-to-the-first-los-angeles-rams-game
Categories: Transportation Headlines
Great job, Metro. I couldn’t have asked for a smoother commute to and from the game. Was home from the game in just over an hour taking public transportation! The only issue was the crowds on some of the buses getting to and leaving the game. Being the first football game in Los Angeles, in 22 years that’s to be expected – regular season games especially the marquee matchups might be more of a challenge for both Metro and commuters. That being said, it’s called “public” transportation for a reason – if it’s crowded it’s working.
“Hey @metrolosangeles you need signage at #UnionStation for #LARams fans, lot of clueless public transit newbies.”
Hey METRO, I’ve posted about this several times before. THE RED LINE PORTAL AT LAUS NEEDS BETTER SIGNAGE! And I’m not talking about those goofy new pin markers. Does this mini-project really need an EIS and a Metro board kumbaya?
Metro blows another opportunity!! Instead of having “ambassadors” at major stations on Saturdays to help LA Rams fans, many of whom were taking Metro for the first time, the newbies were left to fend for themselves! Have real people help Rams fans for the next home game!
Having a LA Rams TAP card would be nice, but getting the license from the NFL maybe holding that up!
It’s telling how the Beverly Hills Courier expects Metro to explain (again) its choice of station alternatives selection, yet won’t ask why the Beverly Hills Unified School District chose to spend millions in classroom funding on a pointless lawsuit.
On the good side, going home after the game was a breeze since we followed Metro’s directions to go West at the Expo Park Station and not Vermont. Also, it was great being able to ride public transit to this historic event.
On the bad side, trains were supposed to come every 6 minutes for the big event and while at the Bundy station we waited over 30 minutes for our East bound train to the Stadium, meanwhile 4 trains come and went West bound. There was obviously some problem, but no mention of it on Metro alerts or at the station even considering the big event and crowds. Of course, with the wait the trains could not accommodate all the passengers and many were left at the station stop after stop and that was after we took the second train since the first was already overflowing.
Sigh. I’ve moved out of the area, but visit often. I hate to say that this has been my experience every time riding metro in the past year. Waited 30+ minutes for an expo train to Santa Monica. Waited over 20 minutes for a train leaving Santa Monica during the weekday afternoon commute hour. Waited 30+ minutes for a 780 again during the weekday commute. Waited over 45 minutes (closer to an hour) on Fairfax for a 217 to come through around 9 pm on a weekday. The inconsistencies in service are maddening; and in my experiences, unique to Los Angeles. Every city’s public transit faces issues. It’s an incredibly complex operation. But come. on. I have never encountered this anywhere else. Maybe I have unusually bad luck when in LA?