Art of Transit: 

Work on the street level part of the Crenshaw/LAX Line through Park Mesa Heights. That’s the concrete that will support the overhead wires that deliver electricity to trains. Photo by J. Isaí Rosa/Metro.

Dept. of Bees, Purple Line Extension edition:

Removed these beauties from an excavator on site, at the Purple Line Project for @metrolosangeles. They love the bees as much as we do. pic.twitter.com/HLIIBahjcD

— Bee Catchers (@BeeCatchers) June 6, 2017

Art of Transit 2: 

In honor of Metro Art's screening of Spike Jonze's "Her" at Union Station Friday, here's the Metro system map from the movie. pic.twitter.com/midXzCPLR2

— John Gordon (@j6ordon) June 6, 2017

The screening is at 8:30 p.m. in the Historic Ticketing Hall at Union Station with seats on a first-come, first-serve basis. Here’s the event page on FB.

Terrorism and tweets, hate speech and murder (To the Point, KCRW)

At what point does free speech cross the line and violate the law? Host Warren Olney looks at the issue in light of the recent double murder on a light rail train in Portland, where three riders (one was injured critically) tried to stop a man from verbally abusing women who appeared to be Muslim.

Experts interviewed agreed there are some gray areas, particularly in what is allowed to be said at political rallies. The experts also agreed that in public settings — including transit — determining when free speech crosses the line and becomes harassment is generally not too difficult.

Metro’s Code of Conduct spells it out:

Abuse and harassment of Metro representatives or patrons is prohibited in Metro facilities and vehicles.

And:

Inciting violence or posing a clear and present danger to other persons, including making verbal or visual gang affiliation or provocation signs.

The bottom line: if you feel like someone is threatening you or another passenger, err on the side of caution and immediately contact the police at 888.950.SAFE (7233).

Watch Multicultural Communities For Mobility second bike-share video (Streetsblog LA)

A thoughtful video on Metro Bike Share in DTLA.

FWIW, we’ve been working to streamline the sign-up process and I think it’s pretty easy. Please see this page for information for those in Metro’s Rider Relief program who want to use bike share.

Metro Bike Share will certainly be in the news in the coming weeks as it launches in Pasadena on July 14 and the Port of Los Angeles on July 31. More info here.

As park-and-rides overflow, would building more parking boost transit ridership? (Seattle Times)

Parking at transit stations in the Seattle region can be a bear. One rider asked the Seattle Times: if they added more parking, would there also be more transit ridership?

The answer from King County Metro:

Doubling the system’s current park-and-ride capacity, which includes about 25,000 spots at 137 sites, for instance, would cost $615 million. Ridership, in turn, would increase by less than 5 percent, Metro says.

That cost-benefit ratio is “not as favorable” compared to other investments, Metro spokesman Scott Gutierrez said. Spending money to increase the speed and reliability of service instead, such as by adding new bus lanes, would have a higher return on investment, he said.

Is Big Sur’s Highway One worth saving? (Mercury News)

Look closely for person standing at NB1 Mud Creek slide. Quite the perspective! Photo:@scott_aihphoto @MalcolmXdough pic.twitter.com/nWVy3xIECa

— Tamie McGowen (@Tamie_McGowen) June 4, 2017

This winter’s rains triggered a massive landslide and wobbled a key bridge — only the latest dust-up the infamous road has had with Mother Nature since opening in the 1920s and ’30s.

Although the overall traffic that Highway One carries is relatively small compared to many roads in the state, tourism officials point to the fact that Big Sur, and its many resorts, are a worldwide draw. And, thus, the answer to the headline’s question: Caltrans is doing everything it can to save the road.