Bourdain on a train, Sepulveda rail options, scooters: HWR, June 8

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Rest in Peace, Anthony Bourdain: also, watch this clip and this segment on eating in L.A.

Art of Transit

Train Line Construction Recalls Yet Another ‘Carmageddon’ (KNBC)

4 rail options proposed as way to ease 405 Fwy congestion (KABC)

Metro last night released some initial concepts for the San Fernando Valley-Westside segment of the Sepulveda Transit Corridor project. Please see this blog post.

The Channel 4 folks pursue the it’s-gonna-be-a-mess angle. Not so fast! I think it’s worth noting that most of the concepts are for rail lines that would run underground. As we’ve seen with our other underground rail projects, the impacts — and, yes, there are some impacts — are mostly contained to station locations.

Police arrest suspect in hit-and-run death of 22-year-old bicyclist in South L.A. (LAT)

The fatal crash that killed 22-year-old Frederick Frazier happened on April 10 in Manchester Square. Police say the suspect fled the scene in her Porsche, which she later had painted black.

This was one in the way of crashes that killed several South L.A. residents earlier this spring. The article I want to read: how has police enforcement of traffic laws changed in recent times (if it has). To my eye, it seems enforcement is down and few motorists I know worry about being cited for anything.

As scooters multiply, Santa Monica plans regulations to address community concerns (Curbed LA)

The big news is that the regulations call for capping the number of scooters at 1,500 in the city — although there are mechanisms for that number to rise. Don’t hold your breath waiting for Santa Monica or any other city to cap the number of other popular mobility devices, i.e. cars.

That said, it’s hard to say how these rules solve the issues that community members rightly are complaining about: people leaving scooters in stupid places that block sidewalks. And people riding on sidewalks and putting pedestrians at risk.

Santa Monica at least has a good bike lane network. But they are the exception in our region, not the rule — thus raising questions about how well scooters may fit into other cities.

Related: How I learned to stop worrying and love electric scooters, in the NYT.

Related: Scooters littering US city streets shout at people: ‘Unlock me or I’ll call the police’ in the Guardian.

And, finally, a little music to end the week.

Categories: Policy & Funding, Projects

4 replies ›

  1. “Police say the suspect fled the scene in her Porsche, which she later had painted black.“

    I’m gonna go ahead and say this one played a bit too much GTA and thought this would work in real life. I’m assuming she didn’t change her plates??

    • If she had any given California’s current “paper dealer plate” rules courtesy of the Car Dealer Lobby. Thank goodness that ends next year.

  2. There are a bunch of us who occasionally do group runs as part of a club in Santa Monica and the fact that there could be a random scooter sitting in the middle of a sidewalk is an accident waiting to happen. Companies that take up public space to make money need to pay fees in exchange for that privilege. I’m surprised that not enough people have been seriously inconvenienced by them to be trashing them right and left already.