Map courtesy The Boring Co.

You may have caught the news, which was announced by The Boring Company on Wednesday night. From the firm’s website:

The Boring Company is proposing to build Dugout Loop, a zero-emissions, high-speed, underground public transportation system from the Los Feliz, East Hollywood, or Rampart Village neighborhoods to Dodger Stadium in the City of Los Angeles.

The purpose of Dugout Loop is to help reduce traffic in Los Angeles by providing a clean and efficient public transportation option to Dodger Stadium. Dugout Loop will complement existing public transportation systems and provide an all-electric and affordable alternative that will transport baseball fans and concertgoers directly to the Dodger Stadium… in less than 4 minutes!

The eastern station is planned to be built in the ballpark parking lot while the western station, will be on private property owned by the Boring Co. next to one of three Metro Red Line stations — either Vermont/Sunset, Vermont/Santa Monica or Vermont/Beverly. Fares are planned to be about $1, reservations will be needed and passengers will ride on autonomous skates that can reach speeds of 125 mph, according to the Boring Co.

This is certainly an interesting development. Metro has been running the popular Dodger Stadium Express to Union Station since 2010 (and another route from Harbor Gateway since 2015) and the agency is currently evaluating a proposal from Los Angeles Aerial Rapid Transit to build a privately-funded tram between Union Station and the ballpark.

Our statement on today’s news from @boringcompany pic.twitter.com/cyUTSGuPl5

— LA ART (@aerialtransitla) August 16, 2018

As for this new proposal, Metro officials say it’s a positive development because the more mobility options, the better for everyone. The agency plans to continue talking to the Boring Company about their tunneling plans in our region to ensure projects do not interfere with existing or future Metro projects.

BTW, the Dodgers have led the Major Leagues in attendance since 2013 and there is now the possibility of there being three transit options to reach the ballpark in the future: the bus, the aerial tram and the Dugout Loop. None of these have the capacity on their or even together to get everyone to a game — Dodger Stadium, built atop a hill and downtown proper, can hold about 56,000 fans — but the transit options together could give more people options other than driving.

What do you think, readers?

L.A.’s rail system will be first in the U.S. to use scanners that detect explosives (LAT)

Starting in Los Angeles, Body Scanners Come to Subways and Buses (NYT)

Coverage of the announcement/media event that Metro held Tuesday. Key graphs:

[Metro security chief Alex] Wiggins declined to comment on exactly how the agency will respond to images that show a possible weapon. He also declined to comment on where the scanners will be used but said they will be “randomized.”

Riders will be warned that they will be subject to search before they are scanned, Wiggins said. (At Union Station on Tuesday, a sign posted next to the body scanner read, “Passengers proceeding past this point are subject to Metro security screening and inspection.”)

And from the NYT:

In the aftermath of the Sept. 11 attacks, billions were spent to tighten airport security. Passengers were subjected to extensive screenings, biometric scans, ID checks and limitations on what can be taken on flights. But the same protections have not been extended to transit hubs, where the only check is typically for a ticket.

Our View | The Interstate 5 Flu Shot Will Help Us All (Santa Clarita Valley Signal) 

The headline for this editorial is a metaphor for the planned second phase of a project with Metro funding to add HOV lanes and possibly some truck lanes to the 5 freeway between Newhall Pass and Castaic. The op-ed correctly notes this area of the 5 has already endured a lot of construction…but then ponders what if nothing was done:

However, those pale in comparison to the inconveniences and slowdowns I-5 travelers would experience without these projects. It is a cold, hard fact that not only is the I-5 one of the most heavily traveled freeways in the nation, but also that the demands placed on it are only going to increase through a variety of factors, including increased interstate and in-state commercial traffic.

And, make no mistake, regional growth will place additional demands on the already-busy freeway. With the Newhall Ranch project in the Santa Clarita Valley and the proposed Centennial development, on Tejon Ranch, adding approximately 40,000 new homes to the region in the next couple of decades, we’re going to need all the capacity we can get.

Thousands jam new Transbay Transit Center for its open house (S.F. Chronicle) 

The new $2.2-billion transit center — officially known as Salesforce Transit Center — in downtown San Francisco opened last week. The three-block long station with a rooftop park will serve buses for the time being. Next up is a Caltrain commuter rail station and, in the future, high-speed rail.

Dept. of I Run for the Bus, Dear: 

And for you motorists out there…