Art of Transit: A couple of shots of construction progress on the new rail yard adjacent to LAX that will serve the Crenshaw/LAX Line.

And here is some video of the work done earlier this summer to restore Crenshaw Boulevard above the Leimert Park underground station:

Dept. of Zero Emissions: Several different agencies today announced plans to accelerate their use of zero emission and electric vehicles by the 2028 Summer Olympics and Paralympics. Here’s the news release. Excerpt:

With its release on the eve of California Governor Brown’s Global Climate Action Summit, the Roadmap’s targets include ensuring that 20 to 45 percent of all passenger cars are electric by 2028, and 10 to 40 percent of all heavy-duty drayage trucks on the road are zero emissions by 2028. LACI and the Partnership’s Leadership Group, Advisory Group, and other stakeholders will work together over the coming year to conduct further analyses in preparation for the release of the Roadmap 2.0 by Fall 2019.

Metro is one of the agencies involved. Attentive readers know that Metro has committed to a fully zero emission bus fleet by 2030 and the agency says it will try to accelerate that date, if possible. Metro’s 2,200-plus bus fleet is currently powered entirely by compressed natural gas.

As of this year, there are about 400,000 electric cars on the road in California, according to the San Francisco Chronicle. In total, there are about 35.4 million registered vehicles in the state and 8.1 million in L.A. County, according to the state DMV. Obviously the goal is a big lift; on the other hand, electric vehicles are more common than they used to be and seem likely to become even more popular.

Cortlandt Street Station, Damaged on Sept. 11, Reopens 17 Years Later (NYT)

Metro’s bike-share program won’t work without safer streets to ride on (LAT)

A pair of tough letters from readers. Excerpt:

However, not mentioned is the fact that bicycle commuting in the Greater L.A. area will remain well below its potential due to unsafe streets. The road infrastructure here was built under a “cars only” mentality, and any attempt to add bicycle lanes and pedestrian safety features is met with great resistance by entitled drivers.

The glory days of L.A. public transit (L.A. Taco)

Check out the map that shows the expansive streetcar system that went from southern Orange County to Redlands to Santa Monica to the top of Mt. Lowe to the northern San Fernando Valley, among other places. Instead of rebuilding it and speeding it up, the system got closed and junked and was muerte by 1963. If you happen upon ghosts of pols from that earlier era, remind them of that.

Seth Rogen Inspires a U.S. City to Change the Public Transit Experience (Governing)

Rogen recently became the voice of Vancouver’s system and now other cities — including an apparent inquiry from L.A. City Hall — has some ideas. Your ideas?

Sylvester Stallone or Barbra Streisand or Jeff Bridges in Dude Mode.

— stevehymon (@stevehymon) September 11, 2018

A Scourge for California Drivers: Hours on a Sidewalk to Renew a License (NYT)

Reporter Adam Nagourney points out that getting a license is one of the most routine encounters many people have with government — and the time it takes to get an encounter and have one is getting longer, to the embarrassment of some pols.

Airport Security Trays Carry More Cold Germs Than Toilets, Study Finds (NYT)

For those who like to ponder cloth seats on transit.

Cincinnati looks to follow LA’s blueprint to pass a transportation funding levy (Local 12)

L.A. Mayor Eric Garcetti was in the Queen City over the weekend, touting Measure M as an example for the locals — who are increasingly griping about worsening traffic. But sales tax initiatives have gone nowhere and the city still has about two miles of unused subway after the project ran out of dough in the 1930s.

Not really related: The Dodgers are good and likely going to the playoffs while the Reds will once again enjoy a work-free October. But the Reds are going for their sixth straight win over Blue tonight at Great American Ballpark, where 12,000 showed up last night to bear witness to a once awesome rivalry. The Dodgers come home next week and the Dodger Stadium Express will once again be ready to take you to the game, from either Union Station or Harbor Gateway. Details here.

Belated AFC/NFC title game picks: I think the Rams (Expo Line adjacent, for now) will play the Falcons in the NFC and the Bengals will face the Chiefs in the AFC.