MetroRiderLA

Photo by neighborhoods.org on Flickr; used with a Creative Commons license

The day after Thanksgiving, known in recent years as Black Friday, has been the time when bovine Americans stampeded to shopping malls and general merchandise stores. Yes, that remark has a kernel of truth.

That was before the alcohol-induced spending binge of most of this decade led to a brief coma and the hangover gripping most Americans. Unfortunately, 70% of our economy depends on people buying crap.

If you do join the herd Friday, remember MetroReaders, keep your money in Los Angeles County. We have to feed the Measure R kitty.

If you choose not to, you can see where the Measure R money goes by joining the Southern California Transit Advocates on its Day After Thanksgiving study tour. This year, Socata’s train-hopping aboard Metrolink. The Socata folks are going to use Family 4-Pack tickets to explore almost every line in one day.

Participants are asked to shake off the tryptophan somnolence and arrive at Union Station by 7:50 a.m.

Have a happy and safe Thanksgiving!

(more…)

Photo by Fred Camino via Flickr. This and other photos can be seen on the MetroRiderLA Flickr pool.

MetroRiderLA has been quiet this week, save for Lennartz’s post on 50 Cent and the announcement that the New York Yankees won the World Series (of Transit) without even having to pitch its first ball.

The week has been spent finalizing the work for an extemporaneous contribution to Open Source Transit. Ever since LADOT put out the call that it will restructure its buses — for the worse — this led to the suggestion that DASH‘s saving grace might be to pick up Metro‘s sloppy seconds.

We’ll show you what that looks like, and it’s guaranteed safe for work. They will be divided into San Fernando Valley, central L.A. and South L.A./Harbor areas. The Eastside work was already done in the Gold Line Transit Service Interface Proposals. The Westside doesn’t get any proposals because even within L.A. city limits, there’s the tacit understanding that the area is Big Blue Bus‘ turf.

So come back next week and spread the word. Public participation is welcome and encouraged, and your comments will go to public officials.

For months we at metroriderla have been kicking around idea of getting celebrities to pick up the cause of mass transit. An article was always in the pipeline, but the inspiration of how to approach it was lacking. A few names were brought up. Leonardo DiCaprio seemed like a safe pair of hands. He already has a foundation committed to fighting climate change and the right activist profile. For some reason though, Leo (can I call him Leo? no. Mr. DiCaprio then) did not quite seem like the solution. The answer just recently presented itself from across the pond.

In an interview with the British tabloid The Sun, in a pretty throw-away parting question by the interviewer, 50 Cent revealed that one of the most painful moments in his life was getting his bike stolen as a teenager. Before you could find him in da club, as a boy 50 rode his bike around the streets of his native Queens.

Opening up on the incident, and I quote:

“That was one of those things that happened to me that, it kind of hurt…It’s interesting. Those are the things that inspired you to go in a direction I went into. I had to start to hustle to get the things I wanted or wouldn’t have.”

When watching the interview you can see he is still really affected by that loss. With a personal experience that he still remembers vividly, 50 would seem like a natural supporter to push for better metro, bike lanes and racks. After his champagne campaign, 50 should be recruited in raising awareness for bike campaigns in metro areas from NYC to LA. A lot of stars are needed to elevate metro’s profile. 50 has a stake in bicycles, but who will do work to promote better buses, subways, street cars, pedestrian zones, etc. Suggestions?

Which people could be the celebrity talismans of metro and how can they be recruited into putting their weight behind improving mass transit? Celebrity can be the tonic for fixing public transportation’s image problem. Being green is suddenly cool amongst the Hollywood elite, with a number of celebrities brandishing their environmental credentials. Why not take some of that momentum and channel it towards mass transit? Alert the publicists.

50 Cent interview in London

East L.A. Civic Center station. Photo by Yours Truly. This and other photos can be seen on the MetroRiderLA Flickr pool.

The official opening day to the public for the Metro Gold Line Eastside Extension is Sunday, November 15.

Want to know how the AnsaldoBreda order is going down? Want to know what can be done to stop the Blue Line‘s homicidal rampage?

Mike Cannell, Metro‘s general manager of Metro Rail, will answer these questions tonight at the Transit Coalition‘s monthly meeting. It begins at 6:30 p.m. at Philippe, 1001 N. Alameda St., in downtown Los Angeles. It is one block north of Union Station. It’s accessible by the subway, Gold Line, Metrolink, Amtrak and several Metro and municipal bus lines (search our archives for links to schedules).

Reservations are requested for tonight’s meeting. Send an e-mail with “Dinner reservations” in the subject line or call (818) 367-1661. The Transit Coalition meeting is free to attend.

Photo by Fred Camino via Flickr. This and other photos can be seen on the MetroRiderLA Flickr pool.

What a stark contrast to the transit picture in Los Angeles. Just a few days ago, Metro spent the better part of a meeting fighting over how to divide a multibillion-dollar pie among rail projects and constituents fighting for, rather than against, service.

A lot of places in the country are envious to be in L.A.’s position for once. Imagine how sorry that is.

The typical mid-recession planning transit agencies have been focused on, though, is how much service to cut just a year after bus and train services nationwide reached highs not seen in decades. And L.A. is no exception. The Los Angeles Department of Transportation, the city’s official transit agency, has sounded its own warning sirens about upcoming service cuts. The agency is asking for rider solicitation on how services would impact them. Obviously, this is not a call for MetroReaders to tell LADOT what to cut, but all riders should make their voices heard to tell them what buses to save.

The story is the same. Government funding is being cut back at the time it is needed the most. We can pretty much write off the empty piggy bank that has been the funding coming from Sacramento. Funding from the county’s sales taxes, which funds the bulk of operating costs, has also fallen off sharply. LADOT itself has projected a $260 million deficit over 10 years if it does not restructure service. LADOT is also looking at how much service it duplicates — and outside of downtown L.A., the routes rely on poaching riders from the productive parts of Metro services.

The findings are to go to the L.A. City Council next month. If you need help finding who your council member is, or if you live outside of L.A. city limits and use a Commuter Express or DASH bus to commute to or within L.A., use the boundaries PDF as a guide.

Make your voice heard through official channels. MetroRiderLA only provides the news and links, but any comments posted here have no bearing on policy makers’ decisions. So use the form on the site or contact a council member for help. Your comments then become part of official public record. Remember, the bus you save may be your very own.