MetroRiderLA

Confession. I bought a Nintendo Wii. There are already too few hours in the day to do what I need and want to do (as evidenced by the sporadic posting around here lately), and yet, I bought a Nintendo Wii. As if writing a Metro blog wasn’t enough of a distraction from trying to make my freelance graphic design business the kind of venture that pays my bills, I had to go and buy a Nintendo Wii.

So here’s how my Wednesday was shaping up. I had a plate full of work, a lack of sleep from the previous night, a Nintendo Wii cooing my name in the other room, and on top of all that, some dude was supposed to talk about urban rail over at Metro Headquarters. Talk about a dilemma. Do I do the responsible thing and work through lunch, ensuring (at least temporarily) my financial future? Do I abuse my home office and take a nap? Do I falter to the Wii’s incessant pleading and waste the rest of my day playing fake doubles tennis against a bunch of virtual Weebles? Or do I put blog before work and go check out Jeff Kentworthy, co-author of Sustainability and Cities: Overcoming Automobile Dependence, over at Metro HQ.

Yes loyal readers, I sacrificed work (easy), napping (harder), and the Wii (damn near impossible), to learn about the advantages of urban rail. The following is a record of what I learned as to ensure my choice was not in vain.

(more…)

The endless lights of a passing car dealership that can’t help but block out the sky. Photo courtesy of jon_zuckerman.

On a recent trip to some old stomping grounds in Louisville, Kentucky I had an epiphany. I was at the airport waiting for a friend to pick me up when a brand new, shiny green, Honda Civic pulled up. It was a nice car, as cars go—sunroof and all that jazz—but what really caught my attention was the temporary dealership license plate. In black and silver it read Sam Swope and I immediately became nostalgic. Why, I wasn’t sure, but I definitely knew I was back in Louisville for the name was as familiar to me as my friend’s who I’d be staying with.

I continued to wait and continued to ponder how crazy and all encompassing the car culture really is. I hadn’t need for convincing or anything, but to realize that a gigantic car dealership was as recognizable as Churchill Downs really blew me away. I then got to thinking about the other places I’ve lived or family has lived and tested if other such dealerships were locked in my memory like my first tree fort and kiss. Monroe, Ct – Dan Perkins, Tampa, Fl - Furman, Tallahassee, Fl - Proctor, Chicago, Il – Gillespie Motors, Ottawa, Il – Bill Walsh, Los Angeles, CA - Galpin Motors.

(more…)

This March Metro asked you to share with them what you Imagine for L.A.’s transportation future. In two days however, the 45-day public comment period will come to a close, meaning you’d better act fast if you want your input on the Long Range Transportation Plan to have an impact.

The last of the seven community meetings being held to discuss the plan is tonight starting at 6 PM at the Marvin Braude Constituent Service Center in Van Nuys. You may also email your comments to metroplan@metro.net or call Metro’s LRTP Hotline at 213-922-2833 to leave a voice comment.

Perhaps you need some inspiration to help gather your thoughts for your own comments. Check out Damien Newton’s testimony over at Street Heat LA. His comments focus on the idea of creating balanced streets where all transportation modes get equal access to our precious streets. Also have a look at the conversation on the MetroRiderLA forum, perhaps Dan Wentzel’s ideas for making the Valley/Westside transit connection a reality is more along the lines of what you’re thinking.

Our very own Wad (who unfortunately has been too busy with real life to write for us lately), sent me his comments on the Long Range Transportation Plan, and his letter, aside from the fact that it contains some of the best recommendations I’ve read, is laid out in a manner that I plan on emulating because it’s organized so logically.

(more…)

This morning I had the unfortunate destiny to trek along the Wilshire corridor. At all times I try my best to stay off this God-forsaken street but today was just not possible. But my goal was Westwood so I felt good that I could at least use the 920 express. I know it’s not really all that much faster because B Hills is clogged at all times but fewer stops lowers the percentage rate of the guy that won’t stop sneezing to board.

Accepting my Wilshire fate I took the Red line to Wilshire/Vermont with the hopes of catching a 920 and sailing smoothly to Bruin country.  However, I had the regrettable fortune of forgetting it was Earth day. But, happy to see that the city is promoting the de-caring of LA even if for only a single day I ignored the precarious re-routing situation sure to follow.

(more…)

Image courtesy of mattlogelin.

What makes a good bus ride? This is the question posed over at EcoWorldly in an article that traverses the world in search of the best (and worst) buses. Gavin Hudson, the car-free author of the story, lists three key elements that he has found to be the difference between a good bus and a bad bus, they are:

1. You have access to a good schedule and map of the bus routes.
2. You feel clean and comfortable on the bus.
3. You feel safe on the bus.

Here’s my list:

1. Your bus comes frequently, as in every 5-10 minutes. Schedules be damned, I want to walk to a bus stop and know that my bus is going to come within 5 minutes, so even if I miss a bus I know I’m not screwed.
2. You aren’t packed like sardines. The only thing worse than waiting forever at a bus stop is having to squeeze onto a standing room only bus.
3. All stops are clearly announced. Automatic stop announcements are a life saver, because the only thing worse than waiting forever for a bus only to be packed in like a sardine is missing your stop because it wasn’t announced.

Those are my three, what are yours?

Related:

• 10 Ways to Improve L.A.’s Public Transportation System
• MetroRiderLA Forum: Speeding Up Buses

One of our readers from out-of-town emailed us with a question, and I’m putting it to you guys to help her out. Here it is:

Hi, I’m going to LA and I was wondering if you knew if there were lockers available at Union Station, as I plan to use the FlyAway bus to LAX after exploring the city for a bit. If you do, do you know if they’d be big enough for a suitcase of moderate size? Thanks!

I don’t know the answer to this off the top of my head. My gut tells me that there’s no lockers at Union Station… someone prove me wrong. If I’m right, can anyone suggest any creative ways for a visitor to safely store suitcases at/near Union Station? L.A. needs to be friendly to our 25.4 million yearly visitors.  Thanks!