MetroRiderLA

[tags]los angeles, mta, expo line, light rail, santa monica, west los angeles[/tags]

Credit: Metro

Yes, it’s another in a series of many transit project meetings. This time, Metro reveals its plans for Phase II of the Expo Line, including the burning question: Will the agency do the right thing or cave in to the worst elements of Cheviot Hills?

All of the following meetings are 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.

• Monday, October 22: Santa Monica Civic Auditorium, 1855 Main St., Santa Monica
  Transit access: Metro Rapid lines 704, 720 and 920; Metro Express Line 534 and Local line 33/333; and Santa Monica’s Big Blue Bus lines 1-10 (except 6) and Tide Ride.
• Wednesday, October 24: Venice High School Auditorium, 13000 Venice Blvd., Venice
  Transit access: Metro Local line 33/333; Culver CityBus lines 1 and 2; and Big Blue Bus Line 2.
• Thursday, October 25: Vista Del Mar Gymnasium, 3200 Motor Ave., Cheviot Hills
  Transit access: Culver CityBus Line 3; and Big Blue Bus lines 12 and 13.

See also:

• LA Visions, the blog of Expo mastermind Darrell Clarke
• Friends 4 Expo Transit, the group that made the light rail line reality

[tags]los angeles, mta, blue line, expo line, gold line, light rail, downtown los angeles[/tags]

Metro is hosting two meetings to develop an alternatives analysis for the Downtown Connector, a possible second subway for downtown Los Angeles.

• Tuesday, November 6, 11:30 a.m.–1:30 p.m.
  Central Library Meeting Room A, 630 W. 5th St.
  Transit access: Metro Red/Purple and Blue lines; Rapid lines 720, 740, 745 and 760; and all local lines 1-99 and express lines 400-499; all LADOT DASH downtown lines; Foothill Transit Silver Streak; Montebello Bus Lines 40 (east and west) and 50; Santa Monica’s Big Blue Bus Line 10; and Torrance Transit Line 2.

• Wednesday, November 7, 6 p.m.–8 p.m.
  Japanese American National Museum, 369 E. First St.
  Transit access: Metro lines 30-31-330, 40 and 42; and LADOT DASH Downtown line A.

Metro is also accepting comments in lieu of public appearances. Comments must be received by November 21, and become part of the public record.

Written comments should be sent to:

Dolores Roybal Saltarelli, Project Manager
Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority
One Gateway Plaza
Los Angeles, CA 90012-2952

Send comments via e-mail or a form.

[tags]los angeles, mta, blue line, expo line, gold line, light rail, downtown los angeles[/tags]

Possible alignments of a downtown Los Angeles connector to link the Metro Blue and Expo lines with the Gold Line.
Credit: Metro

Metro’s plate is pretty full with short- and long-term expansion plans. The Gold Line to East L.A. and the first phase of the Expo Line are under construction. The transit agency is conducting meetings for expanding services to the Westside and along Crenshaw Boulevard. Even the Orange Line is expanding from Warner Center to Chatsworth.

And now comes the Downtown Connector.

Transit advocates have been pushing for this, although there’s no money for it in the short term. Even its long-term prospects are sketchy, since more Metro board members would perceive this project as a second subway for downtown with no benefit to outlying areas.

The connector has merit — and necessity — going for it. When Expo Line opens, it will create a bottleneck at 7th Street/Metro Center that will make for very crowded platforms, trains running back-to-back and turning vehicles around in a very short time. Plus, as some of the alignments suggest, the north and east extensions serve important destinations in downtown: a cluster of fine arts venues, the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels, the Grand Avenue Project, the Civic Center and Little Tokyo. Best of all, Metro would eliminate one to two transfers as trains can now be through-routed. This allows for combinations of runs from Long Beach and the Westside to Pasadena and East L.A.

Keep in mind that an alternatives analysis is not a slam dunk for another subway. Alternatives include doing nothing, running the rail lines above ground, or even “connecting buses.”

Two meetings are scheduled for downtown Los Angeles in November.

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[tags]los angeles, mta, public transit, santa monica, pam o’connor[/tags]

Metro board chair — and Santa Monica council member — Pam O’Connor invites Metro riders and haters to an online chat beginning at noon Wednesday, October 17.

Questions may be submitted to Metro in advance, and will be answered during the live chat.

This is Metro’s first online chat.

[tags]los angeles, mta, public transit, crenshaw boulevard, leimert park, inglewood[/tags]

Metro hosts three meetings to discuss a major investment study for Crenshaw Boulevard between Wilshire Boulevard and the Century Freeway.

The alternatives offered are Metro Rapid Bus (it already exists), Metro Rapid Transit (a dedicated lane) or light rail. The streets in the study include Crenshaw, as well as Hawthorne Boulevard and Prairie Avenue south of downtown Inglewood.

Metro accepts comments by telephone, e-mail and mail along with the public meetings. The telephone number for the project is (213) 922-2736. E-mail may be sent to project manager Alan Patashnick at patashnickalan@metro.net. Written mail may also be sent to:

Alan Patashnick
Metro Planning Director, South Bay Area
Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority
Mail Stop 99-22-3, One Gateway Plaza
Los Angeles, CA 90012

Comments become part of the public record. All correspondence must be received by November 5, 2007.

The list of meetings:

• Monday, October 15, 6 to 8 p.m., Darby Park, 3400 W. Arbor Vitae St., Inglewood.
  Transit access: Metro Rapid line 710 (exit at Manchester Avenue or Century Boulevard), 115/315, 117 and 210.
• Wednesday, October 17, 6 to 8 p.m., Nate Holden Performing Arts Center, 4718 W. Washington Blvd., Los Angeles.
  Transit access: Metro lines 33/333, 68/368 and 212/312; and LADOT DASH Midtown.
• Saturday, October 20, 9 to 11 a.m., Audubon Middle School, 4120 11th Ave., Los Angeles.
  Transit access: Metro Rapid lines 710 and 740, Local lines 40, 42, 105 and 210; and LADOT DASH lines Crenshaw, Leimert/Slauson and Midtown.

[tags]los angeles, mta, beverly hills, santa monica[/tags]

Metro invites the public to sound off on multibillion-dollar investments for Westside projects at a series of meetings in October.

Metro accepts e-mail and letters and as public comment in lieu of attending a meeting. Send e-mail to WestsideExtension@metro.net. To leave a message, call (213) 922-6932. For snail mail, send to:

Mr. David Mieger, AICP
Project Manager and Deputy Executive Officer
Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (Metro)
Mail Stop: 99-22-5
One Gateway Plaza
Los Angeles, CA 90012

The deadline for receiving comments is November 1.

The following meetings take place from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m.

Tuesday, October 9, Emerson Middle School, 1650 Selby Avenue, West Los Angeles
Transit access: Metro Rapid line 704, Local line 4 and Santa Monica’s Big Blue Bus lines 1, 8 and 12/Super 12.

Thursday, October 11, Pan Pacific Recreation Center, 7600 Beverly Boulevard, Los Angeles, CA 90036
Transit access: Metro Rapid lines 714 and 780, and Local lines 10, 14, 16/316, 217 and 218; and LADOT DASH Fairfax.

Tuesday, October 16, Wilshire United Methodist Church, 4350 Wilshire Boulevard, Los Angeles, CA 90005
Transit access: Metro Rapid lines 710 and 720, and Local lines 20 and 210.

Wednesday, October 17, Beverly Hills Public Library Auditorium, 444 N. Rexford Drive, Beverly Hills, CA 90210
Transit access: Metro Rapid lines 704 and 714, and Local lines 4, 14 and 16/316.

Thursday, October 18, Santa Monica Public Library, 601 Santa Monica Boulevard, Santa Monica, CA 90401
Transit access: Metro Rapid line 704, and Express line 534; and Santa Monica’s Big Blue Bus lines 1-10 (except Line 6).