MetroRiderLA

[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, red line, transit oriented development, nbc, universal city, north hollywood[/tags]

Rendering of MetroStudio@Lankershim, the proposed headquarters of NBC/Universal. Clicking on the picture goes to the project web site.

North Hollywood was in the news for L.A.’s biggest, boldest development at the junction of the Metro Red and Orange lines. Even that $1 billion investment is now dwarfed, in less than two weeks, by an even bigger, bolder plan by a big, bold media company. NBC/Universal is consolidating its operations, and the Peacock is leaving Burbank for Campo de Cahuenga, right above the Universal City station! And this one promises to be about $3 billion!

Google News has several news stories on the NBC move. Also, the developer has launched a site for the project, titled MetroStudio@Lankershim. Curbed LA has been all abuzz with several NBC-move posts, including this statement left in its inbox:

UNIVERSAL CITY - The NBC relocation atop a Red Line station has inspired several of you to wax poetic about the realization of the LA subway as a viable system. “Would it make sense for either Google or Yahoo to have a presence there rather than in Santa Monica… Also a good time to rethink about the extensions of the Red Line subway north, as well as the Purple Line to Santa Monica to allow the suits on the west side an opportunity to get to the offices in Universal. Now LA is starting to understand how [transit oriented developments] can really be beneficial.

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[tags]los angeles, metrolink, commuter rail, newhall, santa clarita, antelope valley[/tags]

The Newhall Pass slowly is being reopened after this weekend’s tragic chain reaction collision. The emergency added service on Metrolink’s Antelope Valley Line is still running for another day, including the additional late-morning trips on trains 210X and 212X and added cars on regular trips.

Six Flags and William S. Hart Park are not providing overflow parking today, but additional parking is available at the Saugus Speedway next to the Santa Clarita Station and San Fernando Road and Sixth Street next to the Newhall Station.

AVTA has announced it is resuming regular commuter schedules today. Today is also the last day commuter passes are accepted for free boarding on Metrolink.

[tags]los angeles, metrolink, commuter rail, santa clarita, newhall[/tags]

Metrolink has announced it is adding two additional midday trains and extra cars to additional trains on the Antelope Valley line in response to the closure of Interstate 5.

Trains 210X and 212X depart Via Princessa station at 9:15 a.m. and 11 a.m. The timetables for intermediate stations are listed in the link above.

In addition, several additional parking lots will allow commuters to park their cars and be shuttled for a train ride through the Newhall Pass. Santa Clarita Transit and AVTA commuter pass holders can ride Metrolink free through the emergency period.

The additional parking lots are located at Six Flags (Lots A1, A2 and A3), Saugus Speedway (next to Santa Clarita Station), and San Fernando Road and Sixth Street and William S. Hart Park (near Newhall station).

See also:

• Google News searches for Interstate 5 closure. Three people died in the Newhall Pass chain-reaction crash, and both north and south lanes were shut down throughout the weekend.
• AVTA rider alert

[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.

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, gold line, light rail, pasadena, south pasadena[/tags]

Metro has announced a planned service delay on the Gold Line this weekend. Landscape crews perform maintenance between the Fillmore and Mission station, placing one track out of service.

Trains operate every 20 minutes between 6 a.m. and 3 p.m. Saturday and Sunday.

Northbound trains depart Union Station at 3:45 a.m., 4:10 a.m., 4:25 a.m., 4:45 a.m. and every 20 minutes until 2:45 p.m., then returning to regular schedule at 3:03 p.m. Southbound trains depart Sierra Madre Villa Station at 4:41 a.m., 4:59 a.m., 5:19 a.m., 5:39 a.m. and every 20 minutes until 2:39 p.m., then returning to regular schedule at 2:55 p.m.