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 As expected, gas prices continue their summer fall:
The average price of a gallon of self-serve regular gasoline dropped in Los Angeles County this week for the 14th time in 15 weeks, falling to its lowest level since Feb. 23, the Automobile Club of Southern California reported today. It dropped 7.6 cents to $2.788 -- 30 cents less than last month, 40 cents less than at this time last year and 69.9 cents lower since hitting a record high of $3.487 on May 9, according to the Auto Club’s Weekend Gas Watch survey of gas stations. In Orange County, the average price fell 8.3 cents over the past week to $2.72 -- 75.9 cents lower than when it set a record of $3.479 on May 8. The Orange County average price has also dropped 14 of the past 15 weeks, including an 8-cent decline from Aug. 10-17.
 Maybe those tales about hybrid carpool sticker thefts were not urban myths after all. Dr. Roadshow gets an earful from motorists who had their stickers stolen, then went through hell at the DMV to get new ones:
We had two carpool stickers stolen off our 2005 Prius at the Alameda County Fair as our daughter, a 4-H member, was showing her rabbit. I went to the DMV Web site to order replacements but was told that our request was incomplete - we need to submit a police report and return the remaining stickers. I could find nothing on the Web site that said a police report was required when submitting a replacement form.
 Now this is an ugly traffic stop that is headed to court:
A Los Angeles traffic officer sued "The Hills" star Jason Wahler and model Kristen DeLuca, alleging the pair taunted him with racial remarks while he helped impound a car. Jonathan Wallace, a city Department of Transportation traffic officer, filed the suit in Los Angeles Superior Court Friday, alleging assault, battery and violation of civil rights. Wallace is asking for $50,000 in general damages and special damages, and $150,000 in punitive damages. (CNS)
 Councilman Bill Rosendahl's proposal for congestion pricing at LAX (cars possibly paying a toll to get into the airport) is gaining some interest. He tells the Argonaut the pricing would be tied to a much discussed people-mover system at the airport:
Rosendahl said the congestion pricing plan, which would be paired with an automated people-mover, could benefit Los Angeles. The plan continues the push to regionalize aviation traffic and fund mass transit projects in the city, the councilman said. "This encourages regionalism and mass transit, and complements several proposed transportation projects, such as the Green Line extension and expanded FlyAway service," Rosendahl said. "Congestion pricing has worked well in other cities. I am eager to learn about its feasibility in Los Angeles."
 Why does transportation get so little respect in Sacramento? That's the question Rong-Gong Lin II and Jeffrey L. Rabin of The Times ask after agencies lost $1.3 billion in the state budget. It's not the first time, they report:
"In the last six years, the governor and state lawmakers have tapped the per-gallon gas tax and the separate sales tax on gasoline to balance the budget. These cuts are obvious to anyone who drives or takes mass transit. For many years, congestion has been growing much faster than road construction."
So why? Here's one possible answer: "The bond measure was clearly seen as a message from the electorate that they wanted to see transportation improvements," said Brian Taylor, head of the Institute of Transportation Studies at UCLA. But faced with potential cuts to prisons, healthcare and schools, taking the budget knife to road programs can often seem the least harmful, at least in the short term, he said. "For example, if you're planning on widening a freeway . . . [but] you don't fund it this year," Taylor said, the freeway will still function, "albeit more slowly."
Folks in Riverside are cheering the end of this long -- and traffic-inducing -- road project: To the relief of area businesspeople and residents, traffic will flow again today on a freeway overpass that was closed almost two years ago for an upgrade. A wider version of the Blaine and 3rd Street bridge will be open to motorists by 2 p.m., said California Department of Transportation spokeswoman Terese Lagana. Caltrans knocked down most of the two-lane span in November 2005 to rebuild a four-lane overpass at the site. The closure meant motorists trying to exit Interstate 215 to travel east- or westbound between the 60/91/215 interchange and University Avenue would have to regularly exit onto University, Lagana said. (CNS)
 Should we reduce parking requirements on some of this high-density development? That's the idea of megadeveloper Chris Pak, who is profiled by The Times' K. Connie Kang. Pak is behind some of the residential towers rising in Koreatown. His critics take a different view:
"But Pak and his denser vision of L.A. have their share of detractors. Neighborhood activists, leery of development encroachment near residential areas abutting major boulevards, such as Olympic, complain that projects like his will change the historic character of neighborhoods, and they worry about the effect of density on the quality of life that residents of these areas have long enjoyed. Critics question whether the new projects will get people out of their cars or simply bring more residents -- and commuters -- to the area's already clogged streets. An environmental impact study says the Solair project is expected to create 1,700 new daily trips. Critics are also leery of some of Pak's other ideas. He would like to see zoning rules changed so that a developer could offer less parking and instead provide more open space for residents. Pak believes it would get people out of their cars and encourage other modes of transportation, but critics say this is a recipe for a street parking nightmare."
 Is the 22 Freeway extra quiet? Officials plan to install a special type of asphalt on the roadway designed to reduce noise:
The state Department of Transportation is expected by the end of this week to approve design plans for rubberized asphalt installation on the 22. Plans to install the noise-blocking asphalt on a mile of the westbound direction – between Magnolia and Euclid streets – were contingent on CalTrans approval, which caused a delay in the construction process. CalTrans, which has standards for installing rubberized asphalt on older freeways, had to determine how to lay the asphalt on the new 22 without breaking up the concrete, said Joel Zlotnik, an Orange County Transportation Authority spokesman.
 
What's this white "National Boulevard" sign? That's what blogger Julia Frey asked when she came across this sign (right) on the Westside. It looks a lot different than the famous blue-and-white street signs L.A. has used for years. She takes us on a photo exploration of street sign color and design. Not sure we ever discovered the answer (though the BB believes those white signs are common across Southern California at signals right off freeway on ramps and off ramps -- perhaps placed by Caltrans?). The photos of all the different signs are cool.
 The new state budget also offers little good news to the much-delayed high-speed rail system for California (only about $20 million for more studies). But some lawmakers are appealing to the governor:
Two Democrats on Wednesday urged Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger to stand by his previous statements of support for California’s high-speed rail project and spare its funding when he trims $700 million from the new state budget. "We want to make sure the governor knows we’re watching, that Californians are watching, and that we expect the governor to be futuristic, to be optimistic and to keep a project on line that makes a lot of sense in terms of getting people out of their cars," said Sen. Dean Florez (D-Shafter). The state’s high-speed rail board has recommended that California build a 700-mile system linking its biggest cities with trains running at top speeds of more than 200 mph. (AP)
More on the rail system below
Continue reading "High-speed rail board revs it up" »
 So how does Irvine suddenly look like it could actually build its rail line? The Times' Tony Barboza reports it's largely because Irvine has something no one else seems to have these days: MONEY! Money it skillfully acquired for rail nearly two decades ago:
The project has a head start — $121 million in Proposition 116 funding that Irvine will receive from the state. That money, set aside in 1990 through the Clean Air and Transportation Act, must be budgeted by 2010. The state money must be matched by local funds, which means Irvine still has to find more than $150 million to pay for the project.
 Didn't this all start in the mind of The Times' ace City Hall columnist Steve Hymon? Maybe. In any case, now it looks like there is growing support for some kind of congestion pricing study at LAX:
Drivers dropping off passengers at Los Angeles International Airport may have to pay a toll to enter the arrival and departure loops as the city studies congestion pricing, according to reports Saturday. Los Angeles City Council members Wendy Greuel and Bill Rosendahl have asked the city Transportation Department to study if tolls should be imposed on vehicles that enter the central terminal area, with the money going to fund rapid transit citywide. Nearly 26 million vehicles spun around the upper and lower levels last year.
 Transportation programs were the big losers in the state budget compromise, according to The Times' Evan Halper and Patrick McGreevy:
More than $1 billion intended for public transportation work, such as widening some freeways and extending the Expo light-rail line, would instead be used to help reduce the multibillion-dollar deficit the state has been carrying for years.
The Expo Line extension to Santa Monica (from Culver City) is now in more jeopardy than ever. We'll hopefully hear from MTA officials about what comes next.
 Heads up on this delay downtown:
Motorists can expect overnight traffic delays for the next two weeks at the 3rd Street and Mednik Avenue intersection in East Los Angeles as work continues on the Gold Line Eastside Extension, officials said today. Metropolitan Transportation Authority construction workers began installing a rail lines at the intersection Monday and will be restricting motorists from turning left in all directions at the intersection from 7 p.m. to 6 a.m. Monday through Friday for the next two weeks. Motorists are still able to drive through and make right turns at the intersection. Cones and electronic boards will be in place to help alleviate traffic problems. (CNS)
 Irvine appears to be building a head of steam for what would be Orange County's first light rail line, The Times' Tony Barboza reports.
According to the plans, streetcars powered by overhead electrical lines will run 3.4 miles through the Great Park to the Irvine train station, where passengers will transfer to a shuttle bus along Alton Parkway to the Irvine Spectrum 1.6 miles away. The bus portion is expected to be in operation by 2009, and the streetcars by 2012. The goal is to install rail along the entire route and possibly expand it to other parts of Irvine, city officials said. The hybrid rail-bus line would attract about 5,000 daily riders, officials say. All nine planned stations will be at street level, except one built into the Irvine train station, where riders will transfer between rail and bus. Part of the bus line will be elevated to cross over Interstate 5, officials said.
 Interesting fact from Norm King, director of the William and Barbara Leonard University Transportation Center at Cal State San Bernardino. The center is looking at ways to better deal with cargo traffic on freeways and told the SB Sun this:
Tractor-trailers are tough on highways and interstates because of their weight and the fact that they take up more space. A fully loaded tractor-trailer causes as much damage to a freeway as 10,000 cars, King said. "We're going to look at ways to distribute that weight more evenly," he said.
 Is the trash problem getting worse on California's freeways? Caltrans thinks so, and has some stats to back it up. There seems to be two types of debris: The small stuff (soft drink cups, cigarette butts) and big stuff falling from vehicles (like that mattress on the 710 North near the 5):
The state Department of Transportation says the volume of trash left on Northern California freeways rose about 34% last year. A 30% hike was reported in L.A. and Ventura counties - that worked out to about 50,000 cubic yards of additional waste, or enough to fill 6,300 dump trucks. San Diego and Imperial counties had a 12% hike. Statewide, Caltrans spent $60 million on litter removal last year. Cigarette butts were the No. 1 type of litter found but a lot of things that apparently fell off trucks also were represented - including kitchen sinks. (AP)
 One person was killed this morning when a vehicle overturned on the southbound 101 Freeway in the Cahuenga Pass, triggering a miles-long backup through the San Fernando Valley.
Only the two left lanes were open about 8 a.m. as investigators inspected the site of the single-car accident just north of Mulholland Drive, said California Highway Patrol Officer Francisco Villalobos.
The victim, who was ejected from the vehicle, was pronounced dead at the scene, he said.
 Some critics would argue the Gold Line from downtown to Pasadena is slow under normal conditions. Now, it's going to be a little slower:
Riders on the Gold Line will experience delays of about 20 minutes today and tomorrow because an electrical problem has knocked one of the two tracks out of operation over a section of the line, according to the MTA. The problem, which first cropped up last night, involves overhead electrical lines that power the trains, said Metropolitan Transportation Authority spokesman Jose Ubaldo. Until the problem is resolved, Gold Line trains will use only one track in each direction between the Mission and Southwest Museum stations, he said. (CNS)
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As expected, gas prices continue their summer fall:
