A new kind of crosswalk

Those flashing crosswalks have become popular as a way to better protect pedestrians. Today, a new one was added in South L.A.:

A pedestrian crosswalk with flashing lights was unveiled today at 42nd Place and Central Avenue, a busy intersection located near four schools. An estimated 24,000 vehicles pass through the intersection every day. "With the push of a button, the crosswalk’s 'smart' technology will increase pedestrian visibility by augmenting cautionary signs with overhead flashing lights and intersection markings," said Gloria Jeff, general manager of the city Department of Transportation. Councilwoman Jan Perry, who represents the area, said the crosswalk will make it safer for students walking to Wadsworth and Harmony elementary schools, Carver Middle School and Jefferson High. (CNS)

500 parking meters in Silver Lake...

The idea, the city says, is to make it easier for shoppers to park. But The Times' Rong-Gong Lin II reports that residents foresee a parking nightmare:

Some merchants cheer the idea of adding 500 meters, saying it will help customers find parking in an area notoriously short on spaces. But some residents worry that the meters will mean less parking for them -- and pressure on the rapidly gentrifying neighborhood. "It seems like it is becoming like every other place that becomes bourgeois," said Tristan Saether, 24, a bartender who lives and works in the meter-free Sunset Junction neighborhood in the heart of Silver Lake. "It's one more step toward high rent." Merchants and residents say parking problems have reached unbearable levels in Silver Lake. Along Sunset Boulevard, the competition for parking is fierce, causing motorists to travel up residential side streets in search of spaces. "Parking is so bad already," said Kelly Van Patter, who opened an environmentally themed home and garden shop in Sunset Junction two weeks ago. "It's tough to find a spot as it is."

Senate clears 'Subway to Sea'

L.A. officials announced that the Senate has finally approved the repeal on Wilshire Boulevard subway tunneling. This is a tiny step in the long-shot bid for a $5 billion "Subway to the Sea." Release from the city:

By an overwhelming vote of 88-7, the U.S. Senate today approved its version of the FY08 Transportation Appropriations bill. The $104.6 billion spending package includes language that repeals the longstanding federal ban on subway tunneling along the Wilshire Corridor. The provision, which was inserted by Senators Dianne Feinstein and Barbara Boxer, is identical to that which was also included in the House Transportation Appropriations bill. In addition, the Senate spending measure includes $70 million in New Starts funds for the Metro Gold Line Eastside Extension.

Bad traffic signal caused accident?

Did a bad traffic signal cause an accident that left an L.A. woman seriously hurt? The City Council today agreed to pay the woman $2 million:

The Los Angeles City Council today approved a settlement of just over $2 million for a woman who suffered a serious brain injury when hit by an MTA bus. Sylvia Villareal was in a crosswalk on March 15, 2004, when she was struck by the Metro bus on Whittier Boulevard near Spence Street. In her lawsuit against the city and Metropolitan Transportation Authority, Villareal claimed the collision was the result of a speeding bus driver and an improperly installed and maintained traffic signal. Villareal suffered a brain injury, internal injuries and may be permanently disabled as a result of the crash, according to her court papers. (CNS)

Getting a very early start

Drivers are getting up earlier for even earlier commutes, according to the latest Census data: According to USA Today:

Americans are leaving home earlier and earlier to beat the rush and get to work on time. Census data released today document the ever-lengthening commutes: In 2000, 1 worker in 9 was out the door by 6 a.m., the new data says; by 2006, it was 1 in 8. That might not seem like a big change, but it has put more than 2.7 million additional drivers — for a total of 15 million — on pre-dawn patrol. This "commuting creep" is changing the lives of tens of millions of Americans. It affects everything from the breakfast-food industry to television viewership trends, from traffic-signal timing to newspaper delivery times, from carpooling patterns to personal fitness routines. Increasingly early commutes also are altering workers' relationships with their families.

No surprise: L.A. is at the top of the list, says AP: "In Los Angeles County, where 1 of 8 commuters was leaving for work before 6 a.m. in 2000, the number rose to one in 7. At the same time, the number of commuters jumped nearly 14 percent, from 3,724,107 commuters to 4,237,760, the data shows."

Can trees tame a freeway?

Can trees make neighborhoods around freeway more livable? In Long Beach, some residents who live near the 710 think so. They want the city to embark on a greening effort:

Greening of their neighborhoods emerged as one of the top demands for more than 50 residents who live in communities along the Long Beach (710) Freeway. The fourth and final meeting and workshop for the planning phase of the "Community Livability Plan" on Wednesday night asked residents to list concerns about living at the mouth of a major goods movement corridor, as well as potential infrastructure projects they wish to see enacted. Residents want more trees and plant greenery, they said.

Deadly stretch of Sunset

This curving part of Sunset has long been considered dangerous -- especially at night. It was the scene of another fatal accident overnight:

One person was killed and three others were injured today in a single-vehicle accident near UCLA, authorities said. The accident occurred around 12:20 a.m. on Sunset Boulevard at Westwood Plaza, said an officer with the Los Angeles Police Department’s West Traffic Division. One person, a male, was pronounced dead at the scene, and three other people in the car were transported to hospitals in unknown condition, the officer said. (CNS)

A crossroads of pastrami

The corner of 7th and Alvarado has a new name -- a recognition of what many consider the best pastrami on rye in L.A.:

In honor of the late founder of Langer’s Delicatessen, the Los Angeles City Council agreed today that the intersection outside the famous eatery will be called "Langer’s Square." Langer’s Delicatessen opened 60 years ago at Seventh and Alvarado streets near MacArthur Park and became well-known for its pastrami sandwiches. Al Langer died June 24 at the age of 94. "When you look at how it is that our great diversity adds up to creating a metropolis like we have, it is because of the heroes that we have like Mr. Langer, who was able to sustain cycles of evolvement, both good and bad, and after many decades, still be present on that ... intersection," said Councilman Ed Reyes. (CNS)

Gold Line crash injures 7

Here's the latest on the Gold Line crash in Northeast L.A.:

A crash between a rush-hour commuter train and a pickup truck north of downtown Tuesday injured at least seven people, authorities said. The crash in Highland Park occurred just before 8 a.m. Tuesday. The truck was pinned between the MTA train and a concrete pillar. The train crushed part of the truck bed. The driver was briefly trapped but was conscious and alert when he was cut free and taken to a hospital. About 50 people were on the train. (AP)

Boyle Heights traffic delays

Yes, the Eastside is feeling like one big construction zone these days. In Boyle Heights, 1st Street will see lots of traffic tied up this week because of work on the Gold Line extension from downtown to East L.A. (it's not very good most days, but the MTA says it will now be worse). Here's details on what to expect.

Don't recline that seat too much...

Think twice before riding in the passenger seat with the seat reclined. Emily Bazelon in Slate reports what happened to her:

A couple of weeks ago, I was sleeping in the front passenger seat of our car when it slammed into the vehicle in front of us. We were on the highway coming home from a family trip. The other three people in our car weren't hurt. But I'd reclined my seat, and my seat belt, which was riding high, left a long welt around my rib cage and along my stomach. As it turned out, I had internal bleeding from a lacerated spleen and three cracked ribs. I spent the next two days in intensive care.

Relief coming to Inland Empire

The big Inland Empire traffic hope is now riding on a major effort to widen the increasingly clogged 215 Freeway, which has become one of the region's main north-south routes. During the next decade, the Sun reports, major changes are in store:

In 2013, San Bernardino Associated Governments hopes local drivers can say "bye-bye traffic" when traveling through San Bernardino on the 215 Freeway. The county's transportation commission, also known as Sanbag, estimates that will be the year the 215 widening project through San Bernardino is completed. Construction for the first phase of the project - the Fifth Street bridge widening - began in February. That phase is about a quarter of the way complete, according to Carrie Gilbreth, a public relations representative with Sanbag.

Smoky afternoon commute

Heads up on this headache on the 118 Freeway:

A brush fire that was sparked in a canyon in Simi Valley is burning toward the Ronald Reagan Freeway and slowing traffic to a crawl. A Ventura County fire spokesman says firefighters are working to put out the 15-acre blaze. A cloud of smoke is billowing across the freeway. (AP)

Hollywood Boulevard's latest thriller

Traffic problems? Blame the new thriller "John Hancock," which first tied up the 105 and now Hollywood Boulevard:

Starting Monday, the crew of the Will Smith-Charlize Theron film "John Hancock" will be working on Hollywood Boulevard for three days. Between Highland Avenue and Orange Drive, the boulevard will be closed Monday through Wednesday from 5 a.m. until 9 p.m., with the road partially reopening after 9 p.m., according to Marc Meeks, a location manager with Sony/Columbia Pictures. Last month, sections of the Glenn Anderson (105) Freeway were closed near Los Angeles International Airport to accommodate the filming of a chase scene for the movie.

134 sound wall: Noise vs. views

New sound walls on the 134 Freeway might reduce noise. But are they eyesores that block mountain views? The debate in Glendale, according to the Pasadena Weekly:

Freeway noise has long been a source of complaints from Glendale residents, but the vexing problem should be mitigated by the end of next month with the impending completion of a $9.7 million sound-wall along a mile-long stretch of the Ventura (134) Freeway. Funded by Caltrans and the Metropolitan Transit Authority (MTA), the decision to accept the wall was a no-brainer for city officials. There have been scattered complaints from residents that the sandstone-colored wall — ranging from 7 feet to a towering 16 feet tall — obscures views of the nearby mountains and blocks out green space separating the freeway from residential areas.

Triathlon: Traffic marathon

We've received several reports about nightmarish traffic tie-ups because of the L.A. Triathlon. One particularly detailed account comes from reader Patricia, who thinks it's crazy to run such a race through the heart of L.A.:

Drivers were extremely upset, rude and worrying about the waste of gas for some race that serves only a few, narrow-minded individuals. Drivers were honking, and taking dangerous chances to get out of the mess.Keep the race out of our area.  We ordinary people have lots of other things to do on a Sunday morning, than trying to dodge the blocked streets.

Read her full report and commentary by clicking below:

Apples to apple sauce:

Lots of apples on the roadway caused problems this morning at the East L.A. interchange:

Sections of the East L.A. Interchange were closed today for five hours as crews cleaned up an overturned truck and its load of apples. California Highway Patrol officers said the truck flipped over on the southbound Santa Ana (5) Freeway at the Pomona (60) Freeway, in the middle of a junction of five Southland freeways. The wreck was reported to the CHP at 6:57 a.m., said CHP Officer John Seumanutafa. A SigAlert was issued at 7:13 a.m. as officers closed two of the three southbound lanes of the Santa Ana (5) Freeway.