Paying more at pump

Another week, another gas price increase:

The average price of a gallon of self-serve regular gasoline rose 7.5 cents in Los Angeles County this week, the third consecutive weekly increase after nearly four months of falling prices, the Automobile Club of Southern California reported today. "We have seen some days since Labor Day that the average price declined, but for the most part prices have continued going up, adding about a penny a day," Auto Club spokeswoman Carol Thorp said. Unleaded regular in the Los Angeles area stood at $2.932 this morning, 11 cents more than last month, 6 cents more than at this time last year but 55.5 cents below the record high of $3.487 registered on May 9. The price rose 9.2 cents from Sept. 7-14 and 3.2 cents from Aug. 31- Sept. 7 after dropping 15 of the previous 16 weeks. In Orange County, the average price rose 8.8 cents to $2.91 today. The average price increased 10.6 cents from Sept. 7-14 and 2.7 cents from Aug. 31- Sept. 7 after dropping 15 of the previous 16 weeks. California is now about 15 cents above the national average, but there are still eight states with higher average prices," Thorp said. (CNS)

Bad day on Gold Line

Another bad day for the Gold Line -- the second accident in as many weeks. Buses are being used for passengers, reports The Times' Tami Abdollah:

A Gold Line train hit a vehicle near Mount Washington today during the morning rush hour, injuring six people including the driver of the vehicle, officials said. It was the second accident in two weeks on the Gold Line. The driver was conscious and taken to a hospital, said Sheriff's Lt. Ron Kegel. Three other people also were taken to a hospital, and two were being evaluated at the scene, said Los Angeles Fire Department spokesman Ron Myers. The accident occurred at 7:07 a.m at Avenue 50 and North Figueroa Street, Myers said. The crash caused a fire on the train that was quickly extinguished, but the train was "significantly damaged," Myers said. The train was either vacant or had few passengers, Myers said. Officials are trying to find anyone who may have left the train when the crash occurred.

Now for the L.A. ribbing

If you don't live in Southern California, you can always take comfort that your traffic isn't so bad. Take this dispatch from the Sacramento Bee:

It used to take five minutes to get to the freeway, and now it takes me as much as 20 minutes!" lamented Kat Krist, a Los Angeles transplant who lives in fast-growing North Natomas, where Interstate 5 and local surface streets are overmatched. "It crept up on us," Krist said. "Now I am having to find that window of time so I don't hit the worst traffic. This is L.A. thinking. I see it turning into an L.A." While traffic is getting worse here, we aren't yet Los Angeles. There, road warriors wasted a nationwide-worst 72 hours, according to the study.

A leader ... in traffic

A silver lining to the news about California's traffic woes? According to Gary Richards, the Texas Transportation Institute also found that California does more than any other place to fix traffic woes:

But there's also a reason for other states to be envious of the Golden State, say the authors of a nationwide study released Tuesday, singling out the state as a model for traffic relief. Put simply: California does more - and perhaps works harder - than any other state when it comes to battling road delays. That's important because with the state's population expected to surge in the coming decades, those delays only are going to get worse. "California really knows how to operate its transportation system and does it well," said Tim Lomax, a lead researcher with the Texas Transportation Institute, whose survey -- the only one that examines congestion on a nationwide scale -- is digested hungrily by traffic engineers each fall. "That's one thing Caltrans is known for -- getting as much out of its system as they can."

Traffic: Worse than they say!

The new report on L.A. and Orange County having the nation's worst traffic is bad enough. But The Times' Dan Weikel and Jeff Rabin report that some local officials say the Texas Transportation Institute actually underestimates our traffic woes:

Although Los Angeles and Orange counties remain the worst area in the nation for traffic delay, an official of the Southern California Assn. of Governments, the regional planning agency for six counties, sharply criticized the Texas findings. The study "does a great disservice to the state and the region," said Hasan Ikhrata, the organization's director of planning and policy. "I would not make policy decisions based on their data, period." Ikhrata contends that the new method used by the institute mistakenly assumes that traffic in Los Angeles County, Orange County, the Inland Empire and Oxnard-Ventura is moving much faster during rush hours than it actually is. Texas researchers assumed that traffic is traveling at an average of 35 mph during peak travel times. However, SCAG planners say that sensors buried in the pavement of major freeways in the Los Angeles area show that the average speed during rush hours is closer to 20 mph. By this measurement, Ikhrata said the extra delay is roughly 100 hours per year, nearly 40% worse than the Texas estimate.

PCH traffic headache

Heads-up on this: One lane of Pacific Coast Highway in each direction will be closed in the Malibu area from 8 tomorrow night until 5 the following morning for asphalt repair pavement. The closures -- on the stretch of PCH between Carbon Canyon and Sweetwater Canyon roads -- will be repeated the following day, according to Caltrans, which advises motorists to expect delays and map out alternate routes. (CNS)

We're still No. 1

L.A. retains its title as the region with the worst traffic delays, but the IE is catching up:

Los Angeles and Orange counties have retained their infamous reputation as the worst region in the country for traffic delays, but the Inland Empire and the Ventura area are rapidly catching up, according to a national study released today. Researchers at the Texas Transportation Institute found that motorists in Los Angeles and Orange counties wasted an average of 72 hours in rush-hour traffic in 2005. That's one day shy of two full work weeks a year and 20 hours more than in 1985. In Riverside and San Bernardino counties, drivers wasted an average of 49 hours stuck in peak-period congestion during 2005. But the increase in delays since 1985 -- a stunning 40 extra hours -- is twice what Los Angeles motorists experienced.

Blue Line crash

A vehicle collides with the Blue Line:

Four people suffered minor injuries today when a vehicle and a Metro Blue Line train collided near downtown Los Angeles, officials said. Paramedics were sent to Flower Street and Washington Boulevard at 11:10 a.m., said Diana Igawa of the Los Angeles Fire Department. No one was injured on the train, Igawa said. The circumstances of the collision were under investigation. (CNS)

Another King snags street name

Well, sort of. Larry King of CNN and two famous Hollywood Lucys now have L.A. street sign designations:

In recognition of Larry King's 50 years in the broadcasting industry, the Los Angeles City Council agreed Wednesday to rename the area surrounding the CNN building in Hollywood after the longtime interviewer. The area from Sunset Boulevard to DeLongpre Avenue and Cahuenga Boulevard to Cole Place will now be known as "Larry King Square." The late comedian Lucille Ball and the owner of Lucy's El Adobe Cafe will be also be recognized for their contributions to Hollywood with the renaming of an intersection to "I Love Lucy Square," the Los Angeles City Council voted Wednesday.

Subway to Sea: Show me the money!

The Times' Steve Hymon reports on an interesting idea for funding the "Subway to the Sea," which has much political support but little financial support for the $5 billion+ project:

... does anyone out there have a plan to pay for the subway to the sea? Real estate developer Ken Kahan does and it involves the always fascinating world of tax increments. Here’s an example of how it would work: Kahan, president of California Landmark Group, recently bought land at Wilshire and Barrington on the Westside for a residential high-rise (check it out at www.californialandmark.com). He paid $5.5 million for the site, triggering an increase in property taxes from about $10,000 annually to $60,000. Kahan plans to build a 25-story residential tower. When those units are sold, Kahan expects the building will generate about $2 million in property taxes annually. Under his plan, the overall increase in property taxes would go to a fund, which in turn finances a bond to pay for the subway. In essence, this is similar to how redevelopment zones work, but currently state law would have to be changed to allow such an infrastructure along Wilshire. The downside is that the plan depends on continued turnover of properties along Wilshire and will likely invite critics who say it will bring too much density and redevelopment to Wilshire.