Ramping up, July 9

More on Mandeville Canyon bike crash

The attorney for Christopher Thompson, the man who allegedly caused two cyclists to slam into his car in the canyon, told The Times that the incident was not road rage. The police say otherwise and have charged Thompson with assault with a deadly weapon. The two cyclists say Thompson drove in front of them and slammed on his brakes. Police also say they will be referring the case to the D.A. as early as today. If this goes to trial, it's safe to predict the cycling community will be watching it very, very closely.

Lawmakers finds way to get name in paper: propose free gas

A state lawmaker is proposing offering free gas to help boost sagging California lottery sales, reports my colleague Patrick McGreevy. State Sen. Dean Florez (D-Shafter) asked the director of the state lottery in a letter Tuesday to look into following the lead of Florida and four other states that have offered gasoline as prizes in addition to cash. In Florida, a weekly drawing will award a $2,600 gas card each year for the duration of the winner's life and other lesser winners will win free gas for a year. According to my calculator, $2,600 would power my Subaru about 12,144 miles a year if I bought my gas at the pricey Chevron station in Pasadena we've been tracking.

L.A. City Council increases the boot fee

The price goes from $125 to $150. It's a customer-friendly move, says the city's Department of Transportation in a report: "The $150 Boot Release Fee is significantly less than the violators would pay if the vehicle were towed, so this option as well as the 24 hours to resolve the issue provides for enhanced Customer Service."

D.C. bus system now providing service alerts on the Internet

The Metro system now puts bus service alerts on the top of its homepage. We've been discussing that issue at Bottleneck in recent days. I signed up yesterday for Metro's system alert here in L.A. County -- they send e-mails to readers -- but agency spokesman Marc Littman said the system is mostly geared toward providing info on major rail service disruptions. The challenge, he said, is trying to figure out what information to convey about a bus system with hundreds of bus lines.

Development projects near Expo Line in Culver City

The first phase of the Expo Line light rail is following the old Exposition Boulevard right-of-way, meaning that it misses the rejuvenated downtown Culver City by a half-mile or so. Hey, that's OK. Mass transit has a way of missing the target here in the Southland. Curbed LA yesterday had a good post about some of the plans to build high-end mixed use on the site of three vacated auto dealerships. Curbed points out the developer says it's a 10-minute train ride to downtown. Actually it would be more like 30 minutes, assuming the line opens in 2010 as scheduled.

Playboy slags NYT

The NYT ran a story about the new hands-free law here. Playboy says they relied on stereotypes, not facts. Zach Behrens at LAist has the exchange. I'll soon visit the Playboy site to ensure that Mr. Behrens got all his links correct.

Does the Road Sage own a suit?

You may have notice my mug shot got replaced yesterday. Actually you did notice! I got several nice e-mails from Bottleneckers along the lines of this one, which began: "Hey Road Sage: Just a note of appreciation for replacing the scary police mug-shot." Bring it, baby! To be honest, I'm still not entirely sure my head didn't get Photoshopped onto someone else's suit. But I'll take it.

Links to items yesterday on the Bottleneck

Some Boston commuter trains have bike racks

Why gas prices in California have dropped while climbing elsewhere in U.S.

Guest blogger says Curitiba may provide L.A. lessons on density, one-ways and busways

--Steve Hymon

Comments

[Jimmy]

Bostons T (MBTA) website has always had updated service advisories on its main page and it's better than the little scrolling thing on the DC website. It has advisories for the commuter rail, subway, bus, boat, and even elevators and escalators.

www.mbta.com

[Michael Ballard]

As a cyclist, I am appalled at how someone would think it is ok to attempt to kill a cyclist. If it wasn't "road rage", what was it? Did they think it was cute and funny to slam on their brakes in front of someone? This person doesn't deserve to drive ever again, nor ride a bicycle.