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The Times' Daily Mirror blogger, Larry Harnisch, digs out from the newspaper morgue a fascinating "anatomy of an accident" on the Pasadena Freeway, circa 1958. Check it out.
By the way, "Hermon Avenue" had it's name changed to... (check below to find out)
Continue reading "Back when they called it Hermon Avenue..." »
The Times' Highway 1 columnist Ralph Vartabedian takes on rude drivers: Betty Jo McDonald of Camarillo finally found perfect justice meted out to a rude driver on the 101 Freeway not long ago. "I was driving in the fast lane, not driving slow by any means, when a man behind me began tailgating, honking, gesturing and flashing his lights," she recalled. Hemmed in on all sides, she couldn't get out of the speeder's way for a while. "I finally drove 80 to change lanes and get away from this maniac," she said. "To my delight, the Highway Patrol chased him down. It made my day -- maybe my week!" Wouldn't we all like to have that experience at least once? In my last column, I listed 10 uncivil and dangerous behaviors that I routinely see on the highway. Not to be outdone, drivers from around Southern California poured in their own experiences about the rotten driving they experience. The biggest single new complaint I received involved drivers who fail to use their turn signals.
TELL US YOUR RUDE DRIVER STORIES
Zach at LAist provides some perspective on the Subway to the Sea routes proposed today. He notes the $5 billion must be found -- and that at best, we are talking 2017 (maybe 2013) before we take the tube to Century City: In an ideal world, one of the routes in solid black, pictured above, could be a reality in nine and a half years -- that would be the year 2017. Generally speaking, a project the size of a major public transportation extension to the Westside, towards the sea, could take a decade to complete from pencil and paper to the first day of operation, assuming full project funding. Lucky for us, we're already six months into that process. If this ideal world runs smoothly, we are looking at the Fall of 2010 to start swinging a shovel into the ground. Once that begins, there is even a chance that within a few years, maybe 2013, a transit system of some kind that could include the touted 'Subway to the Sea' will open the first phase of its route to the public.
Tell us which of these Subway to the Sea route makes the best sense? Strictly down Wilshire? A detour through West Hollywood? A UCLA connection? The Northern route through Hollywood? SHARE YOUR VIEW BELOW WITH THE BOTTLENECK BLOG! (MAP: MTA)
The Times' Steve Hymon reports the MTA now has a dozen potential routes for the Subway to the Sea: Local transportation officials have come up with a list of about a dozen potential subway routes on the Westside, with most of the corridors following either Wilshire Boulevard or Santa Monica Boulevard -- or both.All of the routes, along with other mass transit options for the congested Westside, will be discussed at a series of public meetings that begin tonight. Officials with the Metropolitan Transportation Authority will study the feasibility of the routes before releasing their preference this spring. The subway project, estimated to cost $5 billion to $7 billion, has no funding and has not undergone a required environmental review. Nor has a new subway been approved by the MTA board, which consists mostly of elected officials and their appointees. The route proposals are part of an ongoing "alternatives study" to determine what kind of mass transit would best serve the Westside. The MTA's proposed routes were based on public comment received in recent months.
Map: MTA
WHICH ROUTE DO YOU LIKE? TELL US!
Don Bartletti / Los Angeles Times
Opponents of the adoption say Caltrans ignored its own rule barring groups that advocate discrimination.
Zach from LAist reviews the "State of Hollywood" speech by Councilman Eric Garcetti. Very upbeat, but also interesting on the traffic front. He noted some new development on Sunset Boulevard and Hollywood Boulevard (remember the mega-plans for the Pantages and the Hollywood & Vine projects). Still now exactly sure how much worse all these growth will make traffic. But Garcetti does plug the idea of building a park over the Hollywood Freeway: HOLLYWOOD CENTRAL PARK IS ANOTHER EXAMPLE OF A VISIONARY DREAM AND WE MADE BIG PROGRESS THIS YEAR IN SACRAMENTO AND WASHINGTON TOWARD MAKING IT A REALITY. A PARK TO UNIFY A NEIGHBORHOOD OVER THE 101 FREEWAY IS SIMPLE AND IT’S BRILLIANT.
Photo: LAT
The OC Register is reporting a new effort to extend Disneyland's famed monorail into Anaheim's resort community: Anaheim Since the Disneyland monorail opened in 1959, residents and officials have imagined the possibility of the futuristic transportation mode stretching beyond Disney property. Today, Mayor Curt Pringle proposed a way to fund such a monorail to connect the tourist area with a planned transportation hub and downtown-like region. Pringle today gave his sixth State of the City speech to a sold-out crowd at the Grove of Anaheim, outlining his initiatives for the coming year. A top priority is to seek funding from the private sector to build a monorail system running from the Disneyland area to the proposed Anaheim Regional Transit Intermodal Center east of Angel Stadium in the Platinum Triangle, which the city is trying to turn into an urban village.
Photo: LAT via Disney
They already do it in Beverly Hills and Pasadena. Now, L.A. is considering allowing pedestrians to cross some intersection diagonally. It's the highlight of the mayor new "traffic plan:"
Among the upgraded measures is the creation of the fourth "Gridlock Tiger Team." These are the city teams that go out to busy intersections and try to get them unclogged. One thing the gridlock reduction task force will do is ticket people blocking intersections. The mayor is also calling for more synchronized traffic lights, so drivers aren't driving from one red light to the next. This way, drivers maintaining a steady speed will hit more green hits. The plan also calls for street improvements, including diagonal pedestrian crossings, so people can cut across the intersection, and more priority express corridors. (KABC)
Video from Channel 7
Photo: LAT
Do you like diagonal pedestrian crossing?
We ask the question amid a new effort to win historic designation for the bridges. Broadway? Olympic? Washington? 4th? 1st? Tell us what you think. And check out LAT's photo gallery on the glorious bridges.
 
Gas prices are down again (average L.A. price about $3.11) -- part of a multi-week decline that has experts scratching their heads. But LA Biz Observed's Mark Lacter doesn't think the trend will hold up: Whatever the explanation, you might want to fill up pretty soon - prices are likely to start climbing in the next few weeks as refiners begin switching over to summer fuel blends, a process that can be disruptive to refinery operations. And you know what that means.
The state's budget woes might put the final nail in the coffin of high-speed rail in California, according to KCBS: The Governor has dropped a request that a nearly $10 billion rail bond measure be moved from the November ballot, but now wants legislation that would tie spending the money to guarantees of federal and private funding. Rod Diridon, past chair and current member of the California High Speed Rail Authority thinks the federal and private backing for bullet trains is there. However, he says getting that money guaranteed before the election, won't happen. ”If either the project is delayed again, this would be the third time. Or the voters turn this down, then no one’s going to work on high speed rail for California for a long time,” said Diridon.
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