Traffic alert: Marathon nightmare

Nothing can ruin your weekend quite like Los Angeles Marathon traffic! So here's your guide to avoid getting stuck. Here's the short version from the Los Angeles Department of Transportation:

The new marathon route starts at Cahuenga and Lankershim near Universal City, and ends in downtown L.A. at 5th & Flower. Note that this is a point-to-point route, rather than a large loop. Cahuenga Boulevard will be closed to all vehicular traffic starting at 5 a.m.  It will reopen at approximately 10 a.m. Residents of the Hollywood Hills who normally use Cahuenga Boulevard to get to or from their homes will be unable to use Cahuenga Boulevard during this time. They will need to make alternate plans or stay home.

Freeway ramps in this area will be severely impacted. Some marathon participants will choose to park near the finish line in downtown L.A., while others will attempt to park near Universal City, so there is likely to be significant congestion at both locations. The Metro Red Line will shuttle many participants to or from their cars. Beginning Saturday evening, March 1, the area bounded by 3rd Street, Grand Avenue, 5th Street and Flower Street will be closed to install the marathon finish line stage.

Before and during the race, vehicular traffic cannot cross the route at any time. Sweepers will begin cleaning the route after the last runner. During the cleaning operation, traffic will be allowed to cross the route at the following 15 crossing points until the cleaning is completed and all traffic controls have been removed from the route, allowing the streets to be reopened: Sunset & Vine; Santa Monica & Vine; 3rd & Rossmore; 6th & Western; Harvard & Wilshire; Normandie & Washington; Jefferson & Normandie; Adams & Grand; Figueroa & Washington; Figueroa & Pico; 11th & Broadway; Alameda & Olympic; Olympic & Santa Fe; 6th & Alameda; and 7th & Broadway.

Drivers within the area bounded by 3rd, Soto, 11th and Figueroa are likely to experience problems entering and exiting due to the huge loops and backtracks of the race route. Persons with unessential travel should avoid driving in all areas affected by the event. The Hollywood, Harbor and Santa Monica freeways provide the best options for crossing the route. The Metro Red Line may also be used.

http://trafficinfo.lacity.org/lamarathon.html

The gates are coming! The gates are coming!

In an effort to stop fare beating, the board of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority voted Thursday to install turnstiles at subway stops and some light-rail stations.

MTA trains currently operate on an honor system in which passengers are required to buy tickets but only have to show them if asked. Officials with the MTA estimate that 5% of passengers aren’t buying tickets and that the new gates could save the agency as much as $7 million a year.

The gating system will be installed over the next two years. MTA officials also said all new gates would comply with the Americans With Disabilities Act.

— Steve Hymon

405 widening plan set (for now)

State transportation officials said Wednesday that they would demolish two homes and create a controversial wildlife path on an expanded Skirball Center Drive bridge over the 405 freeway as part of a project to widen the freeway through the Sepulveda Pass.

The $950-million project will add a northbound carpool lane on the east side of the freeway along Sepulveda Boulevard between Montana Avenue and Moraga Drive, and between Getty Center Drive and the northbound Getty Center offramp.

To accommodate the project, Caltrans is purchasing six homes near the freeway. Two will be torn down and four will be resold at the end of construction, said agency spokeswoman Judy Gish.

Plans include $455,000 to widen the Skirball bridge by five feet to allow wildlife to cross the Sepulveda Pass without using the freeway.

— Patrick McGreevy

Pico/Olympic: Lawsuits begin

A group of Westside businesses filed suit Wednesday to stop Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa from implementing his traffic relief plan for Olympic and Pico boulevards.

The suit by the Greater West Los Angeles Chamber of Commerce alleges that Villaraigosa's plan would increase the number of vehicles on those streets. The result, they say, would be more traffic and smog. They say the proposal should be studied further under state environmental law.

The mayor's project is set to begin March 8. Initially, it involves changing the way traffic signals are synchronized so that traffic on westbound Olympic and eastbound Pico is favored. The idea is to encourage commuters to use the two streets to speed their commute to and from the Westside.

The plan also calls for the removal of on-street parking during rush hour. Business owners say the restriction would harm commerce. Zahirah Washington, one of the attorneys representing the chamber, said her clients would seek an injunction unless the city agreed to postpone or alter the plan.

A spokesman for the mayor called the suit "a meritless attempt to block reasonable traffic improvements" with the "inappropriate" use of environmental laws.

— Steve Hymon

Road to nowhere?

What do you think of the new Crenshaw rail line proposal? The Times' Victoria Kim says it's getting a mixed reception:

The proposed $1 billion line would start on Crenshaw Boulevard at Exposition Boulevard and end at the 105 Freeway in El Segundo. MTA officials call the route a cost-effective way to connect the Expo Line, which is under construction between downtown and Culver City, and the Green Line, which runs from Norwalk to El Segundo.

But some transportation experts question the logic of the route, noting that it would require several different rail legs for the most basic commutes, such as from the South Bay to downtown or from Hollywood or the Mid-Wilshire area into Inglewood.

"They're connecting a place where no one lives to where no one works," said Jim Moore, a civil engineering professor and director of the transportation engineering program at USC.

The proposed line is also getting mixed reviews from officials in the cities it would serve. In Inglewood, officials wanted the line to run through its central commercial district and new development planned around Hollywood Park. Instead, the route bypasses those areas and hits the less dense west side of the city.

In-N-Out: Not for neighbors

In-N-Out Burger might be too popular for its own good. In Arcadia, some merchants complain that the line of cars at the burger joint makes it hard for them to do business, according to the Star-News:

It's mealtime and the line of cars waiting to order double-doubles from In-N-Out Burger on Santa Anita Avenue spills out of its driveway and runs into the street.

At the edge of the alley dividing In-N-Out from Goldstein's Bagel Bakery, a large sign proclaims: "Please Do Not Block our Neighbor's Driveways."

On Tuesday night, a single driver waited several minutes to leave Goldstein's because other drivers ignored this and two other signs asking them to leave openings for the two driveways at the bagel shop.

But Wednesday afternoon, a day after Goldstein threatened to sue In-N-Out for "millions of dollars," the restaurant sent two red-aproned employees to take food orders from the sidewalk and another to keep cars from blocking Goldstein's driveway.