Today's Headlines - more at Metro

2/08/2013

Expo II, Gold Line Azusa, Westside Subway, 710 Meeting, Figueroa Street, Calif Bridges, LADOT & More

4 Quirky Ideas To Revolutionize Bike Sharing
The Atlantic: Cities

10 Apps To Make Your Trip To Los Angeles More Heavenly
Apartment Therapy

Angelenos React To Figueroa Street Transformation
USC Annenberg Neon Tommy

Azusa Officials Get Preview Of Gold Line Foothill Extension Work ("Officials from the city of Azusa, Foothill Transit Constructors and the Metro Gold Line Foothill Extension toured the site of the Gold Line's future Citrus Station on Tuesday, getting a preview of what the city can expect as construction begins. Work has started on segment four, the section of track that will run from the Miller Brewery to Barranca Avenue along the freight line.")
San Gabriel Valley Tribune

Caltrans Experts, Despite Testing Problems, Say Structures Are Safe
Sacramento Bee

Do Big City Drivers Actually Have It Worse?
The Atlantic: Cities

Downtown's First Two Parking Space Parks Now Open On Spring
Curbed LA

Explaining Public Transit To The Public ("Pinellas Suncoast Transit Authority, in west-central Florida...has produced a series of educational shorts on how its buses work. The latest episode of “Bus Buzz” addresses the myth of the empty bus. Using video from bus security cameras, a PSTA spokesperson explains how ridership ebbs and flows depending on the route and time of day.")
StreetsBlog DC

Expo 2's Ahead Of The Curve ("A few days ago, I had the opportunity to tour the second phase of the Expo Line, which is rapidly taking form along a corridor running from Culver City to Santa Monica. It was remarkable. New bridges are rising, a once-abandoned railroad right-of-way is coming back to life and the contours of the project are emerging before our eyes.")
Zev Yaroslavsky, Los Angeles County Supervisor, Third District

Fired Caltrans Testing Official Quits As Chair Of Research Committee
Sacramento Bee

Freight Demand Modeling And Data Improvement Strategic Plan (55p. PDF)
Strategic Highway Research Program

Interior Secretary Nominee Is A Friend To Cyclists -- And Oil Drillers?
StreetsBlog DC

LADOT Trying To Keep Drivers Out Of Sepulveda Bike Lanes
Curbed LA
Sepulveda Bicycle Lane Riding Conditions To Be Improved
LADOT Bike Blog

Lessons From The Women Leading The Sustainable Cities Movement
Grist

Los Angeles City Website To Help Fight Graffiti, Potholes ("The new webpage, at lacity.org, was more than a year in the making and cost $500,000. It provides a broader range of information beyond government access and includes a calendar of events occurring in the city and a list of city jobs that are available. The 311 app for mobile devices will be available beginning March 18 and will allow the public to report problems and, later this year, track how the calls are dealt with.")
Los Angeles Daily News

Many Transportation Challenges Ahead, New AASHTO Exec Says
Fleet Owner

New Wilshire Grand Will Be The West Coast's Tallest Tower
Curbed LA

Paratransit Emergency Preparedness And Operations Handbook (111p. PDF)
Transit Cooperative Research Program

Parklet Party In Downtown Los Angeles
StreetsBlog LA

Please, Sit Back And Allow Moby To Explain All About L.A.'s Architecture ("Moby sat down to wax about his hometown's buildings to promote the upcoming exhibition, "Pacific Standard Time Presents: Modern Architecture in L.A." That sprawling affair, sponsored by the Getty Trust, involves 11 exhibits and 17 cultural institutions throughout the city starting in April.")
The Atlantic: Cities

Sparks Fly At Open House On 710 Expansion Proposals
Pasadena Star-News

Spring Street Parklets Now Open For Sitting, Foosball And Stationary Cycling
Blog Downtown

Use Of Transportation Asset Management Principles in State Highway Agencies (98p. PDF)
National Cooperative Highway Research Program

Why We Need More Research Into Cycling And Brain Science
The Atlantic: Cities

Will Purple Line Construction Really Leave An Open Trench On Wilshire For 7 Years?
Curbed LA

York Boulevard, Home To L.A.'s First Parklet
EGP News


What are transportation community leaders around the nation tweeting about today? Check out the Metro Library Twitter Dailyour online digest in newspaper format updated every day.

We invite you to visit Metro's The Sourceyour window to what's happening with agency news, funding and policy issues, and how to get the most out of transit and Los Angeles.

2/07/2013

Westside Subway Extension, Division 7, 5 Freeway Widening, Green Streets, HSR, Amtrak & More

February 7: This Date In Los Angeles Transportation History (New tunneling technology and landmark legislation in 2007 reversing a 20-year old ban on extending the Metro Purple Line pave the way for a Westside Subway extension)
Metro Transportation Library Primary Resources Blog

Caltrain Seeks New Deal With High-Speed Rail ("Caltrain and the California High-Speed Rail Authority are crafting a new relationship that embraces the “blended system” on the Peninsula and the two parties are currently looking to scrap two old agreements for a new one...The blended system is expected to cost about $1.5 billion.")
San Mateo Daily Journal

Complete Green Street Opens Saturday (Ocean Park Boulevard)
Santa Monica Dispatch

Courier Flushes The Truth Out Of Metro -- Again
Beverly Hills Courier

Deborah Hersman For Transportation Secretary? She Ducks Comment ("Deborah Hersman, chair of the National Transportation Safety Board, is a top candidate for the cabinet post, reports say.")
Christian Science Monitor

Does Riding Transit Make You A More Committed Citizen?
StreetsBlog DC

DOT Contender Sidesteps Questions About Succeeding LaHood ("National Transportation Safety Board Chairwoman Deborah Hersman, who is a possible contender to become Transportation secretary, said Wednesday that future appointments would not affect her agency's current investigations.")
The Hill

EPA Provides Tools For Sustainable Communities / Smart Growth Policies Can Help Achieve Environmental Justice Goals
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency News Release
Creating Equitable, Healthy, And Sustainable Communities: Strategies For Advancing Smart Growth, Environmental Justice, And Equitable Development (88p. PDF)
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency

Evaluating The Effectiveness Of State Toward Zero Deaths Program (20p. PDF : "Since 2001 approximately 30 U.S. states have adopted programs to reduce traffic fatalities to zero with names such as Vision Zero, Target Zero, or Toward Zero Deaths (TZD). TZD is now being promoted as a national strategy by a coalition of transportation and safety groups...Statistical tests on these four programs support the conclusion that implementing TZD programs accelerates the reduction of fatality rates.)
University Of Minnesota

Expect Detours As 5 Freeway Gets Extra Lanes ("New phase of Interstate 5 Corridor Improvement Project starts Wednesday.")
NBC Los Angeles

Help Kill The Term "Congestion Pricing" (And "Congestion Charge")
Human Transit

LaHood: "America Is One Big Pothole"
The Hill

Los Angeles Left In The Bicycling Dust Again
Wild Bell

MTA: When A Feasibility Study Became A Plan ("Wehoville got it wrong when they reported there was a “plan” to redevelop the MTA bus depot in West Hollywood, say the parties interviewed by WeHo News about last week’s article, causing much unnecessary anxiety and outrage.")
WeHo News

New York Expanding Nation's Biggest Transit Hub
Associated Press

Power To The Parklet
Architect's Newspaper

So God Created Transit: A Fitting Response To Dodge Ram's Super Bowl Ad
StreetsBlog DC

Streetcars Could Return To Downtown Seattle After 70+ Years
KING-5

TTI Congestion Scores Prove Road Expansion Isn't The Answer
StreetsBlog DC

A US High-Speed Rail Network Shouldn't Be Just A Dream ("There are social and commercial benefits to high speed rail. My map of what's possible drew supporters from coast to coast.")
The Guardian (U.K.)

Visualizing How Poorly Amtrak's Route Network Serves Most Of The U.S.
The Atlantic: Cities


What are transportation community leaders around the nation tweeting about today? Check out the Metro Library Twitter Dailyour online digest in newspaper format updated every day.

We invite you to visit Metro's The Sourceyour window to what's happening with agency news, funding and policy issues, and how to get the most out of transit and Los Angeles.

2/06/2013

LA's First Rail Transit, Pershing Square, TOD, CEQA, Miles Traveled Tax, Urban Mobility Report, Metrolink, National HSR & More

February 6: This Date In Los Angeles Transportation History (The city's first rail transit, a horse-drawn system, is incorporated 139 years ago today -- have a look at the 1874 photo)
Metro Transportation Library Primary Resources Blog

4 Reasons The U.S. Trails The World In Road Safety
The Atlantic: Cities

2012 Urban Mobility Report (70p. PDF)
Texas A&M Transportation Institute
TTI Urban Mobility Report Bungles Congestion Analysis Yet Again
StreetsBlog DC
Mobility Report Press Release
Texas A&M Transportation Institute

Businesses Show Support For Millennium Hollywood Project
USC Annenberg TV News

Can A Miles-Traveled Tax Finance Infrastructure?
Politico

Contractor Chosen To Build Embattled Metrolink Line
Riverside Press-Enterprise

Documenting The Never-Built Dreams Of The City Of Angels (Have you ever seen Metro Library's 1963 rendering of proposed Goodell monorail coachs for Los Angeles?)
Wired

Elysian Valley Residents Speak Out About A Silent Threat ("Residents of Elysian Valley live along the L.A. River's natural habitat -- while being exposed to the heavy pollution emanating from Metrolink's maintenance facility.")
KCET

FTA Makes Available $2 Billion In Emergency Relief Funds For Transit Systems Damaged By Sandy
U.S. DOT Fast Lane Blog

Future Travelers ("What are the best new ideas in transit and mobility? What new ideas in transportation are on hold because of outdated or crumbling infrastructure? How would the big ideas in transportation change if innovators were confident that they had government support for their ideas? Are investments in high-tech transit too steep to be worth it? What is a realistic forecast for the future of transit?")
National Journal Transportation Experts Blog

The High Cost Of Traffic: Time, Money, And Climate Change
Transportation Nation

Infrastructure Financing Options for Transit-Oriented Development (251p. PDF : "This report provides information about funding mechanisms and strategies that communities can use to provide innovative financing options for TOD. It explains dozens of tools that provide traditional financing as well as new tools.")
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency

Mass Transit Takers Physically Active ("People who take mass transit in large urban areas may more than meet their weekly recommended aerobic exercise requirement, U.S. researchers say.")
UPI

Meet The Most Traffic-Jammed Cities In America
Slate

A National High Speed Rail Map
California High Speed Rail Blog
Click This Map To Enlarge

NBC Universal's $1.6B Park, Studio Plan Approved By L.A. City Council ("NBC Universal also will build a small riverfront park and create a bicycle and pedestrian path. Verdery said the company also will provide $100 million in transportation improvements, $3.5 million in support of the Los Angeles River and $1 million for community organizations.")
Los Angeles Daily News

New Bike Parking Ordinance Poised To Shape Future Of LA Developments
Blog Downtown

OCTA To Increase Fares Starting Sunday
Los Angeles Times

Opinion: Obama, Build A Lasting Urban Legacy ("An ambitious proposal for the President’s second term: Create a new federal Department of Cities" from noted urban studies professor and author Richard Florida)
New York Daily News

Q&A: 10 Minutes With DOT's Ray LaHood
Engineering News-Record

Study: Traffic Costs O.C.-Area Commuters 61 Hours A Year
Orange County Register

Three Former Governors Call For CEQA Reform
California High Speed Rail Blog

Traffic Congestion Report Ranks LA Second Behind DC
NBC Southern California

The Votes Are In: Omaha Abomination Voted Worst Intersection In The U.S. (photos of the top 3 offenders)
StreetsBlog DC

Washington Tops Los Angeles As U.S. Leader In Traffic Gridlock
Bloomberg

When L.A.'s Central Park Was Green ("Set aside in 1866 as Los Angeles’ first public park, Pershing Square has been the beneficiary -- and victim -- of many redesigns in its 147-year history.")
LA as Subject via Los Angeles Magazine


What are transportation community leaders around the nation tweeting about today? Check out the Metro Library Twitter Dailyour online digest in newspaper format updated every day.

We invite you to visit Metro's The Sourceyour window to what's happening with agency news, funding and policy issues, and how to get the most out of transit and Los Angeles.

2/05/2013

TAP, 710, LA City Planning, AQMD, CEQA, Car Share & More

February 5: This Date In Los Angeles Transportation History (Local politicians and transportation officials take action to move rapid transit in Los Angeles from the "talking stage" to the "do-something-now" stage in on this date in 1964. By August, the agency had been replaced by the Southern California Rapid Transit District)
Metro Transportation Library Primary Resources Blog

Anaheim Releases Questionable Emails ("Anaheim officials Monday released an email chain that has raised questions at City Hall over whether local officials planned to misrepresent information to a federal agency in order to obtain transportation grant funding.")
Voice Of OC

AQMD Votes To Increase Environmental Oversight Of Los Angeles, Long Beach Ports
Los Angeles Daily News

Battery-Powered Intercity Trains Possible, Government Study Says
The Guardian (U.K.)
Battery-Powered Trains: Feasibility Study For Battery Energy Storage And Propulsion On Trains (70p. PDF)
U.K. Transport Research Laboratory

The Birth And Growth Of City Planning (How the 1926 and 1928 Standards Acts created Los Angeles as we know it today)
KCET

Dayton Offers Game-Changing Transit Plan (In a budget unveiled last month, Minnesota Governor Mark Dayton proposed a .25 percent sales tax increase to fund an expansion of the Twin Cities metro area's public transit systems. The proposal has garnered enthusiastic support)
Minneapolis Post

Fixes On TAP At Metro ("Metro is overhauling the signage around its vending machines in an effort to make the process clearer and also has tweaked the on-screen instructions for people trying to buy a ticket. Behind the scenes, a broader do-over of the computer screens is underway, with a series of focus groups offering input on how to create a truly user-friendly process.")
Zev Yaroslavsky, Los Angeles County Supervisor, Third District

"Friends Of Pershing Square" Reimagines Downtown LA's Faded Historic Central Park (numerous photos illustrate both the design flaws of Pershing Square as well as concepts that might be in store for its redesign and revitalization)
DTLA Rising

A Half-Century Of Delivering Research That Works: Lessons From A Proven Organizational Model (17p. PDF)
National Cooperative Highway Research Program

Highland Park Parklet Not In Front Of A Restaurant? Attempts To Create Public Space For All
StreetsBlog LA

How Virtual Traffic Lights Could Cut Down On Congestion
The Atlantic: Cities

Incorporating Greenhouse Gas Emissions Into The Collaborative Decision-Making Framework (108p. PDF)
Strategic Highway Research Program

Internships: An Invaluable Resource During Tight Budgets
Western Planner

Lowering Parking Minimums Is Nowhere Close To A "War On Cars"
StreetsBlog Network

Lyft's Ridesharing Program Takes Off In Los Angeles. What Does It Mean For The Taxi Industry?
LA Weekly

Moderate Michael Rubio Takes On California's Environmental Law (If the 43-year-old California Environmental Act is going to be changed -- as Gov. Brown hopes -- most agree the legislation will be championed by Michael Rubio, a young, moderate Democratic from the Central Valley in the second year of his first term in the senate)
Sacramento Bee

Report: Most States Have Poor Safeguards Against The Revolving Door ("The “Revolving Door” series highlighted how billions in federal funding for transportation get funneled, with no oversight, to states where money and politics corrupt policy and lead to shocking amounts of waste...The group graded all 50 states, and not a single one scored an A. Only five states managed Bs. The rest were all mediocre-to-abysmal." California is one of the five with the highest grade of "B")
StreetsBlog DC
50 States And No Winners
State Integrity Investigation

Riders Bitched, Metro Fixed: TAP Card System Will Be More User-Friendly
LAist

Secretary Villaraigosa? Not So Fast
StreetsBlog LA

Three Government Committees Reject Current Plans To Widen 710 Between Long Beach And Pomona
StreetsBlog LA

What We Can Learn About Walkability From Looking At Pictures
The Atlantic: Cities

Why The 5.5 Billion Hours Americans Spend In Commuter Traffic Justifies More Infrastructure Spending
Think Progress


What are transportation community leaders around the nation tweeting about today? Check out the Metro Library Twitter Dailyour online digest in newspaper format updated every day.

We invite you to visit Metro's The Sourceyour window to what's happening with agency news, funding and policy issues, and how to get the most out of transit and Los Angeles.

2/04/2013

Metro Turns 20, Crenshaw Line, Gold Line, Blue Line, TAP, Alameda Corridor East, 710, Pasadena Bikes, USDOT & More

February 4: This Date In Los Angeles Transportation History (The LACMTA Board of Directors is sworn in and meets for the first time 20 years ago today. Check out video of their first board meeting, a 10 year "look back" from 2003 and a fascinating "blooming map" of how far we have come in 20 years of transit planning, construction and operation)
Metro Transportation Library Primary Resources Blog

6 Quirky Facts About The Gold Line Bridge ("Snakes, baskets, and Route 66: What you wouldn’t know by looking at the San Gabriel Valley’s brand-new overpass.")
Los Angeles Magazine

America's Highway Bill Coming Due ("In California, transportation officials estimate that 60% of the state's roads and a quarter of its bridges need to be repaired or replaced, at a projected cost of $70 billion over a decade, some $52 billion more than the available funds.")
Portland Press Herald

Amtrak Train Jumps The Track, Derails Near Union Station
KPCC Southern California Public Radio

Antonio Villaraigosa Rules Out Ray LaHood's Job
Politico

CEO Art Leahy Guides MTA's Transition To A Community Friendly Rail System
Los Angeles Sentinel

Commuting In The United States: 2009 -- American Community Survey Reports (20p. PDF : "At the national level, 5% of commuters used public transportation in 2009." More than 76% drive alone)
U.S. Census Bureau

Construction Begins On $75.9 Million Railroad Underpass In El Monte
Los Angeles Daily News

Editorial: LAX's Modernization Plan Must Go Forward
Los Angeles Daily News

FTA Announces Webinars On New Starts Final Rule
AASHTO Journal

A Halfway Point For Bringing Back Broadway
Los Angeles Downtown News

Is Pinterest The Next Big Social Network For Transit? ("The General Services Administration reached a terms-of-service agreement with social media platform Pinterest, which clears the way for federal agencies to use the platform. For the uninitiated, Pinterest is a web-based curation site that lets users post and share images on “pinboards” organized by themes or interests.")
The Transit Wire

L.A. Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa Shuts Door On Cabinet Appointment
Pasadena Star-News

Los Angeles Plans To Completely Re-Envision Pershing Square
Curbed LA
AEG Giving Seed Money To Pershing Square Effort
Los Angeles Downtown News

Metro And PDC Owner Team Up For WeHo Mega-Development
Curbed LA
Cohen Brothers, MTA Reach Exclusive Agreement For Proposed Mega Complex At WeHo Depot ("Pacific Design Center owner Charles Cohen has entered into an exclusive agreement with the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority to present proposals for developing a massive multi-use complex, comparable to Century City’s mall, with office, hotel, residential and retail space on the MTA bus depot lot on the southeast corner of Santa Monica Boulevard and San Vicente Boulevard in West Hollywood. The proposed project would cover 10.9 acres, the equivalent of 10 football fields, and extend beyond the scope of many other LA shopping centers like The Grove, in nearby Los Angeles, or Americana at Brand, in Glendale.")
Wehoville

Metro Finally Getting Its TAP Act Together
LA Observed

One Of The Worst Mass Transit Commute Horror Stories You Will Ever Read ("WMATA's present and future reputation suffered a major setback on Wednesday night, after a fire near the Anacostia Metro station stranded multiple trains underground, without power, for several hours.")
The Atlantic: Cities

Opinion: The Future Could Be L.A.'s Legacy Of Light Rail
La Cañada Valley Sun

Pasadena Opens Its First "Bicycle Boulevard" ("The bicycle boulevard, which is the second in L.A. County, stretches about three-quarters of a mile along Marengo Avenue, from Orange Grove Boulevard to Washington Boulevard.")
Los Angeles Times

Pasadena To Unveil Dedicated Bicycle Boulevard (video)
KABC Los Angeles

Planes, Trains And Bike Paths: Ray LaHood's Transportation Legacy (subscription only)
Wall Street Journal

Quick  Hits From U.S. DOT's TRB Panel
StreetsBlog DC

Roundup Of Reactions To LaHood Resignation
Transportation Issues Daily

SFMTA Director Heinicke: Let's Get Cracking On Car-Free Market Street ("At an SFMTA board meeting this Tuesday -- the same meeting where agency staff presented a new Strategic Plan, which includes the Bicycle and Pedestrian Strategies -- board member Malcolm Heinicke called for banning private cars from Market ahead of the completion of the Better Market Street project." Market Street is San Francisco's primary transportation artery)
StreetsBlog SF

¡Sí Se Pudo!: I-710 Communities Gain Momentum for Real Transportation Solutions
Natural Resources Defense Council Switchboard Blog

Synthesis Of Information Related To Traffic Problems: 2013 (11p. PDF)
Transit Cooperative Research Program

Transportation Sector Loses 14,000 Jobs In January
The Hill

Underpass To Replace Railroad Crossing On Baldwin Avenue In El Monte
Baldwin Park Patch

Villaraigosa Would Have Brought A West Coast Offense To The White House
Whittier Daily News

Whatever Happened To Google Wallet?
Forbes

Why Homelessness Is A Transportation Issue
The Atlantic: Cities

Will A Smooth Blue Line Ride Finally Come To Long Beach? ("The gripe of Blue Line commuters coming in and out of Long Beach wrests on the fact that it’s the only stretch which doesn’t have a signal preemption system–that is, controllers for the movement of traffic that gives preference to Metro trains rather than street traffic (and not to be confused with signal priority technology used for buses).")
StreetsBlog LA

With All Eyes On L.A., Villaraigosa Signs New Bike Parking Ordinance
StreetsBlog LA


What are transportation community leaders around the nation tweeting about today? Check out the Metro Library Twitter Dailyour online digest in newspaper format updated every day.

We invite you to visit Metro's The Sourceyour window to what's happening with agency news, funding and policy issues, and how to get the most out of transit and Los Angeles.