Results tagged “redline”

We've seen our fair share of aggressive behavior while taking the Red Line, but this video, taken between Hollywood and Highland and Universal City, is pretty disgusting. Sure the kids are acting like total brats and rudely harassing the woman (called the "crackhead" in this video), but does one of them deserve mace in the eye?

This week, the Metro Transportation Library debuted an impressive set of historical maps depicting transit lines and proposals for routes and systems. Among the multiple versions of our current subway system and systems long come and gone is a proposed monorail from 1960, the transit vision for LA in 1974, the map produced based on the Kelker-Deleuw study of 1925 (when the city's first subway was built), and a map from the time when the Red Line was called the Orange Line.

Thanks to a U2 concert at the Rose Bowl this Sunday evening, train service will be extended into the wee hours of Monday morning. 100,000 people are expected to descend upon the stadium and officials with the Rose Bowl and Live Nation--both which paid for the extended service--are encouraging fans to take public transit.

A series of public meetings about the Crenshaw Corridor (you know, a train from Wilshire Blvd. to LAX) have ended, but there still plenty of planning (and dreaming) to be had for public transit in the Los Angeles region. From bicycling to bus lanes to subways, here's a wrap-up of meetings that remain this month.

But don't get too excited, the money from the feds going to the transit line is not for extending it northbound towards Burbank airport or anything close to that. Today's announcement from is about reducing energy consumption. The White Explains in a press release:

Although the installation of new gates along Metro rail lines has been partially suspended, a pilot program of sorts will be going in at Union Station and a number of others soon. "It was decided last week to do a pilot test of the gating system at four stations," Metro told Damien Newton at LA Streetsblog in an e-mail. "So gates will be installed at Union Station, Wilshire/Normadie, Westlake and Pershing Square stations on the Red/Purple lines. This will give staff an opportunity to test the gates and see how they are working. During the testing period, the gates will be 'free-spinning.'"

A new bus line between the Santa Clarita and the NoHo Metro Red/Orange Line stations will begin service next week. This is actually a pretty good idea for the fourth largest city in Los Angeles County as Metrolink trains run between the city and downtown, but only six days a week as opposed to the NoHo Express, which will run everyday. Additionally, this delivers commuters to a transit hub. Service will begin on August 1st with the first two weeks completely free of charge. Then if riders want to ride for the rest of the month for free, they can take an online survey to give feedback on the route. Wow, immediate feedback and evaluation so they can improve service right away? Imagine if all government agencies did that?

The Official Recession has enveloped us for sixteen official months. It’s still no reason we can’t enjoy life. This is LA -- we have a ton of inexpensive options! A Recession Obsession is truly fantastic, regardless of whether times are good or you've been downsized. We last obsessed over LA's inexpensive comedy shows, and the sweet baked goods at the panderia. Today, we obsess...

It's not unemployment, it's funemployment, right? Sure! But try telling that to the newly created legions of recession victims who spend their days trolling the internet for job leads and nervously rechecking their bank account balance. When you're out of work and trying to save money, it's hard to get out and have fun -- gym memberships, drinks with friends, movies, and restaurant dinners all have to go. But even the brokest asses still need sustenance -- mental and physical. What can you do in this city with a handful of Georges and some pocket change?

A bomb threat called in at around 4 o'clock this morning indicated there was a pipe bomb at the Pershing Square Metro station. The call led "sheriff's deputies and police to shut down the facility," at 5th and Hill in Downtown, according to the Press-Telegram. Although Metro's Red Line trains were operational this morning they were "bypassing the Pershing Square stop," up until around 5:42, when "Bomb squad investigators and police dogs [who had] rushed to the scene to investigate the threat" determined it was a false alarm. A similar false alarm occurred at the Pershing Square station in March of 2007.

Another set of meetings for the Regional Connector, a project that could make a ride from Pasadena to Long Beach, or East LA to Culver City (and eventually Santa Monica) a reality without transferring, has been announced. "By providing continuous through service between these (light rail) lines, the regional connector will improve regional mobility, minimize transfers, reduce station crowding and improve access to both local and regional destinations,'' reads a Metro statement.

No bombs or explosives were found this morning during a random bag check at the Hollywood & Vine Metro station, but one young male was arrested for impersonating a peace officer by carrying fake police IDs and carrying a replica gun.

If you live or travel near the Kodak Theater in Hollywood, the street is getting a little crowded with the Academy Awards set up. As of yesterday, all lanes of Hollywood Boulevard are closed from the southeast corner of Orange Drive to Highland Avenue and will be until at least a week from today at 6 a.m. There are more closures, too, as we get closer to the ceremony on Sunday.

Although they admit the lead time to market the program was insufficient, Metro and the City have not committed to operating late-night Red Line service again in 2009, according to a report (.pdf) published by the Department of Transportation this week. However, they do believe Metro can "operate effective additional service" if funded and that the community may have an interest in seeing it happen again during the 2009 holiday season.

Supercool LAist reader BradleyB put together a spectacular Google Map for this week's Metro-oriented Recession Obsession, Eating On The Red Line. Get the map on his Nacho Lover's Anonymous blog.

The Official Recession has been upon us for thirteen official months. It’s still not a reason we can’t enjoy life. This is LA -- we’ve got plenty of cheap options! We last enjoyed our pick of big plates of Korean food at the Koreatown Galleria Food Court.

Metro is estimating that 1,000 people a night took advantage of Metro's late-night subway service pilot program last Fall and Winter. For six weekends, Metro extended service on the Red Line until 3 a.m. at the behest of the business community who helped pay for the majority of the program. "Because Metro does not have turnstiles to track exact ridership, the numbers presented came from a survey conducted on Friday, December 12, and Saturday, December 13," observed Eric Richardson at blogdowntown. "Another survey conducted the next weekend offered roughly the same numbers." The report also hints that homeless accounted for up to 25% of the ridership. Again, of course, ridership counts were not an exact science here.

                     

Los Angeles’ public transportation can be slow, erratic and, unpleasantly fragrant. But its cast of characters are never dull. This was most true this past Saturday, as many riders chose to leave their pants at home.

Metro (not Metrolink) will be offering 24-hour service on all its rail lines (that's Red, Purple, Blue, Green and Gold) tonight in celebration of New Year's Eve. They'll be running every 20 minutes from 9 p.m. to 5 a.m. and you don't have to pay for a fare between 9 p.m. and 2 a.m. (and that includes buses, too). Then, Thursday morning to facilitate the large crowds for the Tournament of the Roses and the game, Gold Line trains will run every 7 to 8 minutes between 5 a.m. and 2 p.m., every 10 minutes between 2 p.m. and 5 p.m. and again every 7 to 8 minutes between 5 p.m. and 9 p.m. Enjoy your night!

It's that time of year again for New Yorkers to get a fill of riding the subway with no pants. Luckily (or the opposite depending on how you feel), this year the annual Improv Everywhere event is spreading across the nation including Los Angeles on the afternoon of January 10th.

Around 7:30 p.m. last night, Metro security cameras caught someone down on the tracks at the Red Line subway station at Hollywood and Vine. A man had died, possibly suffering some kind of medical emergency, after he struck his head on the tracks, but not the electrical third rail.

Once again, Metro will be offering free rides to transit users on Metro Bus and Rail lines Christmas Eve and New Year's Eve. The free fare program runs from 9 p.m. to 2 a.m. December 24th-25th and 31st to January 1st. According to Metro, "the free rides are being offered during this period to promote safety during the holiday season. Metro is an option for people attending holiday parties so they don’t have to drive." Unfortunately, Metro's late night weekend service on the Red Line ends December 27th, which means in the new year we're going to have to get a lot better at hailing cabs instead of climbing aboard the subway in the post-closing time hours.

With much excitement, the six-week late-night Metro Red Line subway service begins tomorrow. Every Friday and Saturday night until the end of the year, you'll be able to ride the train until 3 a.m.

"It depends on how you look at it," Steve Hymon at the Bottleneck Blog said. In October, Metro's ridership increased when you compare it to October's 2007 ridership. However, on a month-to-month basis, ridership in general--except for the subway--is dipping as gas prices continue to fall.

Although yesterday brought the encouraging news of a service expansion for late-night weekend riders on the Red Line during the holiday season this year, this morning the news about MTA service overall is rather discouraging.

That's right, in only two months since it was first proposed, Metro, at the behest of the city and community, will dabble into extended late-night subway service. Trains will operate every 20 minutes until 3:00 a.m. for a total of thirteen Friday and Saturday nights--November 21st to the end of the year--during the holiday season. "Backers hope that ridership during the holiday trial will convince Metro that late-night service is an ongoing need," reports blogdowntown who has been following the issue closely.

This morning at 9:15 a.m., power at 12 Metro Red and Purple Line train stations between Wilshire/Western and North Hollywood went out for 55 minutes, according to a Metro Spokesperson. No one was hurt or injured, and operations slowed down but never fully stopped. However, patrons riding in elevators at two stations, Wilshire/Normandie and Vermont/Sunset, were stuck for at least fifteen minutes before fire department crews could rescue them. While the Dept. of Water & Power reported no outages at street level, Metro later discovered the problem was within their own system dealing with alternating current. Power never halted on the rails and trains still ran, albeit at a slower speed delaying trains 13 minutes behind schedule and stations were still lit for commuters by emergency flood lights. The incident was cleared by 10:10 a.m.

At today's Metro board meeting, the group unanimously approved a pilot program that would extend Red Line hours until 3:00 a.m. on Fridays and Saturdays from November through January 3rd. Yes, Los Angeles will finally have a subway that operates until 3:00 a.m... well, at least for a short period of time.

Now that the LA City Council approved pilot late night Metro Red Line subway service for Fridays and Saturdays, it's up to Metro to take up the issue. It's on their board agenda for tomorrow, but the plan is even more slim than before. Instead of beginning November 1st and going through January 3rd, Metro's written motion has it starting on November 14th (that cut is 25% of the project's length). Likewise, the original idea was to have Thursdays included, but that was cut down during the city's proposal process because Metro wanted maintenance time. On the good side of things, Metro says that "it appears that a majority of the necessary $85,500 has been identified.”

Without much discussion, the LA City Council approved the late-night subway motion which would expand service on the weekends to 3:00 a.m. between November 1st and January 3rd. But this doesn't mean everything is said and done.