A Memorial Weekend BBQ in East Hollywood was my destination yesterday. And since my recent habit has been to use public transit mixed with the bike, that's what I set out to do from my Sherman Oaks flat.

First, I was off to Ralphs Fresh Fare at Ventura and Coldwater to pick up some food. I shop, exit and head to my bike. Right then, an escalade pulls up and parks in the fire lane (asshole). A man who could have been a bouncer gets out of the car and hides behind it as he takes photos of something. I turn and it looks like an 14-year-old emaciated version of Nicole Richie. Oh wait, it is Nicole Richie. Gross. Other photographers swarm around the grocery store as Ralphs staff guards the doors protecting one of their many celeb shoppers who pass through here.

I bike through the parking lot towards the bus stop and see Alimi Ballard (of Numb3rs) being ignored by the paparazzi as he puts his groceries in his car. He's cool. I like his show.

I catch a bus down Ventura to the Universal City Red Line station and head underground. A crowd of friends and family is around a man lying on the ground with a woman at a call box asking for help. It seems he just collapsed after a long day at Universal Studios. Seeing nothing I could do to help the situation other than gawk, I moved on and caught a train towards Hollywood.

At Hollywood and Vine, the one of many crazy bag ladies in our city enter. But something is different about her. She is wearing a backpack that something everyone in LA should carry around, but no one does. In the past, I only know one person who carries one of these around and she works for the city's Emergency Preparedness Department. Of all people to be prepared, it was the crazy bag lady with her 72-hour emergency backpack. I feel ashamed as I should be carrying one around too.

I get off at Sunset and Vermont and head West. My destination is on the safest street in Los Angeles and where I should expect to see some crazy shenanigans nonetheless. Here, I arrive at a BBQ on a side street that is one side, apartments, one side, Scientology Centre.

The most normal part of my day begins as I open the gate to the apartment complex.

Unless you like sitting in your car for a half hour, enjoy doing the Austin Powers 100-point turn or subscribe and donate $2000 or more for the Donor Valet, parking at the Hollywood Bowl is lame.

So as you prepare yourself for the June 22nd opening of the Hollywood Bowl (date relevant to the official opening and not lease events), here are some tips:

1. There's always confusion between the Park & Ride and the BowlBus Shuttle (which is basically a park and ride situation). The Park & Ride delivers you to the bowl from all around the city and usually needs to be purchased for $5 weeks in advance to guarantee a spot. The BowlBus Shuttle has four nearby-bowl free lots that offer rides at $3 a head with no reservation required.

2. Of the four BowlBus Shuttle locations, the Hollywood/Highland offers free rides to those with Metro tickets. Additionally, Metro told us that passengers who attend Hewitt/Silva rock concerts at the Bowl this year will receive a free gift just for going Metro. All you have to do is show the Metro ticket at the Global Inheritance booth at the ticket entrance by 9 pm. We have no idea what the gift will be. Maybe it will be a toy bus! Maybe not. Concerts include Morrissey, June 8; John Mayer, June 9 and 10; Roger Waters, June 13;� Rush, July 23; Dave Mathews Band, Oct. 1 and 2 and Genesis, Oct. 12 and 13.

3. Here's our favorite idea: walk. It's really not that far. Trust us. We measured it. It's only .7211 miles from the corner of Hollywood/Highland to the front gates of the Bowl. We know you'll have your picnic basket to carry, but that will build up the appetite.

Photo by _e.t via Flickr

Thursday's Metro Board meeting to hear public comment and vote on new fares for public transportation in Los Angeles was, simply put, an amazing scene. An estimated 1500 people showed up with approximately 1498 of them opposing the insanely high raised fares (try 500% for some passes). During public comment, speakers spoke with passion, anger, tears and fury.

One of the day's best quotes came from a woman who held her baby in her arms talking of the hardships a raise of fares will cost her and her family, most likely forcing her to move out of state. She ended her statement with "I can budget for my family. Why can't you?" As with just about every speaker that day, it drew cheers from the crowd.

Laughter helped in the tense environment when a man spoke and Board president Gloria Molina asked him if he had already spoken earlier that day. He said yes and a girl from the audience shouted "too late now!" The room broke out in laughter, Molina included.

The day ended with a vote for fare increases, albeit a more modest proposal than the harsh and extremely pricey one brought foward by Roger Snoble and Metro staff. Metro's website summarizes the new rates.

Walking the halls, we found that the meeting brought together a lot of the who's who in the public transit advocacy world of Los Angeles. And that is what follows after the jump...

Above photo by Stephen Box

Californians are known for being early adopters when it comes to embracing alternatives to gas-guzzling transportation. I spotted an example of extreme fuel efficiency as I was driving in the valley and had to smile at this man’s ingenious method of moving his sofa. Who needs to rent a moving truck when you have a VONS down the road?

Photo taken by Michele (with a RAZR phone. While waiting at a stoplight.)

"In support of Bike to Work Day, Thursday, May 17th, cyclists ride free on Metro and on other participating transit agencies listed below." said Metro's website. "Board with your bike or helmet and enjoy the ride… it’s on us!"

According to many cyclists including this LAist writer, it was sometimes a fight to get that free ride. Many cyclists at the Rally told stories of them informing the bus driver that they get to ride for free, usually leading the bus driver saying they never heard so, then the cyclist telling them to call on the radio and ask.

My own experience was when a LA County Sheriff Fare Inspector tried to ticket me on the Red Line subway for ticketless riding. She asked for my ticket, I showed her my bike, she asked for my ID, I said no, she said yes, I said no and to call it in, she did and she was shocked. "Seven hours and no one told me a thing!" she exclaimed in amazement because of the many cyclists that showed her tickets throughout the day.

I thanked a bus driver on Ventura Blvd. for actually knowing it was bike to work day and he said he had even forgot himself telling me a story of a cyclist who was a regular on his morning route who paid and then realized he could ride for free that day. The bus driver said he could not refund his regular customer, but would give him a free ride in exchange the next day.

How were you informed of the free rides for cyclists I asked him. He said he was given a memo a month or so ago and a brochure at one point. No communications to employees in the field the week or day of.

It's only Monday and we have a winner!

Don't forget to read the whole thing as it includes Dodger Stadium/Public Transit talk and Downtown Blogger Eric Richardson (go to his picnic on Saturday), all on Internet Page 3 of the article.

Photo by bunnicula via Flickr

While it may be true that no one walks in LA, people do ride their bikes, and this week is your chance to ride your bike to work while feeling superior to your coworkers.

Metro will kickoff its 13th annual celebration of Bike to Work Week with a bike rally and fair featuring Ed Begley, Jr. and a free concert by the Ditty Bops at Los Angeles City Hall, Monday, May 14. Metro also will be offering as prizes several commuter bikes and bike accessories to those who register in advance online at metro.net/biketowork and pledge to be part of the solution to alleviate gridlock by pedaling to work, school or other destination on Thursday, May 17, Bike to Work Day.

The rally will begin at 11:30 am on the South Lawn of Los Angeles City Hall, 200 North Spring St. in Downtown Los Angeles. Los Angeles City Council members Wendy Greuel, Eric Garcetti and Tom LaBonge, Los Angeles County Bike Coalition (LACBC) and Los Angeles City Department of Transportation (LADOT) and Metro will participate. The concert will begin at 12:15 pm. - Metro via Sunny

More Ride yr Bike to Work week madness this Thursday when if you show up with your bike, or even a bike helmet, Metro will let you on the bus or the subway for free.

It's more fun than Universal City!

It is Caltrans with no space or capital T. We know, it looks way cooler like CalTrans or some variation, but according to their website and press releases, they go by the boring-with-uppercase-letter Caltrans.

It seems like all transit agencies have this dilemma. Metro wants to be called Metro, not MTA (the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority) [get nerdy and call it LACMTA]. But no one wants to let go of the acronym, even the LA Times (how about RTD folks?). Here is what we get from Metro at the bottom of every press release:

Metro is the proper name in referring to the Metropolitan Transportation Authority of Los Angeles County. For the past three years Metro has been changing all its signage and other materials to reflect the name change

"And who the hell is LADOT?!" people ask (note the no space between.

Last night I login into MySpace tonight and there is the usual flurry of spam friend requests. But tonight was different: there was a friend request from a picture I knew quite well. That's because I took it when covering the Holly Trolley last year.

Last week, a new push for the Holly Trolley went into effect touting some changes, mainly the new 6:30 p.m. to 2:30 a.m. Thursday through Saturday service and a two week trial period beginning last week that extends the route to La Brea, a wee bit further than its usual Highland.

More importantly, the rides are free this month if you can represent with bar receipts, movie theater stubs or a Hollywood & Highland/ArcLight parking garage ticket. In return, the Holly Trolley receipt will get you $6 validation at the aforementioned parking garages.

The Holly Trolley is a great idea, but I have not found any personal use out of it yet when going to Hollywood. What I'm looking for is a easy and fast to go from Hollywood/Highland to the Sunset Strip in WeHo. Yeah, two different municipalities and two dualing chambers of commerce, but who cares -- it just might be the will of the party people.

We get these e-mail every so often. The ones that go "April 1997, there was a "gas out" conducted nationwide in protest of gas prices. Gasoline prices dropped 30 cents a gallon overnight. On May 15th 2007, all internet users are to not go to a gas station in protest of high gas prices. Gas is now over $3.00 a gallon in most places." That's nice and all, but we rather see it tell people to use public transit. That's where the true effect will come into play.

With May 15th in mind, we would like to remind you that it is an election day in some parts of Los Angeles:

- Assembly District 39 (East and Northeast Valley, here's a map)
- LAUSD District 3 (lots of Valley)
- LAUSD District 7 (parts of South LA to the Harbor)
- Los Angeles Community College District; Office 5
- Council Member, Council; City of Redondo Beach; District 5

So if you got that voting info book, make it a point to vote! Don't forget to walk or ride your bike to the polling location.

Graphic by some genius that we do not know who to credit (it came in our e-mail)

From Sherman Oaks to Burbank Airport it was just a little over 45 minutes by bus. A few bucks later and some good podcast listening on the ride (The California Report, This American Life), we were on our travels yesterday in a flash. No bothering friends for a ride, no use of cars and no Supershuttle, a.k.a., we will pick you up 3 hours before your flight and have to go pick up 6 other people after we pick you up.

Not all of you live in Sherman Oaks, so here's the main tip. If you can get to the NoHo Red Line Station, you're one quick bus ride away from Burbank Airport (Use the NoHo -> Empire Bus that is referred to as the Airport Area bus. Catch it at Bus Bay 1. Get off at Thornton/Hollywood Way).

After the jump, the trip...

Wilshire is the most congested artery in the nation, right? So putting dedicated bus lanes during rush hour until the subway is built would make it worse for the cars, right?

Good.

Let's do it like City Councilman Tom LaBonge said in his recent newsletter: "I do support a dedicated Rapid Bus lane during peak traffic hours along Wilshire to encourage riders… as long as the MTA fixes the roadway they are helping to deteriorate."

Whether to encourage more riders or to move increased amounts of people further, farther and faster, let's do something drastic. Yeah, there is going to be the good and the bad and the effects and the screamers and the praisers just like anything else that happens. So what. Do you want to pussyfoot the solutions that may or may not work until our retirement or find a solution that may or may not work for six-months from now? Call it a 3-month pilot study -- we don't care. Until that Purple Line Subway is moving, be a little reckless.

Everyone is screaming anyway. Doing something a little risky is going to produce what? Screaming.

Photo by Rice and D via Flickr