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Imagine L.A. Beyond Traffic: Now Get Your Ideas Moving!
Image via railLA
By Carren Jao/Special to LAist
The birthplace of cruising and Grease-like fascination for all things with four-wheeled, Los Angeles has become synonymous with its cars and freeways. But what if the roads could become a little less congested and the commute a little less frustrating?
RailLA, a non-profit advocating for the “timely and efficient implementation of the high-speed rail with Los Angeles’ Union Station as its hub,” is inviting anyone with a great idea to take a few minutes to write down on their site what their Los Angeles would be like without cars. Will it have centralized housing to encourage walking to work? A shopping mall by the high-speed rail hub? What about a simple one-way train ride that goes straight to LAX?
The most creative ideas will be sent to 25 collage artists, whose renderings will appear in an upcoming book. An exhibition envisioning a new pedestrian-based Los Angeles is also in the works. “It’s basically everlasting fame!” Jonathan Louie, Program Director of railLA.
Louie says not to overthink the idea, but take the plunge and simply write it. “A few sentences or a paragraph would be awesome. We've found some of the best and unique ideas [so far] from very unlikely sources.”
If you’ve ever complained about the frequent traffic jams in L.A., now is the time to start daydreaming a solution. What would you like to see grow in Los Angeles?
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You come to LAist because you want independent reporting and trustworthy local information. Our nonprofit newsroom doesn’t answer to shareholders looking to turn a profit. Instead, we answer to you and our communities. We are free to follow facts wherever they lead and to hold power to account without fear or favor. Our only loyalty is to our readers and listeners and our mission: to inform, engage, and strengthen Southern California’s communities.
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