Tag Archives: wilshire

History, Mass Transit

Red Line: Take the L?

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Chicago is known for its L – a heavy rail transit line that is elevated through its downtown core. But, did you know that Los Angeles almost had it’s own L?

It would have been on Wilshire, the transit corridor currently known for its underground Subway To The Wiltern. It would have been part of the Red Line, from Union Station to the Miracle Miracle, up through West Hollywood, back to Hollywood, and on to NoHo.

The plans were drawn up in 1983. Twenty-eight years ago.

Metro has put up the renderings and maps for what could have been.

Mass Transit, Twitter

Metro Explains Why Subway Will Take Forever

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Yesterday, I asked Metro a few questions regarding their new timetables for several projects, including the Subway to the Sea. Today, Rick Jager from their Media Relations department answered:

1. Besides funding issues, why is the completion of the Purple Line to Santa Monica expected to take so long?

The next steps before subway construction could start are estimated to take 2 to 3 years. This includes full environmental review, approvals, engineering and design. We then estimate that construction could take about 7 years (1) depending on what the final project ends up being & (2) if all funding is available.

The funding generated by Measure R will come in over a 30 year period and therefore the schedules are based on an allocation of these revenues to many projects over the life of the sales tax. The schedule for the Westside project which identifies completion to Westwood by 2032 is driven more by the availability of funding than the time needed to construct. The actual time needed to construct the Purple Line Extension to Westwood would be considerably less than 23 years.

2. Does the projected completion date of 2032 to Westwood include the Pink Line extension from Hollywood/Highland (Alternative 11)? If not, how would that affect the Westside timetable?

Continue reading Metro Explains Why Subway Will Take Forever →

Mass Transit

Bus-Only Wilshire Lanes: Time For Meetings

Who needs to wait 20 years for a Wilshire subway when you can go by … bus?

@ginnycase reminds us of the upcoming Wilshire Bus Rapid Transit Project Community Meetings.

Los Angeles, Metro, and LA County are looking at dedicated curbside bus lanes during the morning and evening rush hours. Perhaps one of the biggest obstacles facing the Wilshire project is the fact it does not include the City of Beverly Hills. Ack!

Photo from LA Wad’s photostream

Meeting info. after the jump.
Continue reading Bus-Only Wilshire Lanes: Time For Meetings →

Mass Transit

Metro: Subway to the Sea in 20+ Years

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I almost spit out my cough drop when I read an entry by Steve Hymon on yesterday’s Bottleneck Blog:

During the news conference about Measure R’s passage, Metropolitan Transportation Authority chief Roger Snoble said it may now be possible to extend the line to Fairfax Avenue within six or seven years and the line could get to Westwood in 20 years. Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa heard that, and super-super-quickly stepped to the mike and promised to be “aggressive” about securing federal dollars to speed that up.

By the time Snoble and the boys finishing tunneling down Wilshire, the Gold Line will have reached Phoenix.

Way to go.