May 21, 20187 yr $1.7 billion in state investment for transit in one city and it's not even June. Ohio invests $30 million per year--statewide.... California panel OKs $704 million in gas-tax funding for LA Metro The California Transportation Commission (CTC) last week awarded $703.6 million in gas-tax funds to the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (Metro). ...Separate from last week's announcement, Metro will receive $1.088 billion from the California State Transportation Agency. MORE: https://www.progressiverailroading.com/passenger_rail/news/California-panel-OKs-704-million-in-gas-tax-funding-for-LA-Metro--54710 "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
July 2, 20186 yr L.A. Metro Board Approves Light Rail for East San Fernando Valley Transit Corridor Project SOURCE: LOS ANGELES COUNTY METROPOLITAN TRANSPORTATION AUTHORITY (METRO) JUL 2, 2018 Marking a historic transit milestone for the San Fernando Valley, the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority Board of Directors approved light rail as the official technology for the East San Fernando Valley Transit Corridor Project that will connect the Metro Orange Line Station in Van Nuys with the Metrolink Station in Sylmar/San Fernando. The $1.3-billion transit project — which is funded by Measure R and M voter-approved sales taxes as well as SB-1 gas tax funds — eliminates Bus Rapid Transit as an option and will now move from the draft to the final environmental review stage. If the final environmental document is certified by the Metro Board of Directors early next year, construction could begin in 2021, with the rail line opening in 2027 ahead of the 2028 Olympic and Paralympic Games in the Los Angeles area. Spanning 9.2 miles, the project will include 14 new stations and will travel in the median of Van Nuys Boulevard before turning northwest on Metro-owned rail right-of-way adjacent to San Fernando Road. Destinations that will be available along the line include the Van Nuys Civic Center, Van Nuys Amtrak/Metrolink Station, Panorama Mall, Van Nuys multi-residential housing, Arleta High School, downtown San Fernando and others. A one-way trip from end-to-end on the rail line is expected to take approximately 31 minutes. MORE http://www.masstransitmag.com/press_release/12419005/la-metro-board-approves-light-rail-for-east-san-fernando-valley-transit-corridor-project "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
July 2, 20186 yr ^This decision is somewhat controversial because it's either going to a)force the Sepulveda project to be light rail in order to enable a 1-seat ride to Westwood or b)require a 2-seat ride to travel under the mountains to Westwood, LAX, Purple Line etc. So the stage is being set for a 1-seat light rail ride from Symar on the north edge of the San Fernando Valley all the way to LAX, a distance of about 30 miles. But the problem is that the light rail mode is prone to service disruptions and slower speed than fully grade-separated rapid transit.
July 6, 20186 yr I saw this on another forum...the same company that won the Phase 2 contract for the Wilshire subway is also going to build Phase 3 because their bid came in so low. Someone out there on the internet assumed that the savings was in part because they would reuse the TBM's from phase 2. Nope, think again. They're actually going to dig Phase 3 at a wider diameter to accommodate what appears to be a single crossover near the 405. Somehow the wider diameter will mean they won't have to temporarily screw with the 405's Wishire exit ramps. Originally Posted by numble View Post The board approved the at-grade light rail alternative for the ESFV transit corridor. They also awarded a $410 million tunneling contract for Phase 3 of the Purple Line extension to Tutor Perini, the same firm that has the Phase 2 contract. Their bid was 25% lower than other bids. They said they would save costs by sharing costs for Phase 2 and Phase 3, including sharing construction office spaces. I wonder if that means they intend to reuse the TBMs from Phase 2 instead of buying new TBMs. Metro won't spend any local money on Phase 3 (including this contract) until the Feds confirm that the local spending (before a New Starts grant is awarded) will not impact their New Starts application. Metro has announced that they will be using a larger diameter TBM on phase 3 so that special trackwork will fit in the tunnel: https://metro.legistar.com/Legislati...ch=&FullText=1 Subway Tunnel Diameter The size of the bored subway tunnels for Section 3 has been increased from an outside diameter of 20 feet 10 inches to 22 feet 6 inches to accommodate portions of the crossover at the Westwood/VA Station and thereby reduce the size of the cut-and-cover excavation. The distance between the tunnels has been reduced to keep the tunnels within the subsurface easement areas identified in the FEIS/FEIR. The larger tunnels would reduce the length of the station box cut-and-cover excavation by approximately 50 feet at each crossover. As a result, the station would not extend into the I-405 off-ramp near the east end of the station and the easement area required by the WLA VA Historic District on the west end of the station box would be reduced.
August 7, 20186 yr The Crenshaw Line maintenance facility is taking shape. The line is scheduled to open in late 2019.
August 7, 20186 yr ^Looks like I can see a spec of mold on the track when you zoom in, better shut it all down!
August 7, 20186 yr ^Looks like I can see a spec of mold on the track when you zoom in, better shut it all down! I'm going to tweet this to Jason Williams and ask him to alert his colleagues at the LA Times.
August 16, 20186 yr LA: We sure would love some dedicated bus lanes and protected bike infrastructure to help us get around our neighborhoods Mayor of LA: How about a low-capacity underground transit system that goes three miles with no stops to a baseball stadium https://la.curbed.com/2018/8/15/17697288/elon-musk-tunnel-dodger-stadium "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
August 16, 20186 yr Yeah this is another publicity stunt from the Muskman. https://www.boringcompany.com/dugout
October 17, 20186 yr "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
February 1, 20196 yr LA Metro has eliminated light rail alternatives for the Sepulveda corridor. From now on they will study two heavy rail alternatives from the SF Valley south parallel to the 405 to LAX. Estimated ridership is well over 100,000. Unlikely that they'll get this done by the 2028 Olympics, however. https://media.metro.net/projects_studies/sfv-405/images/Presentation_sepulveda_transit_corridor_2019-01.pdf
June 21, 20195 yr Here’s an interesting article on the many transportation projects that LA is working on and the relation to the 2028 Olympics. One particularly interesting thing to me is that the ‘84 LA Olympics actually turned a profit (the only Olympics to do so). https://archpaper.com/2019/06/2028-olympics-los-angeles/ When is the last time I-71 turned a profit?
June 21, 20195 yr 4 hours ago, Boomerang_Brian said: Here’s an interesting article on the many transportation projects that LA is working on and the relation to the 2028 Olympics. One particularly interesting thing to me is that the ‘84 LA Olympics actually turned a profit (the only Olympics to do so). https://archpaper.com/2019/06/2028-olympics-los-angeles/ I attended the 1984 Olympics, with my family. That was our big fat family trip. LA was horrible to commute. Nothing has improved. LOL
June 21, 20195 yr I'm not sure how much of a difference the rail system will make. The USC campus, including the LA Coliseum, will be more or less directly served, and so will the UCLA campus assuming Phase 2-3 of the Purple Line are complete (the schedule could be thrown off wildly by a major earthquake), but The Rose Bowl is more than a mile from the closest gold line station. I think they're still going to have to do what they did in 1984 -- set up tons of temporary bus lanes and encourage LA workplaces to change their hours and/or give employees a week or two off.
June 21, 20195 yr 53 minutes ago, jmecklenborg said: I'm not sure how much of a difference the rail system will make. The USC campus, including the LA Coliseum, will be more or less directly served, and so will the UCLA campus assuming Phase 2-3 of the Purple Line are complete (the schedule could be thrown off wildly by a major earthquake), but The Rose Bowl is more than a mile from the closest gold line station. I think they're still going to have to do what they did in 1984 -- set up tons of temporary bus lanes and encourage LA workplaces to change their hours and/or give employees a week or two off. They tried traffic calming in 1984. The surrounding USC area was a hell hole. My family members and I discussed that "this isn't the LA you see on TV or in Advertisements". We stayed at the Westin Century Plaza and getting to from the venues was a nightmare at times. They had Olympic buses that ran like a bus route. Then weaving in and out of the crowds to get to the right entrance for your event was crazy. I wish the MTA had more N/S lines instead of East /West lines. If I could get to my office in Studio City via train i would be a happy camper.
June 21, 20195 yr 2 minutes ago, GCrites80s said: You will be retired by then LOL. Not if they keep extending my contract! LOL My staff calls me "Little Finger" or "Varys" for good reason!
June 21, 20195 yr 5 minutes ago, MyTwoSense said: They tried traffic calming in 1984. The surrounding USC area was a hell hole. My family members and I discussed that "this isn't the LA you see on TV or in Advertisements". We stayed at the Westin Century Plaza and getting to from the venues was a nightmare at times. They had Olympic buses that ran like a bus route. Then weaving in and out of the crowds to get to the right entrance for your event was crazy. I wish the MTA had more N/S lines instead of East /West lines. If I could get to my office in Studio City via train i would be a happy camper. I'd bet they're going to have to patrol the at-grade sections of the Expo line near USC to keep idiots from blocking the tracks. In fact they'll have to patrol all of the grade crossings because a single hiccup anywhere on the soon-to-be gigantic blue and gold lines will be a disaster. I'm also worried that they simply won't own enough trains in the entire fleet to deal with surges in demand on the light rail network. If they take whatever extra gear they have to form longer trains, well then that's fewer trains than they could run if they ran more short trains. Maybe another city runs those same type of light rail trains and they can borrow a few for the Olympics. I believe that Salt Lake City borrowed a few trains from Dallas or St. Louis - I can't remember where. Bottom line -- their current 3-car trains will be overwhelmed.
July 25, 20195 yr Here is a new rendering of an envisioned elevated station in the San Fernando Valley: In one planned alternative, everything north of the Sepulveda Pass will be elevated. In another, all of it will be underground.
July 27, 20195 yr ^I've gotten off at that exit many times when I've had to go to the Valley for one reason or another. I think that building above ground would be much faster. "Faster", of course, being a relative term. I live on S. Plymouth Blvd between Wilshire and Olympic and I've had a front row seat to the Wilshire subway construction over the last few years. Very slow.
October 24, 20195 yr Here are a few photos I took in September. Wilshire Ave. Subway Construction at Fairfax Ave.: Crenshaw Line: New Expo Line Bike Trail: Santa Monica extension: Blue Line: High Speed Rail: The CAHSR Phase 2 to San Diego, which will include electrification for Metro Commuter Rail and create an entrance to LA for LA>Phoenix HSR will be built parallel to this freight rail corridor: The Colorado River...roughly where HSR would cross en route to Phoenix: Edited October 24, 20195 yr by jmecklenborg
November 22, 20195 yr Crenshaw Line testing has begun. Unfortunately, they aren't testing the subway section yet, so we don't get to see that in this video.
February 5, 20205 yr la metro planning for the big one -- a big new rail service that is: L.A. Metro receives interest from five qualified contract teams to help develop major transit line The selected team will help develop a high-speed, high-capacity train line directly connecting the San Fernando Valley and the Westside and ultimately LAX Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (Metro) Jan 14th, 2020 Five teams have been cleared by the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (Metro) to compete for the chance to help develop the agency’s Sepulveda Transit Corridor Project, a mega-project that will build a high-speed, high-capacity train line directly connecting the San Fernando Valley and the Westside, and ultimately, the Los Angeles International Airport. more: https://www.masstransitmag.com/rail/infrastructure/press-release/21121212/los-angeles-county-metropolitan-transportation-authority-metro-la-metro-receives-interest-from-five-qualified-contract-teams-to-help-develop-major-transit-line
February 5, 20205 yr 12 minutes ago, mrnyc said: la metro planning for the big one -- a big new rail service that is: L.A. Metro receives interest from five qualified contract teams to help develop major transit line The selected team will help develop a high-speed, high-capacity train line directly connecting the San Fernando Valley and the Westside and ultimately LAX Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (Metro) Jan 14th, 2020 Five teams have been cleared by the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (Metro) to compete for the chance to help develop the agency’s Sepulveda Transit Corridor Project, a mega-project that will build a high-speed, high-capacity train line directly connecting the San Fernando Valley and the Westside, and ultimately, the Los Angeles International Airport. more: https://www.masstransitmag.com/rail/infrastructure/press-release/21121212/los-angeles-county-metropolitan-transportation-authority-metro-la-metro-receives-interest-from-five-qualified-contract-teams-to-help-develop-major-transit-line 37 years to complete. Only in America.
February 5, 20205 yr well, better late than never! now if they would only have kept the streetcars....
February 7, 20214 yr Here is an excellent update on the Wilshire subway extension. We get to see into the staging areas and the stacks of precast tunnel segments.
August 20, 20213 yr i saw the new crenshaw light rail extention work in los angeles. its delayed, but they were working on it. it will connect two exisiting lines and also to the the new lax people mover that is also u/c. stations: 1. Expo/Crenshaw 2. Martin Luther King Jr. 3. Leimert Park 4. Hyde Park 5. Fairview Heights 6. Downtown Inglewood 7. Westchester/Veterans 8. Aviation/Century there is also another station tba at the lax bus terminal area i think (that bus lot sux btw, ugh). more: https://www.metro.net/projects/crenshaw_corridor/
August 20, 20213 yr i was sitting a light in los angeles the other day and saw this purple line extension work on wilshire:
August 20, 20213 yr one more thing ... jeepers los angeles is impressively busy with rail projects, isn't it? ... the downtown connector tunneling project. this massive project will add three stations and basically connect existing lines to make trips shorter for locals and commuters. i saw lots of work on that around downtown, especially on a big lot here below where i read the disney concert hall staff are a bit worried about trains underground the building making noise (and it sure looked well worth a worry when we walked around it), but the la metro folks have assured them they will limit noise during performance times. bunker hill/2nd/hope st station more: https://la.curbed.com/2017/9/18/16267632/regional-connector-metro-explained
August 21, 20213 yr have nice look at a quick pic i took at los angeles union station. always a pleasure. they don’t build’em like that anymore. 1938. a fine mix of deco, moderne and spanish revival. and its hardly a relic with even more subway and rail service coming soon.
August 25, 20213 yr Not necessarily transit news but the new Sixth Street Viaduct is coming along... "You don't just walk into a bar and mix it up by calling a girl fat" - buildingcincinnati speaking about new forumers
January 28, 20223 yr "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
February 14, 20223 yr you can join in webinars and learn about purple line construction progress here: Status Project construction began in 2019. The Metro Purple (D Line) Extension Transit Project is being built in three sections: Section 1: Wilshire/La Brea Station, Wilshire/Fairfax Station and Wilshire/La Cienega Station; slated to open in 2024. Section 2: Wilshire/Rodeo Station and Century City/Constellation Station; slated to open in 2025. Section 3: Westwood/UCLA Station and Westwood/VA Hospital Station; slated to open in 2027. https://www.metro.net/projects/westside/#latest-updates
February 18, 20223 yr steady progress at the airport -- they are also catching up with hopkins 🙂 and consolidating the lax rent a car facility. Here's how much progress the LAX makeover made last year The landside access modernization is estimated to cost $5.5 billion January 04, 2022, 8:00AM Steven Sharp As every Angeleno knows, there are three certainties in life: death, taxes, and LAX construction traffic. But all of the stress you endure while slogging through the horseshoe is poised to pay off - at least one of these days. The airport's $5.5-billion Landside Access Modernization Program, or "LAMP," saw the completion of several of its major components in 2021, as well as construction milestones for the automated people mover that will serve as its centerpiece. Here's a look at where things stand at the start of this year. As of December 2021, construction is now 67 percent complete for the people mover, which will shuttle passengers 2.25 miles between the central terminal area and ground transportation options to the east - including a Metro rail stop that broke ground last year at 96th Street and Aviation Boulevard. Progress is most pronounced on the monorail-like system's elevated guideway, which has reached 87 percent completion, while steel canopies continue to take shape at stops in the central terminal area, as well as at a series of ground transportation hubs along the route. more: https://urbanize.city/la/post/heres-how-much-progress-lax-makeover-made-last-year
June 14, 20222 yr a march update on purple line progress and closures: MARCH 3, 2022 Purple Line subway project keeps rolling along https://beverlypress.com/2022/03/purple-line-subway-project-keeps-rolling-along/ Work continues near a future subway station at Wilshire/La Brea. Street restoration work on Wilshire Boulevard is anticipated to begin in April. (photo by Edwin Folven)
September 26, 20222 yr "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
June 22, 20231 yr The Regional Connector has opened in downtown L.A.: https://www.masstransitmag.com/rail/infrastructure/article/53063872/la-metro-celebrates-opening-of-regional-connector?utm_source=MASS+NewsViews+Newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=CPS230620039&o_eid=9803J8073534C0N&rdx.ident[pull]=omeda|9803J8073534C0N
June 22, 20231 yr ^ Since that link doesn't have a map , for anyone curious who hasn't been following this (like me) here's one.
June 22, 20231 yr Unfortunately the new subway connection doesn't have a flying crossover - it has an underground yet level junction just east of the Little Tokyo station. Also, the at-grade junction remains on Flower St. south of the Staples Center. This means that the capacity of the new interlined section is quite low. Also, the new downtown stations only have platform lengths for the current 3-car trains. So overall, the new connection is an improvement, but far from world-class.
July 6, 20231 yr ^ i see they actually closed a station and opened a new one around little tokyo. thats interesting for such a relatively new system, but i suppose should be expected occassionally. last i saw the wilshire blvd purple line work should be done out to la cienega by the end of this year. thats pretty exciting. and talk about useful. i know the tunnel drilling is done further out to rodeo drive & century city, but i dk about all the way to the end in westwood.
November 4, 2024Nov 4 $800 million for 3.2 miles and two more stations to Clairmont and Montclair (cute reversal of names).... L.A. Metro Approves Funding for Final Phase of Foothill Gold Line https://www.metro-magazine.com/10230921/l-a-metro-approves-funding-for-final-phase-of-foothill-gold-line "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
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