Los Angeles, a city renowned for its bustling streets and iconic freeways, is taking significant steps towards revolutionizing public transit in the San Fernando Valley. In a major development, the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (Metro) has been awarded an $893 million grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation. This substantial funding will propel the construction of the new 6.7-mile East San Fernando Valley Light Rail Transit Project, signifying a monumental advancement in public transportation infrastructure.

A Vision for a Connected Valley

The upcoming light rail line promises to transform public transit in one of the Valley’s busiest corridors—Van Nuys Boulevard. Marking a significant return, it’s the first local stop, commuter rail service to grace Van Nuys Boulevard in over seven decades, with the last Pacific Electric “San Fernando Valley Line” urban electric railway serving the area until 1952.

This new light rail initiative is not merely a transportation project; it’s a bridge to greater connectivity. It will seamlessly integrate with an array of existing and planned regional transit services, including Metrolink, Amtrak, and various Metro lines. For the residents of Van Nuys, Panorama City, Arleta, and Pacoima—many of whom rely heavily on public transportation—this project isn’t just about transit upgrades; it’s about accessing broader opportunities across the region.

Federal Support and Local Impact

Thanks to the collective efforts of local leaders, including Senator Alex Padilla and Congressman Tony Cárdenas, and the backing of the Biden-Harris Administration, this project has secured the necessary federal support under the Full Funding Grant Agreement (FFGA) governed by the Federal Transit Administration’s Expedited Project Delivery Pilot Program. This program is designed to fast-track significant capital projects, ensuring quicker improvements and enhancements to public transport infrastructures.

Metro Board Chair and LA County Supervisor Janice Hahn highlighted the transformative potential of this project, emphasizing it as a direct, rapid transit connection to the expanding Metro system that would profoundly benefit the community. Echoing this sentiment, L.A. Mayor and Metro Board Member Karen Bass noted the collaborative efforts that have made this significant step toward reality possible, bringing closer a future of enhanced transit connectivity.

Cultural Sensitivity and Community Engagement

Metro has introduced an innovative element to this project—a Cultural Competency requirement in the project contract. This requirement is a tailored strategy aimed at appreciating and engaging the diverse cultural landscape of the San Fernando Valley. As explained by Jacquelyn Dupont-Walker, Metro Board 2nd Vice Chair, this plan ensures comprehensive community engagement, allowing residents, local businesses, and community groups to stay informed and involved throughout the project’s development.

What’s Next?

Construction activities, including advanced utility adjustment work and minor street improvements along Van Nuys Boulevard, are set to commence later this year. With 11 new light rail stations planned, the project is scheduled to open in 2031 and is expected to create over 18,000 direct and indirect jobs. This endeavor is not just about enhancing transport but is also a strategic move towards economic stimulation and job creation in the region.

A Brighter Future for the Valley

The East San Fernando Valley Light Rail Transit Project stands as a beacon of progress for the Valley, representing a major shift towards sustainable and efficient public transportation. With this significant federal investment, Metro is poised to deliver a project that not only meets today’s mobility demands but also fosters a more equitable, connected, and sustainable future for all residents of the San Fernando Valley.

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For more updates on this transformative project, stay tuned to Metro’s official communication channels.

Visit Metro’s project page for more details.

Read the press release from LA Metro:

https://www.metro.net/about/l-a-metro-awarded-an-893-million-u-s-department-of-transportation-grant-to-help-fund-new-6-7-mile-east-san-fernando-valley-light-rail-transit-project

Source: LA Metro

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Hollywood Boulevard Safety and Mobility Project: Enhancing Community Through CicLAvia

Jay L. Zagorsky, Boston University

With the Olympic torch extinguished in Paris, all eyes are turning to Los Angeles for the 2028 Olympics.

The host city has promised that the next Summer Games will be “car-free.”

For people who know Los Angeles, this seems overly optimistic. The car remains king in LA, despite growing public transit options.

When LA hosted the Games in 1932, it had an extensive public transportation system, with buses and an extensive network of electric streetcars. Today, the trolleys are long gone; riders say city buses don’t come on schedule, and bus stops are dirty. What happened?

This question fascinates me because I am a business professor who studies why society abandons and then sometimes returns to certain technologies, such as vinyl records, landline phones and metal coins. The demise of electric streetcars in Los Angeles and attempts to bring them back today vividly demonstrate the costs and challenges of such revivals. https://www.youtube.com/embed/9X78ZqGyc5o?wmode=transparent&start=0 The 2028 Olympic Games will be held in existing sports venues around Los Angeles and are expected to host 15,000 athletes and over 1 million spectators.

Riding the Red and Yellow Cars

Transportation is a critical priority in any city, but especially so in Los Angeles, which has been a sprawling metropolis from the start.

In the early 1900s, railroad magnate Henry Huntington, who owned vast tracts of land around LA, started subdividing his holdings into small plots and building homes. In order to attract buyers, he also built a trolley system that whisked residents from outlying areas to jobs and shopping downtown.

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By the 1930s, Los Angeles had a vibrant public transportation network, with over 1,000 miles of electric streetcar routes, operated by two companies: Pacific Electric Railway, with its “Red Cars,” and Los Angeles Railway, with its “Yellow Cars.”

The system wasn’t perfect by any means. Many people felt that streetcars were inconvenient and also unhealthy when they were jammed with riders. Moreover, streetcars were slow because they had to share the road with automobiles. As auto usage climbed and roads became congested, travel times increased.

Nonetheless, many Angelenos rode the streetcars – especially during World War II, when gasoline was rationed and automobile plants shifted to producing military vehicles. https://www.youtube.com/embed/AwKv3_WwD4o?wmode=transparent&start=0 In 1910, Los Angeles had a widely used local rail network, with over 1,200 miles (1,930 kilometers) of track. What happened?

Demise of public transit

The end of the war marked the end of the line for streetcars. The war effort had transformed oil, tire and car companies into behemoths, and these industries needed new buyers for goods from the massive factories they had built for military production. Civilians and returning soldiers were tired of rationing and war privations, and they wanted to spend money on goods such as cars.

After years of heavy usage during the war, Los Angeles’ streetcar system needed an expensive capital upgrade. But in the mid-1940s, most of the system was sold to a company called National City Lines, which was partly owned by the carmaker General Motors, the oil companies Standard Oil of California and Phillips Petroleum, and the Firestone tire company.

These powerful forces had no incentive to maintain or improve the old electric streetcar system. National City ripped up tracks and replaced the streetcars with buses that were built by General Motors, used Firestone tires and ran on gasoline.

There is a long-running academic debate over whether self-serving corporate interests purposely killed LA’s streetcar system. Some researchers argue that the system would have died on its own, like many other streetcar networks around the world.

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The controversy even spilled over into pop culture in the 1988 movie “Who Framed Roger Rabbit,” which came down firmly on the conspiracy side.

What’s undisputed is that, starting in the mid-1940s, powerful social forces transformed Los Angeles so that commuters had only two choices: drive or take a public bus. As a result, LA became so choked with traffic that it often took hours to cross the city.

In 1990, the Los Angeles Times reported that people were putting refrigerators, desks and televisions in their cars to cope with getting stuck in horrendous traffic. A swath of movies, from “Falling Down” to “Clueless” to “La La Land,” have featured the next-level challenge of driving in LA.

Traffic was also a concern when LA hosted the 1984 Summer Games, but the Games went off smoothly. Organizers convinced over 1 million people to ride buses, and they got many trucks to drive during off-peak hours. The 2028 games, however, will have roughly 50% more athletes competing, which means thousands more coaches, family, friends and spectators. So simply dusting off plans from 40 years ago won’t work.

Olympic transportation plans

Today, Los Angeles is slowly rebuilding a more robust public transportation system. In addition to buses, it now has four light-rail lines – the new name for electric streetcars – and two subways. Many follow the same routes that electric trolleys once traveled. Rebuilding this network is costing the public billions, since the old system was completely dismantled.

Three key improvements are planned for the Olympics. First, LA’s airport terminals will be connected to the rail system. Second, the Los Angeles organizing committee is planning heavily on using buses to move people. It will do this by reassigning some lanes away from cars and making them available for 3,000 more buses, which will be borrowed from other locales.

Finally, there are plans to permanently increase bicycle lanes around the city. However, one major initiative, a bike path along the Los Angeles River, is still under an environmental review that may not be completed by 2028.

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Car-free for 17 days

I expect that organizers will pull off a car-free Olympics, simply by making driving and parking conditions so awful during the Games that people are forced to take public transportation to sports venues around the city. After the Games end, however, most of LA is likely to quickly revert to its car-centric ways.

As Casey Wasserman, chair of the LA 2028 organizing committee, recently put it: “The unique thing about Olympic Games is for 17 days you can fix a lot of problems when you can set the rules – for traffic, for fans, for commerce – than you do on a normal day in Los Angeles.”

This article has been updated to indicate that Los Angeles has four light-rail lines.

Jay L. Zagorsky, Associate Professor of Markets, Public Policy and Law, Boston University

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

The Bridge is a section of the STM Daily News Blog meant for diversity, offering real news stories about bona fide community efforts to perpetuate a greater good. The purpose of The Bridge is to connect the divides that separate us, fostering understanding and empathy among different groups. By highlighting positive initiatives and inspirational actions, The Bridge aims to create a sense of unity and shared purpose. This section brings to light stories of individuals and organizations working tirelessly to promote inclusivity, equality, and mutual respect. Through these narratives, readers are encouraged to appreciate the richness of diverse perspectives and to participate actively in building stronger, more cohesive communities.

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As the bustling city of Los Angeles continues to evolve, a significant development is coming to one of its most vital hubs, the Los Angeles International Airport (LAX). After much anticipation and a series of delays, a major milestone has been reached in the LAX Automated People Mover (APM) project. The final set of four train cars has arrived from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, rounding up the fleet to a total of 44 train cars designed to transform the traveler experience at LAX.

Embracing the Future of Transit

Initiated in 2018 and experiencing its fair share of setbacks, the APM project symbolizes a major leap towards modernizing one of the busiest airports in the world. This 2.25-mile elevated train system aims to significantly improve passenger convenience by offering quick and efficient transportation between terminals, parking structures, car rental facilities, and a new LA Metro transit facility in El Segundo. Once operational, the system hopes to not only enhance the passenger experience but also alleviate the notorious traffic congestions around the airport.

Sustainable Transportation Takes Flight

In alignment with global environmental goals, the APM stands out for its green initiatives. The INNOVIA 300 APM cars, a first in U.S. airports, are designed with sustainability at their core. Features like a fully recyclable aluminum shell and a regenerative braking system, which captures kinetic energy from braking to generate electricity, emphasize the project’s commitment to reducing the environmental footprint. John Ackerman, CEO of Los Angeles World Airports, asserted that the APM would “set a new standard for sustainable transportation,” reflecting the commitment to passengers, community, and the planet.

Overcoming Challenges

The journey of the APM project has not been smooth; originally set to be completed by March 2023, it faced various challenges leading to a postponement. Now, with a revised completion target of December 2025, followed by extensive testing for full operational status by January 2026, there is a renewed sense of progress. The Los Angeles City Council’s recent approval of an additional $550 million to cover unforeseen costs demonstrates the city’s dedication to ensuring the project’s completion.

What to Expect

Once fully functional, the APM service will be available around the clock, with trains anticipated every two minutes during peak hours from 9 a.m. to 11 p.m. The entire transit from one end to the other will take approximately 10 minutes, with seamless stops at three inner-terminal stations and three external ones. Designed for comfort, each train car will feature wide, level doors for easy boarding, air conditioning, as well as audio and visual messaging systems, capable of accommodating around 50 passengers with their luggage.

Looking Ahead

The recent arrival of the final train cars marks a pivotal transition from construction to the testing phases. Shawn West, a board member of LINXS constructors, highlighted that this progress paves the way towards thorough testing needed for each vehicle to ensure safety and efficiency. With 93% of the station and 94% of the guideway work completed, the completion horizon is coming into clearer focus.

The LAX APM project, representing the largest contract ever awarded by the City of Los Angeles, not only promises to redefine the travel experience but also sets a benchmark in sustainable urban transit solutions. As these final pieces literally fall into place, the vision of a world-class facility at LAX is closer to becoming a reality, much to the anticipation of travelers and the Los Angeles community alike.

https://ktla.com/news/california/final-people-mover-cars-arrive-at-lax-in-major-milestone-for-delayed-project

https://www.lawa.org/transforminglax/projects/underway/apm

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The Bridge is a section of the STM Daily News Blog meant for diversity, offering real news stories about bona fide community efforts to perpetuate a greater good. The purpose of The Bridge is to connect the divides that separate us, fostering understanding and empathy among different groups. By highlighting positive initiatives and inspirational actions, The Bridge aims to create a sense of unity and shared purpose. This section brings to light stories of individuals and organizations working tirelessly to promote inclusivity, equality, and mutual respect. Through these narratives, readers are encouraged to appreciate the richness of diverse perspectives and to participate actively in building stronger, more cohesive communities.

https://stmdailynews.com/category/the-bridge