LAs public transportation

[Chatteress]

Originally Posted by the city

They should have expanded the subway to Santa Monica area a long time ago and not expanded so much, so that the freeways were backed up. Getting rid of the street cars were dumb too. LA's transportation system is just horrible. The subway and metrolink system is the only system that works. The orange line and buses don't work that well. I was using the metro system down there while visiting family and they had no direct way to the Van Nuys Metrolink. Had to take subway to orange line and then and a bus to the train station. Los Angeles was poorly planned. San Francisco is more well planned out. But at least LA's economy is better compared to other places. And that current mayor is not doing much help.

Another idea. Why don't we limit cities to 2 million people? The larger the city, the harder to control it. Cities aren't necessarily bad, but they are troublesome.

The Metrolink only works for those who commute INTO downtown LA for work ... It's a nightmare for reverse commuters such as myself due to limited service.

[qjbusmaster]

Originally Posted by Chatteress

The Metrolink only works for those who commute INTO downtown LA for work ... It's a nightmare for reverse commuters such as myself due to limited service.

Try express buses who have their own busway the silver line and such also the 500 series rtes are frequent and express

[Senshi]

Originally Posted by Charles

Depends how many "many" is. 1% of Southern California's commuting public? 3%, 5%?


Actually you can hop on a train and get from LAX to downtown: Green Line to Blue Line.

In most public transportation, train and bus centric cities, the majority of people do not use trains and buses to get to work. I don't have the numbers but I'd bet in all the world's metropolitan areas combined (we're not just talking inner urban cores), less than 15% use public transportation.

The majority of new york metro commutes by car.
The majority of the bay area commutes by car.

I'd take trains and buses if they would get me to where I need to get within 125% of my current duration if I could save 80% on expenses. But, in most cases, it would take me 300% as long and cost me about the same.

(By the way, I vanpool which is the most efficient form of commuting.)

Vanpools most cost effective intercity transit mode | Washington Policy Center

Hey, if you can build a train system for Southern California for less than the combined cost of the Apollo Lunar expeditions + the cost of WWII that gets people to work as fast as they do now, go for it.

I enjoy how you make up assumptions, and numbers, while not being able to provide a source.

And, for your information, Green-Blue from the airport. You need to take a shuttle bus to the Green Line. The smart thing would be to connect the airport with the Crenshaw line and extend it all the way to Hollywood/Highland. Then extend the red line to Bob Hope. Poof both airports connected to rail.

I imagine, if you lived in the 1950s, you would've whined about the cost of the interstate highway project as well.

And a Vanpool is not the most efficient way to commute. A van can hold how many people, at most? 10? One, single, train car on the red line can hold 169 people. And those train cars can be linked together!

But I'll be sure to email Tokyo and tell them all to ditch their subway and instead go with Van Pools. That's the solution!

[Charles]

Originally Posted by Senshi

And a Vanpool is not the most efficient way to commute. A van can hold how many people, at most? 10? One, single, train car on the red line can hold 169 people. And those train cars can be linked together!

And how much fuel/electric power does that thirsty train use?
And how do I get from the train to my final destination?
And how do I get from my origin to my destination in less than three hours?

Trains would be great if SoCal had another 6900 of them.

Vanpooling is 'most efficient, flexible and effective' traffic reducer - Bellevue Reporter

[Montalvo1510]

Originally Posted by Senshi

I enjoy how you make up assumptions, and numbers, while not being able to provide a source.

And, for your information, Green-Blue from the airport. You need to take a shuttle bus to the Green Line. The smart thing would be to connect the airport with the Crenshaw line and extend it all the way to Hollywood/Highland. Then extend the red line to Bob Hope. Poof both airports connected to rail.

I imagine, if you lived in the 1950s, you would've whined about the cost of the interstate highway project as well.

And a Vanpool is not the most efficient way to commute. A van can hold how many people, at most? 10? One, single, train car on the red line can hold 169 people. And those train cars can be linked together!

But I'll be sure to email Tokyo and tell them all to ditch their subway and instead go with Van Pools. That's the solution!

I don't agree with Charles's anti-rail position but Van Pools are a very effective solution, esp. in areas like LA or Orange County which are dense but spread out.

No question in downtown Tokyo, fixed rail is very, very efficent.

Trying to get a bunch of OC residents home from the John Wayne Airport? Van pools are very effective.

Granted I agree that the Green line with no direct line into LAX was a HUGE mistake. That is what happens when politics gets in the way of good decisions.

I guess all I am saying is we need all of the above. Rail, Van Pools, etc.

[Charles]

Originally Posted by Montalvo1510

I don't agree with Charles's anti-rail position but Van Pools are a very effective solution, esp. in areas like LA or Orange County which are dense but spread out.

No question in downtown Tokyo, fixed rail is very, very efficent.

Trying to get a bunch of OC residents home from the John Wayne Airport? Van pools are very effective.

Granted I agree that the Green line with no direct line into LAX was a HUGE mistake. That is what happens when politics gets in the way of good decisions.

I guess all I am saying is we need all of the above. Rail, Van Pools, etc.

I'm really not anti-rail; I'd ride it if it worked for me but it is so impractical and the cost to make it practical would exceed the cost of 69 missions to Mars.

[Oerdin]

Originally Posted by Charles

LA wasn't built for the car?

Post WW2, yes, but 1880-1939 the city was designed to a whole different model of transportation.

[Chatteress]

Originally Posted by qjbusmaster

Try express buses who have their own busway the silver line and such also the 500 series rtes are frequent and express

Those are excellent ideas for those commuting into other portions of LA County but my issue is that I work in Orange County. I wished that Metro or OCTA would run more express service to better connect the two counties. OCTA only has a few express buses that usually move commuters INTO Downtown LA and they only run during rush hour. Hence why I use the expensive Metrolink service despite the fact that there are only two morning trains and one evening train I could catch.

[majoun]

Originally Posted by Oerdin

Post WW2, yes, but 1880-1939 the city was designed to a whole different model of transportation.

Which is why speaking in general terms those parts of L.A. designed before WW2 are nicer than those designed after WW2.

The first "classic postwar auto-dependent suburbia" type neighborhood in L.A., Baldwin Hills, was designed and built before the war. The second was Westchester which was built right after WW2, and thus probably planned before the war. L.A. metro area suburbia - and thus the whole state's, and the nation's - was in large part based on those two southwestern neighborhoods.