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TRANSPORTATION NEWS
Mass Transit Ridership Rises
Nationally
Public transportation
ridership in the United States grew by 4.25 percent
in the first quarter of 2006, compared with the
same period in 2005, according to a report just
released by the American Public Transportation
Association (APTA). "This significant rise
in transit ridership shows that more and more Americans
are choosing the affordability and convenience
of public transportation," said APTA President
William W. Millar. "The high price of gas,
coupled with expanded transit service, has made
public transportation attractive to a growing number
of Americans in small and large communities across
the country." The report showed nearly 2.5
billion trips taken on public transportation in
the first quarter of 2006 and all modes of public
transportation showed ridership increases. Light
rail had the highest percentage of increase among
all modes and Los Angeles (up 13.4 percent) was
among areas reporting the highest increase in light-rail
use
Metro Wins
Four Tranny Awards for Transit Excellence
Metro has earned four California Transportation Foundation (CTF) TRANNY awards
-- two for the Metro Orange Line, one for Metro's Intelligent Transportation
System for Bus Transit, for the Metro Rapid signal priority system, and another
for Mission Meridian Village, a Transit Oriented Development in South Pasadena
that Metro partnered in. The annual awards -- which recognize innovative
transit projects -- were announced June 7 at the 17th Annual TRANNY Awards
luncheon in Sacramento. The Metro Orange Line -- the14-mile transitway that
opened last fall in the San Fernando Valley -- won both Project of the Year
and Transit Project of the Year. This is the latest accolade for the Metro
Orange Line, which recently reached 21,828 boardings in May, a milestone
the Environmental Impact Report predicted wouldn’t be reached until
2020. “This is further proof of the success of the Metro Orange Line,” said
Zev Yaroslavsky, Metro Board Member and Los Angeles County Supervisor. “We
are delighted with the award but we are even more gratified by what it stands
for. The people of Los Angeles have an easier way to get where they need
to go and an alternative to ridiculously high gas prices. The timing couldn’t
be better.”
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| Los Angeles
Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa and County Supervisor
Zev Yaroslavsky ride the inaugural Metroliner
on opening day of the Metro Orange Line Oct.
28, 2005. Ridership on the San Fernando Valley
transitway has climbed past the 2020 forecast
in its first year of operation. |
Metro Ridership
Soars as Commuters Free Themselves from High Gas
Prices
Metro ridership, particularly on the Metro Orange Line and Metro Rail, surged
in May, compared with a year ago, as gas prices remained stubbornly high.
Weekday ridership on the new Metro Orange Line, the 14-mile transitway that
opened last fall in the San Fernando Valley, averaged 21,828 boardings, a
milestone the Environmental Impact Report predicted wouldn’t be reached
until 2020. Metro Rail ridership climbed 18 percent in May over last year,
a gain of more than 1.1 million boardings (7.7 million boardings in May 2006
compared with 6.6 million in May 2005). Directly operated Metro Bus service,
including the Metro Orange Line, carried 10 percent more riders (34 million
in May, 2006 compared with 31 million in May, 2005). “With a $3 Metro
day pass costing less than a gallon of gas, it’s a powerful lure for
commuters,” said Los Angeles City Mayor and Metro Board Chairman Antonio
Villaraigosa. “Combine that with new and better service, such as the
Metro Orange Line, and commuters are finding they really can free themselves
from high gas prices if they go Metro.”
Los Angeles
County Gets $118 Million for Transportation Projects
At the June 8 meeting in Sacramento, the California Transportation Commission
(CTC) allocated $118.9 million in transportation projects for Los Angeles
County. These included:
$24.3 million for the I-5 Carpool lanes from SR-170 to SR-114 in the northeast
San Fernando Valley
$29.9 million for the SR-60 Carpool lanes from the I-605 to Azusa
$31.2 million for the SR-134 interchange in Burbank
$24.1 million for the Eastside LRT in new mitigations for the project
$ 9.4 million for the Los Angeles County Regional Rideshare program and various
countywide Transportation Enhancement Activities projects
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| Employee
transportation coordinators of the Walt Disney
Co. took top honors in Rideshare Program awards. |
Metro Announces 8th
Annual Rideshare Diamond Award Winners> The
Walt Disney Co. has won the coveted Corporate
Diamond Award for helping to improve air quality
and alleviate traffic congestion in Southern
California. Presented by Metro at ceremonies
May 24 at the Millennium Biltmore in downtown
Los Angeles, Disney was singled out for its full-service
rideshare program, which includes transit and
vanpool subsidies and carpool rebates. Disney
was also applauded for its corporate leadership
in regional and national ridesharing issues.
The annual award honors businesses that encourage
employees to participate in carpools, vanpools,
public transit and other alternatives to solo
driving. Other 2005 award winners were: Outstanding
Individual Achievement: Universal Hilton Hotel,
Cal Poly Pomona; Shoestring Program: The Aerospace
Corporation-Bicycling Program; Outstanding Group
Achievement: UCLA Transportation Services-Vanpool;
Innovative Rideshare Program: Los Angeles County
Employees Retirement Assoc.; Innovative Rideshare
Strategy: Los Angeles World Airports-Rideshare,
American Apparel; Outstanding Marketing Program:
UCLA Transportation Services, Raytheon, City
of Pasadena and Metro Rewards: Lockton Insurance.
A special thank you was offered to Rideshare
Week Sponsors, including Earthlink, Kaiser Permanente
and the Southern California Automobile Club.
A panel of Metro representatives reviewed the
nominations and selected the winners.
Transportation Secretary Mineta
Unveils Plan to Reduce Traffic Congestion> Speaking
before the National Retail Federation’s annual
conference May 16 in Washington D.C., U.S. Transportation
Secretary Norman Mineta unveiled a new plan to
reduce congestion plaguing America’s roads,
rail and airports. The National Strategy to Reduce
Congestion on America’s Transportation Network
includes a number of initiatives designed to reduce
transportation congestion which, according to experts,
is costing America an estimated $200 billion per
year -- $10 billion in the greater Los Angeles
area alone. The strategy includes a six-point plan
to reduce congestion in the short term and build
the foundation for successful longer-term congestion
reduction efforts. Read
full text of remarks.
Headlines:
Extreme
Makeover, California Edition
Los Angeles Times
(May 6, 2006)
California's packed roadways, flood-prone riverbanks, polluted ports, crammed
schools and insufficient housing stock would receive the most extensive renovation
and expansion in four decades under a $116-billion public works proposal
that the Legislature voted Friday to put before voters.
If the electorate approves the plan's core — $37.3 billion in new borrowing — in
the Nov. 7 general election, the state will make the most concerted investment
in infrastructure since the 1960s. Then, under Gov. Pat Brown, California
doubled its capacity to store water, laid thousands of miles of freeways
and added campuses to the state's college and university system.
The spending would be focused less on growth than on accommodating the consequences
of California's extensive development over a generation. State officials
said that as early as next year, some of the money could jump-start already
planned projects, including upgrades to 479 bridges and widening of freeways.
" We've made a major down payment on 40 years of neglect of California's
infrastructure, which is really the foundation for both our economy and our educational
system," said Senate President Pro Tem Don Perata (D-Oakland)
Metro Secures
$315 Million in State Funding for Exposition Line
Construction> The California Transportation
Commission (CTC) April 27 approved $315 million from
the 2006 State Transportation Improvement Program
(STIP) for construction of Metro’s 8.5-mile
Exposition Light Rail Line, providing major funding
for the project. “We thank the CTC for their
continued investment in Los Angeles and for approving
our funding request for the Expo Line,” said
Los Angeles City Mayor and Metro Board Chairman Antonio
Villaraigosa. “With this funding, we are one
step closer to breaking ground on the Expo Line.
The CTC’s support is vital to our efforts to
reduce traffic congestion, improve air quality and
expand our public transportation system.” The
Metro Exposition Light Rail Transit Project -- which
will parallel the I-10 Freeway -- will share two
stations (7th Street/Metro Center and Pico/Chick
Hearn) with the Metro Blue Line in downtown Los Angeles.
It will then proceed west on the Metro-owned right-of-way
on Exposition Boulevard, just south of the congested
I-10 Freeway -- to a terminus near Washington/National
in Culver City. Construction on the line is expected
to start this summer.
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| Ridership
on the Metro Orange Line has tripled first year
projections. |
Metro
Ridership Rises with Gas Prices> In
the wake of rocketing gas prices, Metro is experiencing
significant gains in ridership, as Southern Californians
scramble to avoid paying more than $3 a gallon
for gas. In the first quarter of 2006, total
Metro Rail ridership rose almost 11.4 percent
and bus ridership increased 7 percent over the
same period last year, based on total monthly
boardings. The most significant gains were seen
on the Metro Red Line between North Hollywood
and downtown Los Angeles. It climbed nearly 13.7
percent to 3,361,110 average monthly boardings
during the January, February, March period. Ridership
also ballooned on the Metro Orange Line, which
is not tallied along with bus figures. Since
its debut at the end of October, 2005, ridership
has grown to more than 18,000 weekday passengers,
or about triple first year ridership projections.
The Metro Blue Line between downtown Los Angeles
and Long Beach grew more than 10.7 percent to
2,091,469 average monthly boardings during the
January, February, March period. The migration
to mass transit makes sense, according to Los
Angeles Mayor and Metro Board Chairman Antonio
Villaraigosa. “Metro buses and trains offer
an alternative and more service is being added
all the time, with new express buses and Metro
Rapid lines through particularly busy corridors.
And if those don’t work for you there are
also van pools and car pools. Those options are
outlined at www.metro.net and it’s easy
to sign up. Not only can you save yourself from
rising gas prices; drivers traveling solo can
save more than $5,000 a year, including car depreciation,
insurance, gas and parking, if they switch to
Metro.
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| Metro
Blue Line Posts New Ridership Record> In
keeping with the trend, the Metro Blue Line from
downtown Los Angeles to Long Beach posted a new
record in February with 80,000 average weekday
boardings, up from 70,000 a year ago at the same
time. |
Mass
Transit Ridership Growing Faster Than Highway
Travel
The American Public Transportation Association
(APTA) announced April 5 that Americans took
more than 9.7 billion trips on U.S. public transportation
systems in 2005, with public transportation growing at a faster rate
than highway travel. Since 1995, public transportation use increased
25.1 percent -- faster than the rate of highway vehicle miles traveled. "The
ridership growth over the past 10 years demonstrates that Americans
want transportation choices and will often leave their cars behind
when quality public transit services are available," said APTA
President William W. Millar. "Last year's 9.7 billion trips on
public transportation benefit our entire nation by reducing congestion,
improving air quality and conserving foreign oil. In fact, use of public
transit is the single quickest way most Americans can beat the high
cost of gasoline." Light rail had the highest percentage of increase
among all modes, with a 6.0 percent increase in 2005. Los Angeles was
among cities showing a double digit increase in light rail ridership,
with an overall increase of 10.5 percent. Metro
Blue Line Posts New Ridership Record> In keeping with this
trend, the Metro Blue Line from downtown Los Angeles to Long Beach
posted a new record in February with 80,000 average weekday boardings,
up from 70,000 a year ago at the same time.
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Los Angeles Mayor Antonio
Villaraigosa, at podium, asks the California Transportation
Commission to provide funding for the Exposition
Line at hearing held March 9 in the Board Room
of Metro Headquarters in downtown Los Angeles.
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CTC
Allocates $208 Million for Expo Light Rail Project
The California
Transportation Commission (CTC) March 16
approved allocation of $208 million from
the Traffic Congestion Relief Program (TCRP)
for the 8.5-mile Exposition Light Rail
Transit Project. “We thank the CTC
for recognizing the needs of Los Angeles
and for approving our funding request for
the Expo Line. The CTC’s continuing
partnership with Los Angeles is vital to
our efforts to grow our public transit
system and reduce traffic congestion,” said
Los Angeles City Mayor and Metro Board
Chairman Antonio Villaraigosa. The Exposition
Light Rail Transit Project will share two
stations (7th Street/Metro Center and Pico/Chick
Hearn) with the Metro Blue Line in downtown
Los Angeles. The line will then proceed
west on the Metro-owned right-of-way on
Exposition Boulevard, which parallels the
congested I-10 Freeway, to a terminus just
east of Washington/National in Culver City.
Eight new stations will be constructed
by the Exposition Metro Line Construction
Authority at a total project cost estimated
at $640 million. A second phase would extend
the Exposition Line to the City of Santa
Monica. The allocation of $208 million
in state dollars will free up transportation
monies from the previously established
Exposition Line budget. These could be
used to fund transit projects and/or carpool
lanes on the northbound I-405 Freeway over
the Sepulveda Pass, I-5 Freeway from Route
170 to the 134 Freeway and the I-10 Freeway
from Puente to Citrus, or other improvements.
Construction on the Expo line is expected
to start this summer.
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Contract
Approved for Start of Exposition Light Rail Project
The
official start of the 8.5-mile Exposition light rail
line from downtown Los Angeles to Culver City was marked
March 2 when the Exposition Metro Line Construction
Authority Board of Directors approved a $420.2 million
design/build contract to the joint venture construction
and design group FCI/Fluor/Parsons. “We believe
that we truly have brought on board the best joint
venture construction and design team that will ensure
that this transportation project is built on time and
within budget,” said Exposition Metro Line Construction
Authority CEO Rick Thorpe. “We look forward to
officially breaking ground on the Expo Light Rail Transit
Project and getting this important project started.”
The Expo Light Rail Transit line from downtown to Culver City will share
two stations (7th Street/Metro Center and Pico/Chick Hearn) with the
existing Metro Blue Line. Just south of downtown the line will turn west
on the Metro-owned Exposition Boulevard right-of-way, which parallels
the heavily congested I-10 Freeway. From there it will make its way to
the terminus at Washington/National in Culver City. Board approval followed
release of a federal Record of Decision certifying that the plan meets
National Environmental Policy Act requirements. “This is a vital
transportation project that will help increase mobility and reduce congestion
along this corridor,” said Exposition Metro Line Construction Authority
Chair Yvonne Burke. “The Record of Decision and the Board’s
action to authorize the award of this contract are important milestones
in moving forward with this much needed project.” Construction
is expected to start this summer. More information: www.buildexpo.org
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Metro
Gold Line Eastside Extension Tunneling Begins
A major milestone for the Metro Gold Line Eastside Extension light rail
project was marked Feb. 23, when the east-bound tunnel boring machine,
one of two 2-million pound machines being used on the project, began
carving a 1.7-mile underground path through the earth under Boyle Heights.
Taking the rail line underground is necessary for this part of the six-mile
Eastside Extension because of the area's narrow streets. “Lola,” the
east-bound machine, and the other tunnel-boring machine, nicknamed “Vikki,” will
excavate the dirt and process it through the back, while also installing
8,000-pound concrete tunnel liner segments as they go. At $10 million
each, they are only a fraction of the $898.8 million cost for the entire
Gold Line Eastside Extension. The tunnels will link Union Station in
downtown Los Angeles with Little Tokyo and the Arts District, Boyle Heights,
with light-rail ending at Atlantic/Pomona Boulevards in East Los Angeles.
The project is scheduled for completion by late 2009.
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California Assembly Speaker
Fabian Núñez, right, at North Hollywood
Metro Red Line Station with Los Angeles City Councilwoman
Wendy Greuel and Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, calls
for more investment in transit.
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Mayor
Villaraigosa and Assembly Speaker Núñez
Call for More Transit in Infrastructure Plan
Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa and California Assembly Speaker
Fabian Núñez Feb. 17 urged Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger to
add more transit to his infrastructure plan. “The only way we can
address the goal and outcome of reducing traffic congestion … is
not only by building more roads in this state, building more highways
in this state. It also comes down to the investment we make in public
transit,” Núñez, D-Los Angeles, said at the press
conference at the North Hollywood Metro Red Line station. Núñez
wants at least one-third of the proposed $12 billion in transportation
bond revenue to be earmarked for public transit, which could include
busways, such as the Metro Orange Line, or seed money for Mayor Villaraigosa’s
$4.8 billion Wilshire Boulevard subway.
Funding for the Governor’s $222.6 billion infrastructure plan includes
selling $68 billion in state bonds over the next 10 years. Deadline for
lawmakers to add the first of those bond proposals to the June ballot
is March 10.
Mobility
21 Coalition Tells Lawmakers to Give Southern
California Its Fair Share of Infrastructure Funds
The Mobility 21 Coalition, L.A. County’s transportation advocacy
coalition of elected officials, business, transportation leaders and
community advocates, urged legislators on Feb. 10 to give Southern California
its fair share of funds in any infrastructure plan adopted so that critical
transit projects vital to the regional and national economy can be pursued.
It also defined the terms for Mobility 21 Coalition support, resolving
to: Support any infrastructure proposal that funds Southern California’s
fair share of transportation projects, proportionate with the volume
of goods moving through our roads and rails, the volume of our congestion
and our needs for inner-city rail transit; urge that the Governor and
State Legislature ensure that local control through existing project
selection and funding processes be maintained, so any bond that makes
it on the ballot is not a “Christmas tree” of pet projects,
and urge that design-build and public private partnerships be authorized
by the bond. Nearly 200 attended the meeting at Caltrans District 7 Headquarters
in downtown Los Angeles.
Press
Release
Resolution
001-2006 (PDF)
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Metro
Gold Line Express train beats traffic at Sierra
Madre Villa Station
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County and City
Officials Urge Metro Gold Line Patrons to Try New
Express Service
In an ongoing effort
to help reduce traffic congestion and increase transit
ridership throughout Los Angeles County, Los Angeles
Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, Los Angeles County Supervisor
Michael D. Antonovich and other local officials are
calling on Angelenos to experience the time-savings
advantage of new express service on the Metro Gold
Line, which made its debut Monday, Feb. 13. The new
Metro Gold Line Express Service shortens end-to-end
rush-hour travel times between downtown Los Angeles
and Pasadena from 34 minutes to just 29 minutes, a
15 percent time savings for weekday commuters. The
new service, the first of its kind on the 73-mile Metro
Rail System, stops at five of 13 Metro Gold Line stations:
Union Station, Highland Park, Mission, Del Mar and
Sierra Madre Villa. Metro selected station stops based
on a number of criteria, including volume of passenger
boardings, availability of parking facilities and presence
of transit-oriented development.
Governor's
Public Works Plan Proposal
In a joint news conference Jan. 24 at Union Station, Governor Arnold
Schwarzenegger and Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa called for support of the
governor’s sweeping $222 billion public works plan proposal that
contains road, highway and rail improvements ear-marked for Los Angeles
and Orange counties. The plan includes funding for 1,200 miles of new
highways and HOV lanes and 600 miles of mass transit. It also protects
Proposition 42 by calling for a constitutional amendment to block future
governors and legislatures from siphoning off money for other state projects,
as has been done in the past. The governor says the measure, which he
hopes will be on the ballot in either June or November, will help reduce
traffic congestion by 18 percent over the next 10 years.
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Metro
Ridership Up ... Again!
With gasoline prices again on the rise, the Metro Orange Line across
the San Fernando Valley continues to lure new passengers. Most recent
figures indicate it is carrying 16,000 passengers daily, up from 15,500
week-day passengers in December. In fact, Metro is outdistancing other
transit systems across the country, according to the APTA Third Quarter
Report, issued January, 2006:
-- On Metro's heavy rail system ridership rose 11.6 percent from last
year, the greatest rate of growth for any heavy rail system nationwide.
-- On Metro's light rail system ridership rose more than 10.6 percent
from last year, the sixth largest increase in ridership among light rail
systems nationwide
-- On Metro's bus system ridership rose 4 percent from last year, the
fourth largest increase in ridership among major bus agencies nationwide.
Metro
Orange Line Improves Pace of Ventura Freeway
A UC-Berkeley study, sponsored by the Los Angeles Times, found that the
new Metro Orange Line busway has eased rush-hour traffic in the morning
commute on the 101 Freeway. The study, conducted by researchers at UC
Berkeley on behalf of The Times, determined that traffic through the
south San Fernando Valley from 7 a.m. to 10 a.m. has sped up about 7
percent, from an average 43 mph to 46 mph. And since the 14-mile busway
opened Oct. 29, the amount of time that morning commuters waste being
stuck in congestion – defined as traffic slower than 35 mph – declined
about 14 percent.
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