OPEN DISCUSSION [WHY should it be there hidden under "comments"? Let's have it out here in the open!]: Up in Arms!
On 4/28/06, calwatch < chrissharp@bleeble.org> wrote: calwatch has left a new comment on your post " "WHY" L.A. traffic sucks #3: Bus'em and clog'em":
The problem with this idea is that by creating these "indents" (the actual term for them are bus pullouts), you are slowing down bus riders while they have to wait for traffic to clear. And then somebody runs to the bus and the driver opens the door and the bus has to wait for traffic again. Rinse and repeat. Actually, in some places, they are placing bus stop bulbouts such that the sidewalk is extended through the parking lane and that the bus blocks the right lane of through traffic. Your idea is not transit friendly and would be vehemently opposed by transit riders, which despite the small number in LA are actually a somewhat powerful force. [emphasis mine]
italianesco replies:
Thank you for your comments. It's great to know that people are reading the blog.
I WAS one such "transit rider" in the city of Los Angeles, CA for almost TWO AND A HALF YEARS of my life. I did rent cars now and then, especially towards the end of my three-year stay, but I simply REFUSED to own a car and contribute to the mess. I even put up with the three-month (don't remember how long exactly it was) MTA METRO mechanics STRIKE of 2003. I walked like a maniac, went all the way downtown on the S.M. Blue Bus to make it to Hollywood somehow many times, and spend a fortune on cabs. I even took some of those "pirate taxi" vans driven by the Mexicans down Wilshire a few times. That's how far my idealism took me.
When it comes to riding the bus in L.A. I HAVE PAID MY DUES. And I can tell you for a fact that as a "transit rider" your complaint on "bus pullouts" would be the least of my worries, the least of my pet peeves, the least of my concerns. When it comes to the MTA (the BEST bus service in L.A. is, without doubt, the S.M. Blue Bus!!), there is SO MUCH to complain about and fix that I was even thinking of starting a new blog just on that!! "MTA SUCKS! Let's fix it!"
This IS the problem. L.A . drivers, L.A. "transit riders", L.A. residents have a MESS on their hands. What are they going to do about it? SOMETHING HAS TO GIVE. If every simple solution to every single issue is going to have a politically significant "powerful force" opposing it, we might as well GIVE UP right now! Just live with the mess. I think this mess has grown to the unmanageable proportions it has reached precisely because NO ONE seems to have the POLITICAL WILL or the POLITICAL COURAGE to DO ANYTHING ABOUT IT, to really fix ANYTHING.
Here's the problem: that stretch of Wilshire from Westwood Blvd. to Sepulveda needs to be UNCLOGGED, DE-CLOGGED, FLUSHED OUT. It is--to use my recurring the analogy--like an overweight person who either puts himself on diet and exercise program or sooner or later he will have to undergo tripple by-pass surgery. His arteries are CLOGGED. They are JAMMED. They are BLOCKED--just like the "arteries" of the city of Los Angeles. What kind of "medicine" would you rather take?!? Would you rather put yourself on a "diet (fewer cars on the road) and exercise (get those cars moving)" program or would you rather undergo "surgery" (construction everywhere to widen freeways, build overpasses, dig subway systems)? THIS IS THE PROBLEM.
I know, I have lived, I have experienced BOTH SIDES of that great divide: I drove cars and I rode the bus in L.A. When you are on the bus, you are aggravated by all those "damn drivers." When you are in a car, you are aggravated by all those "damn buses." It's always what perspective you're coming from, isn't it? We might as well face it right now: NO SOLUTION TO ANY TRAFFIC PROBLEM IN L.A. IS GOING TO PLEASE EVERYBODY (car divers, transit riders, residents, pedestrians). BUT WE MIGHT AS WELL WORK ALL TOGETHER TO FIND SOLUTIONS TO THE PROBLEMS BEFORE THE MESS REALLY REACHES UNBELIEVABLY UNAMANAGEABLE PROPORTIONS. It's going to get WORSE, NOT BETTER. Las Vegas may be the "fastest growing city in America," but the L.A. is not exactly far behind. In spite of all the problems, people are still pouring into the L.A. area at an unbelievable rate (never mind the great number of tourists and non-residents that simply pass through).
Like I've said before on my blog, equality doesn't work sometimes. But sometimes "democracy" does. If the great majority of the people in L.A. want to drive cars instead of riding the bus, then they deserve a viable, comfortable and efficient traffic system. That's the bottom line. That's "democracy." That's America. That doesn't mean that I don't believe in public transportation. I have lived in Europe and that's one the things I LOVE about both Europe and New York.
I am convinced that a "bus pullout" (what I call an "indent") would be THE SOLUTION to the jam being created on that stretch of Wilshire from Westwood Blvd. to Sepulveda BY the 720 Red Rapid MTS buses. And do you know WHY your complaint is irrelevant to that particular situation? Because MOST of the Red Rapid buses stopping at that busstop on Wilshire between Westwood Blvd. and Geyley stop to UNLOAD ALL PASSENGERS. That's THE END of their line, the END of their route. Sure, some continue on to Santa Monica but a great number of them END there. So creating a "bus pullout" on the next block by that parking lot makes ALL THE SENSE IN THE WORLD.
As a matter of fact, THE JAM created by these buses is THREE-FOLD:
1. Because they are "rapid buses" with selected stops, they are usually coming on the center lane to go fast and once they get to the corner of Wilshire and Westwood, they suddenly try to get on the right lane to stop at that busstop. This maneuver slows down and sometimes jams traffic.
2. Then, because they stop at that bustop FOR QUITE A WHILE SOMETIMES while they unload ALL passengers when that's the end of their route or to load passengers when they continue on, they slow down and jam traffic. I DARE YOU to go that busstop and take one of those buses when the bus is JAM-PACKED FULL or when a DISABLED PERSON ON A WHEELCHAIR is getting on the bus and see how long it takes that bus to get going!! If a disabled person on a wheelchair is getting on the bus, traffic on the right lane can be stopped for at least five (5) minutes, if not longer.
3. Then, when that's the end of their route (and most of the times it is!!), bus drivers go to park the buses and take a break on Veteran Avenue by the Federal Building. That means that in order to get there they have to make a LEFT right after pulling out of the busstop. So as they pull out and veer IMMEDIATELY LEFT they slow down and jam traffic.
So that whole little mess is largely being created by the MTA. They are creating it, THEY should fix it.
My "bus pullout" on the next block SOLUTION idea would solve ALL of these problems. So "transit riders" would have to wait "a little longer" for the bus to get back on track and keep going? SO BE IT. Big deal. This should be THE LEAST of their problems. They ALREADY have to put up with a lot more inconvenience and aggravation from the MTA.
I rode those Red Rapid buses down Wilshire for two years. DON'T EVEN GET ME STARTED ON THOSE!! The MTA sucks!! There's NO question about it. After everything I went through FOR TWO WHOLE YEARS (including their little "mechanics bus strike of 2003"), I WOULD NEVER TAKE AN MTA BUS AGAIN IN L.A. I don't even know whether I'm even ever going back to L.A., but if I ever do and if I can help it, NEVER AGAIN. I'd get off a plane and go straight to a car rental to pick up a car and drive!!!
The S.M. Blue Bus? YES!!!! They provide EXCELLENT SERVICE (well, as "excellent" as you can expect) in the L.A. area. I believe that because of their great efficiency and professionalism, the Santa Monica Blue Bus company SHOULD take over transportation for the WHOLE L.A. area. They are the BEST. MTA is the WORST. If it weren't for the politics behind the MTA, the Blue Bus should RULE.
So that's "the way this cookie crumbles." Do you have any better ideas?
---------------------------------
Make it viral. Make it vital...
Friday, April 28, 2006
"WHY" L.A. traffic sucks: OPEN DISCUSSION #1: Up in Arms!
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
3 comments:
I only ride my bike in LA. (i get great gas mileage and my heart thanks me)
Actually, your idea is already being implemented. In the June 2006 service change, all Rapid buses will continue to Santa Monica. The facts aren't correct, as an examination of a Rapid Bus schedule or field observation (which I have done several times despite being on the complete opposite side of town for me) will show, that "most" buses end at Westwood. Only 50% of them do. You're angry, and you think you aren't being idealistic (but you are). But the problem is that traffic is much, much more complex than you think. I'm a licensed civil engineer and I can't understand half of it.
MTA is responsbile for running the buses, but it cannot singlehandedly demand a turnout lane for buses. The roads and sidewalks are still the jurisdiction of the individual cities.
The only way anything will ever get done is if the agencies settle their turf disputes beforehand. And some cities would not take a turnout lane, because at most it is a half lane cut in, and if a bus parks, you'd still have to merge into the other lane to pass it. A turnout needs to be at least 120 inches in order to fully isolate the bus. This is infeasible in many cases, because sidewalks need to maintain a minimum width.
As for Big Blue Bus taking over bus service countywide, the city of Santa Monica does not want to oversee the county's transportation problem. Big Blue Bus is one of the original munis; it's been around since the 1920s and bought out its private competitor in the 1960s. Other than brand value, there's no possibility that it would happen.
Post a Comment