Transportation of Los Angeles
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Los Angeles, California, is the center of an intercity hub, transporting passengers and shipping intermodally between sea, land, and air ports. It has an even busier intracity commuter system made up of freeways, roads, buses, light rail and subway. Though Los Angeles has a reputation for gridlock, it has one of the busiest transportation networks in the world.
| You won't see a cop walkin' on the beat / You only see 'em drivin' cars out on the street / You won't see a kid walkin' home from school / Their mothers pick 'em up in a car pool / Nobody's walkin' walkin' walkin' walkin—nobody walks in LA | ||
| —Missing Persons, "Walking in LA" | ||
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[edit] Intercity
Most international visitors to Los Angeles arrive by air at Los Angeles International Airport. Visitors from within California, nearby states, or Mexico often choose to drive instead.
When approaching Los Angeles International Airport from the east, nighttime airline travelers will glimpse the lights of the greater Los Angeles area for over 30 minutes before landing. The greater Los Angeles area sprawls over 120 miles (200 km) from Ventura to San Bernardino.
L.A.'s Union Station is the major regional train station for Amtrak, Metrolink and Metro Rail. Amtrak operates a somewhat less than hourly service to San Diego and less frequent services to the north, including the Coast Starlight to Seattle, once a day, a 34-hour ride. There is also daily service to Chicago and three times a week to Orlando, Florida.
Freight is hauled by Union Pacific Railroad and BNSF Railway. The now-defunct Southern Pacific Railroad once served the Los Angeles area before merging with Union Pacific.
For visitors arriving by car or bus, the major routes are Interstate 5, Interstate 15, U.S. Route 101, and Interstate 10. Interstates 5 and 15 connect to all cities to the north and south. Highway 101 runs west towards Santa Barbara before veering north towards San Francisco. The I-10 connects to all cities to the east.
The Port of Los Angeles has the highest volume of container shipping in the United States. Together with the adjoining Port of Long Beach, they are the third busiest sea port in the world. In 2002, the Alameda Corridor project was completed. The project increased the capacity of rail shipping leading north out of the port by creating a trench that removed 200 grade crossings. Alameda Corridor East leading to inland shipping yards is now under construction.
There are ferries serving the offshore island community of Avalon, California; they are mainly used for day excursions and to move supplies to Catalina Island.
[edit] Intracity
The City of Los Angeles is served by a large network of freeways, streets, and local and regional public transportation systems.
[edit] Freeways and rush hour
- See also: Southern California freeways
There are a dozen major freeways that crisscross the region. California's first freeway (though probably not the nation's first) was the 110 Freeway, also known as the Pasadena Freeway or the Arroyo Seco Parkway. It opened in January 1, 1940 and links downtown Los Angeles to downtown Pasadena. From Chavez Ravine north to Pasadena can be quite dangerous because there is no shoulder, the lanes are narrow, the turns are sharp (and not always properly banked), and the ramps are quite short and offer little room for acceleration to freeway speed; all of this is due to the fact that the freeway was designed for much slower cars of a different era and much less traffic volume than exists today. Commercial vehicles over 6,000 pounds are prohibited from using this freeway. More recent freeways are straighter, wider, and allow for higher speeds.
Major freeways of Los Angeles include:
- The Golden State (I-5) freeway — the main north-south Interstate highway
- The San Diego (405) freeway — A major branch off the I-5
- U.S. Route 101 — The freeway alternate for California route 1
- California route 1
- Santa Monica (I-10) freeway — One of two east-west freeways extending beyond the major north-south routes
- Pomona (60) freeway — one of two east-west freeways
- Century (105) freeway
- Simi Valley (118) freeway
- the Foothill (210) freeway
- Long Beach (710) freeway
Angelenos are noted for referring to freeways with its definite article ("The 101"), in contrast to Bay Area residents, who omit the article. Referring to freeways by name, for example "The San Diego Freeway", is essentially holdover from the time when the freeways were built, and is diminishing. In some cases the names make little sense; for example, the San Diego Freeway does not reach San Diego at all, but merely splits off from the 5 north of the city and rejoins it in Orange County in the South.
Rush hour, the period of peak traffic congestion, occurs on weekdays between 6 a.m. and 9 a.m., and in the evening between 3 p.m. and 7 p.m.. Traffic can occur at almost anytime, particularly before major holidays (including Thanksgiving, Christmas, and three-day weekends) and even on regular weekends when one otherwise would not expect it. Experienced Angelenos know that they need to factor traffic into their commute. A major selling point for the two news radio stations in Los Angeles is their frequent traffic reports.
The Texas Transportation Institute which publishes an annual Urban Mobility Report ranked Los Angeles road traffic as the most congested in the United States in 2003 as measured by annual delay per traveler. The average traveler in Los Angeles experienced 97 hours of traffic delay per year according to the study. Los Angeles was followed by San Francisco/Oakland (72 hours of delay) and Washington, D.C. (69 hours of delay).[1]
One freeway, the Santa Monica Freeway (Interstate 10) is so congested and so accident-prone that Caltrans has added Accident Investigation Sites along it.
[edit] Streets, street layout, the boulevards, and street problems
The city has an extensive street grid. Arterial streets (referred to as surface streets by locals) connect freeways with smaller neighborhood streets, and are often used to bypass gridlocked freeway routes.
The block designations are divided by Main Street (east and west) south of Downtown Los Angeles and 1st Street. North of downtown, east and west street designations vary from street to street due to its mountain terrain.
From downtown Los Angeles to Long Beach, in a straight-down vertical pattern, east-west streets are numbered (starting with 1st Street in downtown, to 266th Street in Harbor City), and north-south streets are named. (1st St. is one block south of Temple.) There are many exceptions to the numbered streets, but the above pattern is generally used. This same numbered patten is not mirrored north of Temple. Addresses are then numbered East or West stemming from Main St (a major north south artery). So the address of 1765 E. 107th St. is (approximately) 107 streets south of first street, and on the 17th street east of Main St. (This happens to be the address of the Watts Towers). Although the numbered streets are sequential, they do not necessarily equal the number of blocks south of first street- as there are streets such as 118th St. and then 118th place.
Many of the numbered streets also continue into neighboring cities; but some cities, such as Manhattan Beach, have made their own numbered street grid.
Many arterials have been labeled as boulevards, and many of those mentioned below have been immortalized in movies, music, and literature.
Major east-west routes include: Victory, Ventura, Hollywood, Sunset, Wilshire, Santa Monica, Beverly, Olympic, Pico, Washington, Venice, Adams, Jefferson, Exposition and Martin Luther King. The major north-south routes include: Topanga Canyon, Lincoln, Hawthorne, Sepulveda, Van Nuys, Westwood, Beverly Glen, San Vicente, Robertson, La Cienega, Laurel Canyon, Crenshaw, and Glendale.
There are many other famous L.A. streets which carry significant traffic but are not labeled as boulevards. Examples include: Bundy Drive, Barrington Avenue, Centinela Avenue, Mulholland Drive, Pacific Coast Highway, Slauson Avenue, Century Park East, Avenue of the Stars, Highland Avenue, Melrose Avenue, Florence Avenue, Normandie Avenue, Vermont Avenue, La Brea Avenue, Fairfax Avenue, Western Avenue, Figueroa Street, Grand Avenue, Central Avenue, and Alameda Street.
One street in Los Angeles, Broadway, has no street suffix.
Los Angeles is notorious for chronic underfunding of street maintenance (which is difficult due to the city's enormous size), resulting in an unusually large number of potholes and high vehicle maintenance costs for city residents. Potholes were a major cause of the secession attempt of the San Fernando Valley in 2002. In December 2005, the mayor filled a pothole in the San Fernando Valley at the conclusion of his Operation Pothole program. However, potholes still persist.
Because most of the originally planned freeway system was never finished, certain parts of the city's street grid are completely gridlocked at rush hour (in that arterials, collector streets and local alleys are all equally clogged and there are no possible detours). Thus, road rage is a major problem.
Even worse, the Los Angeles Police Department is renowned for chronic understaffing. Speeding and red light running are rampant (relative to most California cities) since the chance that any given violation will lead to a ticket is low. Either no police officer will be around to observe it, or that police officer will be busy investigating a violent crime. To counter this, red light cameras have been installed at many problem intersections. These cameras activate when a vehicle runs a red light and automaticaly sends a ticket out to the offender. The fine for running a red light is $340 and a point on one's driving record. There was something of a scandal in 2003 when it was discovered that certain intersections selected to be fitted with the cameras because the statistics showed they would generate more revenue in fines rather than decrease the risk to public safety. (In other words, they had the most number of red light violations, although not the most number of red light violations resulting in accidents).
[edit] Car chases
Los Angeles is also infamous for its car chases, or police pursuits, which can last several hours because of the region's many interconnected freeways and the large street grid. Some local television stations will break into regularly scheduled programming to cover a chase by helicopter. Car chases can end when the suspect gives up, tries to run on foot, when their vehicle runs out of fuel, or when the police use spike strips or a PIT maneuver. Police helicopters are equipped with infrared technology and extremely bright search lights for the apprehension of fleeing suspects at night.
Perhaps the most infamous police pursuit was of O.J. Simpson. The Simpson pursuit was notable for its low speeds and large crowds which gathered around the pursuit path.
Because of the inherent dangers of car chases, the LAPD has changed its policy in favor of refraining from them; when a chase reaches unsafe speeds and the initial crime was nonviolent or minor, they prefer to back off and to attempt to apprehend the suspect at a later time. While this strategy has been used several times, an entire chase is still sometimes performed. Suburban agencies and the California Highway Patrol still routinely perform pursuits.
[edit] On foot
Contrary to the assertion of the popular song that "nobody walks in L.A.," some areas of Los Angeles are full of people walking, especially in the central portion of the city and various high-density commercial districts. In such areas, walking is often faster than driving, because of the city's severe shortage of parking. The city government now requires developers to build large parking garages for new buildings whenever feasible, and many Los Angeles businesses (including supermarkets and exercise clubs) offer valet parking to their harried patrons.
L.A. sidewalks are often as cracked and potholed as the adjacent streets. According to the L.A. Daily News, the city did not fund routine sidewalk maintenance between 1974 and 1999 (although it did fix a few of the most hazardous ones). The city has a backlog of 4,600 miles (7,400 km) of sidewalk known to be in need of replacement, but current funding levels are sufficient for replacement of only 52 miles (83 km) per year.
[edit] Mass transit
Image:WestsideMetro.gif The primary regional public transportation agency is the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority, commonly referred to as Metro or MTA.
True to reputation, Los Angeles' rail system does not have high ridership, averaging 276,900 trips a day, 0.4% of the 65 million taken daily.<ref>http://www.weeklystandard.com/Content/Public/Articles/000/000/002/351jldsx.asp?pg=2 The Search for the Holy Rail Rachel Dicarlo.</ref> This compares with ridership of 699,599 trips for Washington Metrorail's subway<ref>http://www.wmata.com/about/met_news/PressReleaseDetail.cfm?ReleaseID=1303 Metrorail Eclipses 200 Million Passengers For The First Time, WMATA.</ref>, 664,700 trips for Boston's subway T, and the city of Chicago L's 644,200, all of which are dwarfed by New York City's 6.0 million average daily weekday trips taken <ref>http://www.apta.com/research/stats/ridership/riderep/documents/06q2rep.pdf APTA TRANSIT RIDERSHIP REPORT APTA.</ref>.
Metro operates the city's rail network, the Metro Rail. It is composed of three above-ground light rail systems (Gold Line, Blue Line, and Green Line) and one underground subway (Red Line). Los Angeles has 73 miles of rail connecting disperse areas from Long Beach to Pasadena, and Norwalk and El Segundo. Also in operation is the Metrolink, a commuter rail serivce.
The extensive bus system include the Metro Local, Metro Rapid, and Metro Express services. The buses have an estimated 1.2 million boardings on the weekdays.
The Orange Line, a bus rapid transit system that runs from Warner Center/Woodland Hills to the North Hollywood Red Line station, began operations on October 29, 2005. For 13 of its 14 mile stretch (21 km of its 22.5 km stretch), the 60-foot articulated buses, dubbed Metro Liners, operate on bus-only lanes that follow an old railroad right-of-way. Portions of the route parallel Chandler and V
[edit] Bicycle travel
Because of the mild climate, there is little need to carry the variety of clothing that cyclists require in other less temperate climates. However, from late May to late September sunscreen and/or longsleeved cycling jerseys, cycling caps and water are useful.
It is claimed that bicycle travel in Los Angeles has become increasingly popular since the "bike boom" of the 1970s — a period of time in which Los Angeles city and county authorities began painting bicycle lanes alongside the traffic lanes of major thoroughfares, and creating bicycle-only bike paths in others. But no concrete evidence is offered to support this hypothesis. These measures are regarded as controversial by many cyclists as they are seen to conflict with the safe road placement of the bicycle advocated by Effective Cycling. However, there are extended stretches of "bicycle paths" such as the Los Angeles River Bicycle Path, which runs from Burbank to Long Beach, with only a brief hiatus through downtown. There are also a surprising number of pleasant spots to cycle away from cars such as Griffith Park (which contains many miles of paved roads closed entirely to cars.)
For mountain bikers, the Verdugo Mountains and San Gabriel Mountains provide a rich territory to explore with many fireroads and trails and are a mere 45 minutes (approx.) by bicycle or 20 minutes by automobile from Downtown L.A. Further afield the Santa Monica Mountains provide rides long enough to satisfy the most ardent.
Cycling downtown, and in many other parts of the city, can be enjoyable and is easier than walking, more convenient than trying to park in congested areas and more flexible than relying on public transport.
[edit] Legal requirements and advisable practices
Cyclists may travel either in the street with vehicles or on the sidewalk, but on the sidewalk they must behave so as not to cause danger to pedestrians (which is an arbitrary judgement that seems to translate into traveling at walking pace). Moreover, in some of the cities within the greater Los Angeles region, it is illegal to cycle on the sidewalk. Cyclists in general should follow the same traffic rules and behavior as motorized vehicles. It is legal for a cyclist to "take a lane" within the State of California, and in the case of narrow-width lanes it is advisable to do so.
It is not required to wear a helmet unless the rider is under the age of 18 years. A driver's license is also not required for a cyclist.
Although it is up to other road users to ensure that they are able to see cyclists, it is advisable for the cyclist to make sure that they are highly visible. There are a number of ways a bicycle rider can make themselves be seen: taking the lane is considered by some to be advisable instead of riding in the gutter. The bicycle relevant sections of the California Vehicle Code indicate that a cyclist may ride out from the right-hand curb in order to avoid obstacles. This explicit provision, combined with the California Driver's Handbook (which indicates that passing vehicles must ensure 3 feet minimum safe passing distance), means that certain lanes which are not wide enough for a bicycle and a passing automobile should be occupied by the bicycle until it is safe for the cyclist to pull in to the right and signal the automobile to overtake if there is no other safe-passing lane available for the automobile.
Bright or light-colored clothing, while not legally required, is also advisable. Lights and reflectors are required by law as are signals and hand gestures to indicate turning and stopping. Some people advise turning the bicycle at an angle while stopped at a light (to present a wider more visible profile).
[edit] Bicycles and rail travel
Both the Metro Bus and Metro Rail services are bicycle accessible. Virtually all Metro buses have bicycle racks at the front of the bus for the attachment of two bicycles. There is no guarantee, however, that any particular bus will have a bicycle rack. The loading mechanism works by placing both wheels inside a pair of rails and pulling a spring-loaded arm over the front wheel and releasing it. One may lock the wheel of the bicycle to the bike frame in order to discourage theft; however, riders may not lock the bicycle to the rack.
The Metro Rail allows bicycles on trains except during rush hour in the direction of peak traffic. Rush hour is between 6:30-8:30 a.m. and 4:30-6:30 p.m.. This exclusion does not appear to be enforced rigorously, but it is generally considered to be discourteous to other Metro users to take up space with a bicycle.
Bicycles are allowed on the Metrolink commuter rail system, which connects the core of the city to the suburbs. There is storage for two bicycles at the rear of each carriage. The mechanism consists of two pairs of velcro straps per bicycle, which fasten the front and rear wheels to supports. A Metrolink ticket is also valid for any Metro bus, subway, or light rail train in Los Angeles County, and most of the busses in the surrounding communities.
[edit] Commuting
1,494,895 out of the 1,690,316 workers are 16 years or older, 982,735 drive to work alone in a motor vehicle, 220,408 carpool, 152,435 use public transportation, 53,386 walk, 2,474 use a motorcycle, 9,052 use a bicycle, and 12,710 use other means of transportation to commute to work. 61,695 work at home.
Of the 220,408 workers that carpool, 163,508 have a carpool of 2 people, 34,845 have 3 people, 13,266 have 4 people or more, 5,682 have 6-7 people, and 3,107 have 7 or more people.
Of the 152,435 workers that use public transportation, 144,973 use bus or trolley[2] bus, 804 use a streetcar, 3,054 use a subway (the Metro Red Line[3] is the only existence of a subway in the city), 1,730 use rail service, 136 use a ferryboat (such workers commute to or from the Channel Islands of California, most likely to or from Avalon), and 1,738 use a taxicab. Bus, train, and subway service in the city of Los Angeles is provided by the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority; taxicabs are private businesses are not included.
[edit] Leaving to work
Of the 1,433,200 workers that do not work at home, 97,677 leave to go to work between 5:00 a.m.-5:59 a.m., 117,065 leave between 6:00-6:29 a.m., 126,156 leave between 6:30-6:59 a.m., 211,629 leave between 7:00-7:29 a.m., 190,922 leave between 7:30-7:59 a.m., 179,318 leave between 8:00-8:29 a.m., 94,857 leave between 8:30-8:59 a.m., 204,567 leave between 9:00-11:59 a.m., 85,128 leave between 12:00 p.m.-3:59 p.m., and 125,881 leave at all other times.
[edit] Innovations
Art Center College of Design, an institution in nearby Pasadena, has helped to make Southern California a center for car design. Toyota, Honda, BMW, Ford Motor Company, Volkswagen, Hyundai, and General Motors all have design studios in the region. Toyota's Calty Design Research is located in Newport Beach.
Roadbed paving and freeway design research studies have been conducted to benefit the city's needs. The automatic railroad gate crossing known as the "wigwag" was invented locally for the Pacific Electric Railway. The Arroyo Seco Parkway was the first freeway in the west. It leads to the first four-level stack interchange in the world, opened in 1952. Botts Dots, raised pavement markers, were developed by a Caltrans engineer to give a lane marker which can be felt as well as seen, a major improvement in rainy weather when painted markers are hard to see. The Sig Alert was a special warning system to notify motorists of major traffic disruptions. Though the original system is no longer used, the term is still used.
The major car factory in the region was the General Motors plant in Van Nuys, which built Chevrolets from 1947 to 1998.
Non-ground transportation technologies have also been pioneered in the area, including work in aviation, rocketry, and space exploration.
The gasoline station was invented in Los Angeles. An original gas station, as large as 2 phone booths, could be seen on Sawtelle as recently as 1980.
[edit] Pollution
Among the costs of the area's extensive transportation system is pollution. Air pollution, in the form of smog, has plagued Los Angeles.
The Los Angeles Basin and San Fernando Valley hold in the fumes from automobiles, diesel trucks, shipping, and locomotive engines, adding pollution to fixed sources like oil refineries.
In addition the groundwater was at one time threatened by MTBE from gas stations and perchlorate from rocket fuel. As a result, MTBE was outlawed in 2002 in the entire state of California[citation needed].
[edit] See also
[edit] External links
[edit] Bicycling groups
The Los Angeles Wheelmen (open to men and women) have been riding together since 1945.
- BikeBoom presents a public calendar of bicycle events in Los Angeles. Add your own events and check out what's happening.
- Cyclists Inciting Change through Live Exchange (CICLE) is a dedicated group of Los Angeles bicycle activists seeking to promote the bicycle as a viable and sustainable mode of transportation. Its blog features bicycle related news and events. It also presents bicycle related propaganda.
- Cycle Santa Monica! (founded in 2001) is a group Empowering Cyclists, Skaters, and Pedestrians in Santa Monica and the Westside area of Los Angeles. "Using Environmentally Friendly Vehicles. Using Earth Friendly Renewable Fuels" (sources: [4][5]
- The Concerned Off Road Bikers Association (CORBA) lobbies for access to single-track in the Greater Los Angeles area, provides education to mountain-bikers and constructs trails.
- The Los Angeles Bicycle Coalition (LACBC) is a non-profit 501(c)3 volunteer organization which lobbies for infrastructure and regulatory improvements in the city on behalf of its members. Among recent success have been the gaining of access to MTA subway/light-rail during off-peak hours for bicycles and the partial construction of the L.A. River Bikepath.
- The Bicycle Kitchen is a grassroots volunteer organization which provides access to equipment and expertise in bicycle repair and maintenance.
