2015-08-31
Vae Viator^66 2015-08-31
Vae Viator66
When politicians involve themselves in technical matters, expect
failures.
**********************************************************
The photograph below documents the
situation at the Maxella AV and Lincoln BL stop on the BBB number 3
Line. It is the sort of “work” one would expect from the LACMTA. They
taped or caused to be taped shut the aperture in the plastic pipes associated
with power poles. These pipes continue to be used as improvised trash cans. BBB
N.B. The stop still needs a trash can!
BBB Maxella Trash Fix???♪
Su Topo will include this comment in every post
with the above until BBB corrects the problem. For quite awhile BBB has been
charging for intra-line transfers, reversing the long-standing policy of
free transfers to other BBB lines.
Too, BBB has spent lots of
money to build a big headquarters on Colorado BL just east of 4th Street. Mr.
King, just a few dollars for a trash can, you might need a few more to
cover other bus stops too, will erase this section. After all, it is Marina Del
Rey! :-)
Why a trash container is needed♪
The photo above shows exactly what people will do when a
trash container is not provided. They will jury rig something. What
they did, in this case, is rip off the tape which covered the plastic pipes at
the base of the utility pole and stuffed their trash into the pipe, nice, huh?
The man pictured above
could ensure that trash containers are installed along BBB routes with a simple
three-line memorandum.
White Line
Incursion Series
Su Topo uses video to
highlight the problem of scofflaw drivers endangering Metro bus passengers yet,
no authority seems to want to take ownership of the problem. The issue is not
unique to the particular site documented by your Mole, but is illustrative of a
general problem. Your Mole encourages you to report similar problems to the
appropriate agencies in your area(s) and hope that you will have better luck
than he. In the youtube.com videos linked below one can see exactly what
happens when the policing agencies fail to enforce traffic laws.
The video(s) linked below document the important fact that a never- ending
stream of vehicles fail to use the lane as required by law.
Neither are the policing agencies
active when it comes to protecting us by bringing these obvious and frequent
traffic law violations to an immediate halt. The LACMTA is derelict
as well, in that they fail to use the near hourly proof of the violations captured
by the on board cameras, mentioned here, and discussed at length in the posting
of 2012-05-31.
In the following video(s) we see further instances of scofflaw drivers, cutting
in front of Metro 111/311 bus(es).
Please see this video of four (4) vehicles which cross the solid white line and cut off
a moving Line 111/311
bus.
The last vehicle in line, a black
SUV, makes a last minute rush to beat the bus.
Please carefully note that in some
videos, pedestrians are pinned to the curb by the vehicles that cut in front of
the bus —as a result these pedestrians are illegally denied the right-of-way.
Which right-of-way would be unchallengeablely theirs IF, and
only IF, Mr. Washington would review su Topo’s simple
solution (vide infra) and implement it.
In spite of the potential for these
violations to occur several times per HOUR, I have never
seen a police presence at this location. One would think that with a bus
schedule taped to the dashboard one of the several policing agencies would have
made some arrests by now. Unless they have "more important" work to
do than protecting bus passengers.
La Taupe feels that it is appropriate to dedicate these video(s) to ALL the
agencies that should be protecting us. So, they are dedicated to (1): Airport
(LAWA) Police, the L.A.P.D., the L. A. County Sheriff’s Department and Mr.
Washington who is CEO of the LACMTA.
Su Topo has recommended a simple solution to the problem. That is,
have the 111 Line buses pull up to pedestrian crosswalk then stop and discharge
passengers. Doing so eliminates the space in front of the bus which the
always-in-a-hurry scofflaws use to cut in front of the bus. But, with
the LACMTA nothing is simple. Although the solution could be implemented
with nothing more than a memo to the 111/311 Line drivers, it is a task for
which the LACMTA so far has proved to be inadequate.
An homage for her "contribution" to L.A.
transportation.
Your Mole would like the former head
of LAWA remembered for her "contribution" to Los Angeles area public
transportation. She was quicker than her contemporary, the former head
of the LACMTA, to implement the lucrative FlyAway service and discouraged
all attempts, however feeble, to bring other modes of transportation to LAX.
Too, we should memorialize her
attitude vis-à-vis public transportation directly to LAX in following the
transportation access pattern used by many, if not most, world-class airports,
to wit, "Any time you go under the airport, it is fraught with
problems, ..." [hardly a get it done attitude!].
The Mole reads the papers and other things, obviating the
necessity of your doing so.
The Times reports (Nelson) that of the 20,000
passengers who were surveyed on “harassment” [my euphemism, this is a family
blog] covering the past six months, “… About 19%, or 3,760 people, said yes.
That's a decrease of three percentage points from last spring, when
22% of riders …” responded in the affirmative.
Add that indicator of dissatisfaction to
the rude drivers, drivers who can’t or won’t position their bus at a stop “flag”
or equidistant to and a short easy step away from the curb, the eardrum shattering
noise on the M V Transportation contracted lines, the lack of restroom
facilities anywhere and other irritants and soon one can see why people will
pay a premium for automobile transportation.
Is the LACMTA really America’s Worst?
When all aspects of the LACMTA mass transit “service” is considered, the answer is YES!
Out of cars, into buses and onto
bicycles and by foot - “Mobility Plan 2035”
The Los Angeles Times reports
(Zhaniser) on a Los Angeles City Council plan
to reduce automobile usage, the
result of it, according to one proponent, the “…mobility plan's projects
will increase walking by 38%, transit use by 56% and bicycling by 170%.” This is the first time I have cited Mr.
Zhaniser’s work and I liked what I read!
Your Mole invites the fifteen City
Council members to invite the Mayor, Mr. Washington the CEO of the LACMTA and
another attendee of their choice as guests, making eighteen people in total, to
test their theories by following this Mole’s plan.
The plan would include a combination
of walking, riding public transportation and bicycling. It would go something like this:
The eighteen people would meet at the
“Taj Mahal” (the LACMTA’s headquarters) on an agreed upon weekday. The evening before, their bicycles (personal
equipment or city provided as needed) would be positioned at City Hall ―on the following morning the bikes
would be transported by flat-bed truck to the starting point of the exercise,
viz., the LAX City Bus Center, arriving at the LAXCBC about 7:30.
The eighteen members of the group
would be transported by four limousines each limo would include several gallons
of good coffee, perhaps from BarrioBucks [Gracias al señor Lalo Alcaraz! You can hear señor Alcaraz and others too, on KPFK, Fridays at 16:00~17:00 on the “PochoHour of Power”!], along with appropriate pastries, so
that they could have sort of a “continental breakfast” en route to the LAXCBC.
>Pocho link <
Starting at about 8:00, the group
along with their bicycles, would take Metro 232 Line buses to the corner of
Sepulveda BL and Rosecrans, rendezvous at Fry’s Electronics, do some light
shopping and return.
I believe that the first rude shock
is the fact that Metro buses can
transport only two bicycles at a time.
The logistics demand that nine (9) buses will be required; since the 232
Lines buses operate at thirty (30) minute intervals, the time required to
position the group at Fry’s is an additional four hours.
The follow on rude shock is that there are no public restrooms at
the LAXCBC – therefore anyone, who began to experience the diuretic effect of
the morning coffee, would be required to look elsewhere for relief. There are a number of hotels within walking
or bicycling distance ― although
biking in the area is NOT for the faint of heart with lots of buses, cars and
shuttle busses whizzing by; so waking might be best.
The walk from the LAXCBC to 96th
Street and Jenny, crossing the street with a green walk-light, walking to the hotel,
using the facilities and returning, might be accomplished without further
delaying the plan.
If the first two people left at 8:00,
the entire group would be at Fry’s at noon!
Let’s skip the shopping for the final two people and return as soon as
the entire group is positioned. They
could all be back at the LAXCBC by 16:00, assuming that the first two people
could leave on a 12:00 bus
On the way back to the LAXCBC the
distinguished members could note the fact that the 232 Line north-bound bus
make a USELESS LOOP around Mariposa station ―an artifact of years back when Nash was a one-way street
south. Maybe Mr. Washington could note
that fact and discuss it with the CEO of M V Transportation,
Mr. Brian Kibby who is the contract operator of the 232 Line.
The time, money, fuel etc. which is
now wasted could be invested in constructing a loop through Plaza El Segundo,
which now requires crossing two busy streets (El Segundo and Rosecrans) and a
walk of about a quarter of a mile, if they followed my plan the group could see
this stop right across from Fry’s.
Oh and they’d find that crossing the
street is lots of fun. The walk light last for less than two steps, then the
“red hand” starts flashing. One’s every
sense must be alert during this crossing; cars headed south from the west side
of the intersection will try to “beat” pedestrians through the intersection,
cars headed south from the east side of the intersection will often tailgate
through their red light taking up your two steps of green walk light, while
cars turning east from the north bound lanes of Sepulveda may not even know
that there is a pedestrian in the crosswalk and begin their turn to the east on
Rosecrans just has you come into view!
Are we having fun yet?
I find that most intersections in Los
Angeles, although offering more crossing time,
are still shared with drivers whose attitude is “get out of my way”.
The attitude of those drivers is
complemented by the LACMTA’s in
their refusal to do anything to make the
lives of its ridership the slightest bit easier.
I have numerous posts which cite the
problems crossing Sepulveda at Rosecrans and the lack of a 232 Line bus south
bound stop at El Segundo Plaza.
It is unlikely that the imaginary
trip described above will actually happen, but, at least, one will be able to
understand why.
The Times follows up on the City Council’s
“Mobility Plan 2035” (Zahniser2). The
piece includes quotes from members of the city council, one of which says:
“This is a document [the Mobility Plan] that helps up prioritize public safety
so that those who are walking and bicycling and trying to get around [without]
a car don’t get killed. Right now only 5% of those hit by a car going 20 mph
die. Over 80% of those hit by a car
going 40 mph die.”
This Mole wonders exactly how all
cars will be kept at 20 mph OR if 95% is an acceptable survival rate? The con point was represented by “… Laura
Lake, a volunteer with the advocacy group Fix the City.” She said, “We want to see real transportation
reform, but this isn’t it. This is
aspirations and slogans, not transportation planning.”
I spend quite a bit of time on foot
in the city, bicycling has become just too dangerous, and my experience
crossing streets along with the morning TV recitations of overnight hit and run
deaths, communicate the fact that people and cars simply don’t mix well.
Unfortunately, the “Mobility Plan
2035” has that “built by politicians" feel.
The Los Angeles Times covers (Zahniser
& Nelson) another aspect of Mobility Plan 2035 and some of the history
which lead to the plan. Which plan “…
seeks to shift the city’s emphasis away from the automobile …”.
Your Mole, who has lots of experience
with traffic as a pedestrian, feels that the Mobility Plan 2035 is overly
ambitious ―and likely not achievable. The reason being that one can put streets on
a diet and reduce their capacity by half, but, unless it is possible to change
the long established habits of the driving public, it’s just stacks of paper. I have been cut-off mid-street in the cross
walk by a driver who knows that only a fool will step in front of a speeding vehicle.
I have never once seen a police
officer from any jurisdiction issue a citation for what amounts to assault as a
result of these incidents.
Then there are the street
racers. Better enforcement and tougher
penalties are needed ― how about a ten year license suspension for ONE INCIDENT
of street racing and a minimum term of forty years for vehicular homicide? That would set the bar!
Of course, it would be much better if the city council got together with the the county people ―LACMTA included― and provided us with a true RAPID TRANSIT system, instead of the Toonerville Trolly-like street cars with which they are scarring the landscape.
Take the Expo Line-II, for example, it will grade cross BOTH the busy Overland AV and Westwood BL, which should make for a great commute irrespective of mode of transportation. The same will apply to the Crenshaw Line which will bridge streets like La Cienega at Florence passing over the the 405 exit and Century BL but cross many other streets, e.g., Manchester, at grade level. To this Mole, it is sort of like running as fast as you can for a while and then crawling on your hands an knees for other intervals. From an expense standpoint, it is more like having a slice of bread for dinner and then having an après diner pousse-café, in that the total experience is less than satisfactory.
A Times piece (Lozano) relates the facts associated with an early morning 20 Line bus crash. The unidentified driver says (he/she) "blacked out" but (he/she) may simply have fallen asleep at 02:00 on August 22, 2015. No injuries to the sixteen aboard were reported.
Of course, it would be much better if the city council got together with the the county people ―LACMTA included― and provided us with a true RAPID TRANSIT system, instead of the Toonerville Trolly-like street cars with which they are scarring the landscape.
Take the Expo Line-II, for example, it will grade cross BOTH the busy Overland AV and Westwood BL, which should make for a great commute irrespective of mode of transportation. The same will apply to the Crenshaw Line which will bridge streets like La Cienega at Florence passing over the the 405 exit and Century BL but cross many other streets, e.g., Manchester, at grade level. To this Mole, it is sort of like running as fast as you can for a while and then crawling on your hands an knees for other intervals. From an expense standpoint, it is more like having a slice of bread for dinner and then having an après diner pousse-café, in that the total experience is less than satisfactory.
A Times piece (Lozano) relates the facts associated with an early morning 20 Line bus crash. The unidentified driver says (he/she) "blacked out" but (he/she) may simply have fallen asleep at 02:00 on August 22, 2015. No injuries to the sixteen aboard were reported.
The Los Angeles Times follows-up (Nelson2) on their previous
“harassment” story. Ms Nelson and Mr.
Oreskes do a fine detailed job on this piece.
The most telling quote is this: "The whole process
was so disheartening," [a passenger who had an unpleasant experience]
said. "Everyone wanted to direct me to someone else. They have people to
check to see if your fare is paid, to make sure they get their money, but they
don't actually care about what happens."
These are restatements of su Topo’s frequent statements: “There is NO SECURITY associated with the LACMTA’s service” and the LACMTA is inconsiderate of its ridership, or words to that effect.
These are restatements of su Topo’s frequent statements: “There is NO SECURITY associated with the LACMTA’s service” and the LACMTA is inconsiderate of its ridership, or words to that effect.
Please read all of the fine work by
the hard-working reporters which I have cited above. Works Cited (vide infra) has links for the
Internet reports and you can search www.latimes.com
for the Internet version of the print stories or see your local reference
librarian for the paper copies.
« Ce
sont les Grecs qui nous ont légué le plus beau mot de notre langue: le mot
" enthousiasme" - du grec “en théo”, un Dieu intérieur.»
Louis Pasteur (1822-12-27~1895-08-28)
[It
was the Greeks who
have left us the most beautiful word in our language the word "enthusiasm" - from the Greek "in theo" a God within.]
Merci Bien à http://evene.lefigaro.fr/
Ars longa vita breva
Here is Simon Vouet's (1590-01-09~1649-06-30) “Saint Cecilia”. N.B. Please be aware that some of his work is intended for adults. https://www.artsy.net/artwork/simon-vouet-saint-cecilia
¿Musica?
Let's listen to some of work of Solage (1758-1829).
Here is a brief sample of his Fumeux fume par fumée.
Metro Area – Lower your expectations! ♪
The Mole rides again, so you don’t
have to try to puzzle out why the LACMTA is always advertising its "greatness".
Promises, promises♪
Someone appears to have Photo-shopped
the above photo. But the modifications have the look and feel of truth.
Click on the photo above to enlarge it, then click once again so that you
can read the "photo shopping" along the bottom of the bus.
Littering Man
2015-08-06 @LAXCBC near 06:00: A man sits on a bench and carries out an
animated, if not understandable conversation with himself. He throws objects toward the trash can; if he misses,
he retrieves the object and properly deposits it in a trash can. He tosses other objects randomly about his
area and leaves those lie where they fall.
2015-08-11 08:25: This Mole helps a
nice couple from Santa Catarina , Brazil navigate to Hollywood in what this Mole
believes is the best and most economical manner. The left him with a map showing the bus
transfer points, paper transfers and day passes. They also shared with him some of the
attractive features of their home state.
I'd like to say “Obrigado!” to them!
M V Transportation buses are NOISY!♪
Some drivers are not so quiet either.
2015-08-21: I ride a 130 Line bus. A passenger boards a few stops after mine and presents a Metrolink "pass" the driver is unable to determine the validity of the "pass"and calls "Dispatch". Dispatch tells the driver to accept the "pass" and inform the passenger that next time he will be required to pay full fare. Everyone can hear this exchange because all these radios are always on full volume. We are stopped for the five minutes or so ―it seemed interminable at the time―taken up by this exchange.
Listen to a short segment of this conversation, please set your playback volume to at least 50 but higher is better, so that you can have a true flavor of the on-bus experience, here.
Listen to a short segment of this conversation, please set your playback volume to at least 50 but higher is better, so that you can have a true flavor of the on-bus experience, here.
My research on the matter turned up this item dated May 13, 2013:
"Metro is preparing to begin latching gates at Red and Purple Line subway stations beginning this summer, with gates at other Metro Rail stations to be latched subsequently. All Metro riders will need to ‘tap’ their TAP cards to get through the gates.
That, of course, is an issue for Metrolink passengers who get free transfers to Metro as part of their fares [emphasis mine] — Metrolink uses paper tickets, not the plastic “TAP” cards that have become the norm on Metro. In order for Metrolink passengers to get through latched gates, Metrolink and Metro have worked together to develop paper TAP cards for Metrolink customers.
The following has been posted to Metrolink’s website and explains the transition from the current ticketing system to TAP-enabled paper tickets. Bottom line: The TAP-enabled Metrolink tickets for destinations in Los Angeles County (the area served by Metro) will be available through Metrolink ticket machines and for those purchasing Metrolink monthly passes. Metrolink customers will have to ‘tap’ those tickets when using Metro Rail and will continue to show their tickets to bus operators on Metro bus lines" [emphasis mine].
My only issue with this transaction is the part about giving Metrolink passengers free transfers to Metro! Why are they so special? Year by year the LACMTA has reduced benefits to its ridership, e.g., free transfers for us to DOT Dash buses are long gone, increased regular transfer prices, "free transfers for two hours" subject to unachievable requirementsR ―see more examples ― long waits for "Rapid buses" e.g., Santa Monica BL west of Sepulveda BL and other areas too -with no bus benches, being by passed by "Rapid buses" for having the bad luck of not ending up at a "Rapid stop".
"RThe two-hour period begins upon the first boarding of a trip, when a TAP card is tapped to pay the 1-Way Fare. The customer must tap their card upon each subsequent boarding during the trip; the TAP system will recognize if the customer is within the two-hour transfer window and is making a valid transfer covered by the 1-Way Trip. The number of transfers within the two-hour window is not limited; as an example, a customer could transfer from bus line 20 to the Red Line to the Blue Line to the Green Line, all with payment of a 1-Way Trip, as long as the last transfer occurs within two hours of the first tap. But transfers back to the same bus or rail line where the customer’s TAP card was last used are not permitted. For example, the customer may not, transfer from the Green Line back to the Green Line, or from bus line 20 back to Line 20; a new 1-Way Fare would be deducted from the Stored Value on the card. As mentioned, trips lasting longer than two hours can be made on the 1-Way Trip fare, as long as the last transfer is made before the two-hour transfer window expires. [excerpted from the Metro.net page linked at "see more examples", above ].
Sorry NO BUSES!♪
2015-08-13: I am waiting for a 102
Line bus. It seems a good time to try
out the Metro App. I configure BOTH
Wi-Fi and Location Services as the App has, in the past, assured me that that
will improve performance. I have the PDF
schedule on my cell, so I actually know its scheduled departure time from the
LAXCBC. But, as you can see on my iPhone display above - no luck.
It is more than two hours later, I am not anywhere near bus stop 2788! I'm waiting for any of the buses noted on the "flag"above. The Metro app shows me essentially the same display
which is documented above. With this App, like so
much of the LACMTA, often third best is about all one can expect. I don't believe that they test modifications to the app. My
"Feedback" mechanism, is this blog!
And Again ― Sorry NO BUSES!♪
What, again?
hmmmm, do you see the problem? I
am a trained IT professional so here is how I identify the problem: “The Metro
App apparently thinks that every stop is stop number 2788 or there is some other bug!
“Nice Work”, LACMTA and the Metro App writers, one cheer for you both! Full Disclosure
Next Bus Has the Answer!♪
I thought back to the www.nextbus.com site, which is the basis
for the butchery which turned it into the LACMTA’s “Nextrip”. I entered the stop number which was quickly
transformed into a stop name. At first I
attempted to find a “stop table” on the LACMTA’s site(s) which I soon abandoned
as a waste of time.
You can see above that in the first instance
I actually was at the the La Tijera/Manchester stop, number 2788. So, it seems that once the App fails it
continues to fail which is the type of “bug” one expects only from very junior
programmers.
I will update you on my adventures with the
Metro App next month J. In the meantime, please use
nextbus, the quickest, most professional and accurate source for bus
information.
One last
thing about the Metro App, as I explored I found the feature pictured above.
LACMTA’s Nickle-and-Diming!♪
Those cheap
______ (fill In the blank, e.g., guys)___________ are taking our tax money by the tons, yet
they want to sell us bus schedules on the Internet? Which Internet file transfers will save them
pounds of money in printing costs and give them the appearance of being
“green”.
That
“feature” of the Metro app worked while the necessary ones, like reporting the next scheduled bus at
my stop did not.
2015-08-20 @11:55 or so: I wait for a 102 Line bus on Sepulveda BL. The bus pulls up 10 metres short of the "flag" where I'm positioned. Let's see ..., lots of the drivers cannot pull up to the stop with the length of their bus parallel to and an easy step away from the curb. Some, refuse to place the bus at the "flag" so that a passenger can step aboard. This driver wore a badge showing an I.D. of 9959. It 9959 valid? It seems low ―of course, no driver would remove a leading digit from his badge, would he??
But this is a bus stop, isn't it?
2015-08-24: I am waiting at a "bus stop" on Century BL. The stop used to have a standard flag but that was taken down during the early days of construction of the Century BL/Crenshaw streetcar overpass. I read these two signs as indication that the stop is back in operation. I come to this conclusion based upon the fact that there are no directions to the real temporary bus stop as one would usually expect. However crude the descriptions of the location
―they are often crude and difficult to read― there are no such location descriptions here! The inescapable conclusion is that this is a bus stop. The 117 Line approaches, I signal my intention to ride, the driver slows, glances at the signs and drives on. I take the next CCMBL and pay the cash fare.
This, typical of the LACMTA the right hand doesn't even know that there is a left hand.
Care for a seat, No thanks!
LACMTA signage!
Ear (and Eye) to the Rail
2015-08-25: Another bus stop, I decide to take a seat, until I get closer to the bench and find that my would-be bench-mate comes with an overpowering olor! I pass on another day and find him still "haunting" this La Tijera and Sepulveda shelter.
2015-08-28: Yes this work by the LACMTA is supposed to pass for a bus stop sign. With a little work and an understanding of just how little the LACMTA cares about its ridership, one can discern that the 40, 111, 311, 607 and 740 buses stop (I hope) here. What pride of workmanship goes into these things! Mr. Washington, you must be proud of your staff. Dear Reader, would you like to find out where all these lines intersect and tell the LACMTA where this ugly thing is located? On the positive side, it is duct taped in place to stay :-).
Ear (and Eye) to the Rail
Transit
as unseen and unimagined by the LACMTA
The LACMTA (Subordinate
to LAWA)
Presents
Every Which Way But Right!
OR
Four Seats to LAX!
OR
The LACMTA Tries Again;
Asymptotically to LAX!
OR
The World’s Most Inconvenient Way in
Which to Travel From City Center to an Airport!
The
purpose of this section is to make people aware that the LACMTA is
not home to many problem solvers. I hope to accomplish this end by
presenting the solutions adopted by other cities, some in foreign countries, in
solving the city to airport rapid mass
transportation challenge.
Cautionary
Note: Those employed by the LACMTA or LAWA should NOT view
the following video(s). The
speed of the train(s), the fact that they neither share the right of way nor
stop at stop lights, because they are truly rapid transit, will likely make you
dizzy, nauseous, confuse and frighten you.
With
a population of about just under four million ―making it one-fourth Los
Angeles size ―Porto Alegre, Brasil gets it done! Let’s
take a ride on their rapid transit elevated line which connects Porto Alegre International Airport to the city via the Aeroporto station of the Porto Alegre Metro train. Please watch a brief video of the transfer here.
Obrigado to the u-loader of this first video, "JCKC" and to the up-loader of the second video, Paulo Siberico!
As
always, thank you to our host, www.youtube.com
Cosmology
What releases as "... as much energy in a few seconds as the Sun does over its 10 billion year lifetime"? Sciencedaily.com explains (Royal ...) that it is a GRB (Gamma Ray Burst) and that a number of these make up the largest structure in the universe that has been observed to date. It is BIG, five billion light years across! Please follow the link included in "Works Cited" (below) read more and see a nice image too.
Fare Box Score Box and related
Lists of Shame
I.D.
Numbers of buses with Out of Order Fare Boxes: xxxxx (yyyy-mm-dd;
Note:
No or few entries above do not necessarily mean all fare boxes are in
operation.
I.D.Numbers
of Distracted Drivers: xxxxx (i);
None
included here, but observations of a minor nature may be included in the main
posting;
Codes:
(i) Extended conversation(s) with passenger(s) or (ii) cell phone call(s).
Frequently, details can be found in the text above, (ii*) cell phone call(s)
which are aggravated by some other action, (iii) Self-distracted. Codes (ii*)
and (iii) will ALWAYS be explained in the posting.
I.D.
Numbers of Buses Defaced by WhoIs stickers: xxxx;
~UR
or +UR = (+UR) whois sticker and the ugly residue left after
passengers partly remove the sticker. (~UR) = Only the ugly residue left after
passengers almost completely remove the sticker. +L = an old (legacy) sticker
black letters on a plain white background –these are the original form of the
defacement.
*
Another reason for displaying the operator's ID on the internal display and
the headsign.
ID
numbers of Buses whose Head and Tailsigns disagree: Not noted xxxx/xxxx;
Format
is Bus number followed by Headsign number/Tailsign number.
ID
numbers of Buses without Braille signs: xxxx;
METRO
drivers Lack of Basic Technical Skills Report
The
format is Driver number F[{Y/-n/+n}] C[{Y/N+/-}]. Meaning of F if Y the driver
stopped with the Bus stop “flag pole” somewhere between the bus front door
frames. A negative number, e.g., -3 is the approximate distance in metres
(think yards dear readers) between the nearest bus door vertical frame member
and the flag pole signifying that the bus stopped short of the flag. A positive
number, e.g., +3 (metres) is the approximate distance between the nearest bus
door vertical frame member and the flag pole signifying that the bus stopped
past the flag. The value for C[{Y/N}], “Y” tells us that the driver stopped
within an easy step from the curb to the bus, “N” means it was NOT an easy step
from the curb to the bus. It is this Mole's belief that an average experienced
good driver should be able to control his bus so as to position in near the
curb and with the flag pole slightly to the front of the bus.
I.D.
numbers of drivers who are unable or unwilling to position their buses parallel to
the curb, a short step from the curb and/or equidistant from the vehicles
exits.
XXXXX F[+10]
C[Y]; F[+7], C[Y]; xxxxx F[Y], C[Y]; xxxxxF[Y],
C[Y]; N.B. distances are in metres, think yards.
13
metres is this is MORE than a bus length. nnnnn* = Contract Driver
I.D.
numbers of drivers who are almost guaranteed to give you a Rough and Jerky
(R& J) ride: xxxxx;
I.D. numbers of drivers who will give you a potentially life-threatening ride: XXXXX(J)date; XXXX-XX-XX(-);
Codes:
S = not wearing seat belts; J = bad judgment (unsafe driving practices).
La Taupe's Abréviations
ADADO = Automatic Destination
Announcement (on) Door Opening. This feature is installed on many buses and
operates on extremely few. Another “money down the
toilet” LACMTA investment. La Taupe that this is intended for the
visually impaired because people who can see can read the “head signs”.
ASAS = Automatic Stop Announcement
System the GPS (Global Positioning System) driven mechanism for generating
audio for the upcoming stops. N.B. Because of the low power (read weak)
processors used in the on-board stops may be too close to identify stops
separately. This is known as a granularity problem. Then too, if the driver
operates the bus at speed above the speed limit you will find the system “back
announcing” stops which you have already passed. I find that this will NOT keep
some drivers from complaining “that you didn’t signal (ring) in time”. They
don’t understand their relationship to the system and how, by driving faster
than the GPS computer, they can bias it.
BART
= Bay Area Rapid Transit –
Please note the use of the word “Rapid” because it is a word we almost never
hear in Los Angeles.
BBB = Santa Monica’s Big Blue Bus
CHSRA = California High-Speed Rail
Authority, which is the equivalent, in more ways than one, of the LACMTA.
CC
or CCMBL =
Culver City (Municipal) Bus (Lines)
CCTC = Culver City Transportation
Center this is the place formerly known as FHMTC = the Fox Hills Mall
Transportation Center (Sepulveda& Slauson)
FFE = Full Fare Equivalent
(presently $1.75)
GMBL = Gardena Municipal
Bus lines
ITC = Inglewood Transit Center
LAWA = Los Angeles World Airports.
LAXCBC = the LAX City Bus Center.
OCTA = Orange County Transportation
Authority.
OOS = Out Of Service.
Rapid
Transit = does not compete
for right of way, that is, it will not run at grade unless it has EXCLUSIVE
DEDICATED USE of the right of way).
R&J = Rough and Jerky [ride].
TT= Torrance Transit.
T1= the normal type of driver/staff.
T2= is the non-stop talker type of
driver/staff, on the phone or to passengers,
T3= the uncommunicative type of
driver/staff, sometimes surly.
WLATC = the West Los Angeles
Transportation Center (Fairfax & Apple)
Su Topo’s
Disclaimer and apologia
Your
Mole always attempts to write an easy-on-the-eyes page using text input.
Blogger.com however, has other ideas and will often not stay with a single font
type or point size, produces extraneous spacing and etc. I wish I had time to
debug the HTML which they produce, it is NOT the straight text which I pasted
into the form, but I don’t. Therefore, I apologize on behalf of Blogger.com for
the changes which they make, of which I do not approve. Sometimes, what I see,
thankfully you don’t, is 24 point type –it is giant and other times they swallow
my text, although it still seems to be there. In fairness to them, things seem
better, although this is partly because I do understand which of their
“features” do the most damage to me and consequently do not use them. Communicating
these problems to them, for me, is something like having teeth extracted
without the benefit of anesthetic, actually it is less fun than that. By
their design, there is no simple e-mailing them with "Please look at my
say, posting of 2009-06-28, it is weird!” I have been submitting
feedback and experiences slow but positive progress. Until all issues are
resolved, lo siento. [Addenda 2014-07-31]: Things
have been much better lately. There is a more responsive feedback system
now. [Addenda 2015-08-22]: Recently, even the "Feedback"mechanism has failed to submit problems.
I like blogger.com very much, and IF things ever normalise, I will consider deleting this "Disclaimer
and apologia" section.
Your
Mole’s Copyright Statement
All
photographs and original written materials are copyrighted © 2007~2013
by LAmetroMole. ♪Clicking a photo will often* present you with
an enlargement (sometimes successive clicks will further enlarge the photo).
*This feature is dependent upon the Internet browser which you use and possibly
other factors.
This
site contains or provides links to copyrighted material the use of which has
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such material available in our efforts to advance understanding of
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worker health, public disclosure, corporate accountability, and etc. We have
often included relatively brief quotes from articles and etc., sometimes in
addition to a simple link, because we have found that links frequently go
"bad" or change over time. We believe this constitutes a "fair
use" of any such copyrighted material as provided for in section 107 of
the US Copyright Law. In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, the
material on this site is distributed without fee or payment of any kind to
those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information
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made available here for evaluation purposes only. Please support the artists
you like by buying their commercial CDs, MP3s and downloads.
Your Mole’s Conflict of Interest Statement
This
is to certify that I, the blogger who is known as the LAmetroMole, with
respect to this blog, except as described below, am not now nor at any time
during the past year have been, nor is it my current intention to ever be:
1)
A participant, directly or indirectly, in any arrangement, agreement,
investment, or other activity with any vendor, supplier, or other party doing
business with any of the entities about which I have written, which has
resulted or could result in personal benefit to me.
2)
A recipient, directly or indirectly, of any salary payments or loans or gifts
of any kind or any free service or discounts or other fees from or on behalf of
any person or organization engaged in any transaction with any of the entities
about which I have written.
Any
exceptions to 1 or 2 above are stated below with a full description of the
transactions and of the interest, whether direct or indirect, which I have (or
have had during the past year) in the persons or organizations having
transactions with any of the entities about which I have written. there are no
exceptions.
Date: 2009-06-24 S/LametroMole
Works Cited
Nelson, Laura J. “One in 14 Metro riders has been groped in the past six months, survey finds”. Los Angeles Times. Aug. 6, 2015. Web. http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-metro-sexual-harassment-20150806-story.html
Lozano, Carlos. “Driver and passengers are injured after Metro bus slams
into tree”. Los Angeles Times. Aug.
22, 2015: Web. http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-driver-passengers-injured-after-metro-bus-slams-into-tree-20150822-story.html
Nelson, Laura J. “One in 14 Metro riders has been groped in the past six months, survey finds”. Los Angeles Times. Aug. 6, 2015. Web. http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-metro-sexual-harassment-20150806-story.html
Nelson2,
Laura J. and Oreskes, Benjamin. “Reports
of sexual harassment by Metro commuters could hinder efforts to boost ridership”. Los Angeles
Times. Aug. 25, 2015. Web. http://www.latimes.com/local/crime/la-me-mta-rider-harassment-20150825-story.html
Royal Astronomical Society (RAS). "Five billion light years across: The largest feature in the universe." ScienceDaily. Aug. 4, 2015. www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2015/08/150804074039.htm
Zhaniser, David and Nelson, Laura, J. “Street offers glimpse of L.A.’s goal”. Los Angeles Times. Aug. 16, 2015:A1. Print.
Zhaniser, David. “L.A.
maps out sweeping transportation overhaul”. Los Angeles Times. Aug. 8, 2015. Web. http://www.latimes.com/local/california/la-me-mobility-debate-20150809-story.html#page=1
Zhaniser2,
David. “L.A. rethinks its roads”. Los
Angeles Times.
Aug. 2, 2015. Print.
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