2015-09-29
Vae Viator^67 2015-09-30
Vae Viator67
Early publication due to my travel schedule.
America’s Worst♪
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. This presents the BB as less friendly to its ridership than in years past.
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?
Edward F. King, Director of Transit Services
City of Santa Monica's Big Blue Bus
City of Santa Monica's Big Blue Bus
(Photo: www.bigbluebus.com)
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.
Thanks to www.youtube.com for their excellent video support!
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, (2) the L.A.P.D., (3) the L. A. County Sheriff’s Department and (4) 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, stop there 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.
Metro's Flag♪
At sea, a vessel in distress will fly its' flag upside down. It is only right that, given the dysfunctional LACMTA, we should fly Metro's flag in that manner.
In this section it is su Topo's intention to call your attention to situations which he has observed that highlight the "LACMTA Way" of doing things.
After reading the hyperbole in the September 2015 Metro INSIDER (no page numbers, no document number, no copyright information = No Entry in Works Cited) publication which describes their plans ... well, let's let them tell us in their own words. " ... Metro is creating an Office of Extraordinary Innovation (OEI) [I'm fighting back the gag-reflex as I read this] The small OEI team will be compromised of some of the best and brightest minds in transportation. ... The group will travel the world ... to continue the quest of making Metro the best agency in the universe. [Emphasis mine - It just doesn't quit]". I cannot type any more of this tonterías. Please read it on the bus/train ―there are usually many copies available, if not most of the press run― after the publication date.
They really don't need a money draining OEI team [remember, don't let them get their hands on any more of your tax dollars! It goes to their heads! Vote against on any MEASURES which will siphon off your hard-earned tax dollars for use by this wastrife agency.] What they need is some hard-working people that ride the system, listen to the ridership and use common sense. Oh, they could read this blog as well, since I can save them expensive trips to Asia, in that I've covered a number of aspects of the Japanese transportation system that are easily adapted to Los Angeles, although it make take a lot of modifications to the LACMTA in order to make it work.
The same copy of the Metro INSIDER asks, "Looking for a safe and secure place to park you bike? [Spoiler alert: It isn't the LAXCBC, vide infra.] Then they tell you how great the Metro Bike Hubs will be.
Long Wait Ahead♪
Then here is my experience, (photo, above) with the latest version (3.3) of the Metro "app". As one can see, it identified the stop by both the intersection and the Stop #. But that's as far as it could go. "No Arrivals at this Time"? Well I consulted my cell schedule for the 267 Line and here is what I found.
267 Time Table♪
Using the time table above one must interpolate, so, if it worked the app would be better. But I did find the approximate time that my bus would arrive at the stop, i.e., sometime after 09:26.
Walnut & Raymond Parada♪
As I continued my trip in Pasadena, I noted that I had to move to the "new" 267 stop on Walnut. At last I could put it together! The LACMTA doesn't want to only NOT Improve things for the ridership, they want to make things worse, read more uncomfortable. And here, they've hit a home run. The old stop which was shared with other buses had a bench! But, not the new one! As is all too often usual, this Mole could stand or pace around as he waited instead of being comfortably seated. He could also practice his LACMTA mantra, which he is unable to disclose here. Click on the photo (twice) and see the old stop in the background.
But, Mole, there is some logic to this, right?♪
Wrong! Pictured above is a stop near Del Mar & Wilson in Pasadena, N.B. that, after clicking twice to enlarge it, this stop is shared by Muni buses and has a bench!
I'll bet that it has restrooms!♪
Returning to the city, I saw the, mostly completed, Division 13 Office. Thirteen wasn't lucky for this endeavour, in that it partially collapsed during building. I wonder how much the Division 13 Office cost us?? I encourage the LACMTA to be transparent in their spending. Their lack of transparency is one, but only one, reason why I am against providing them with any more funding from tax revenues. If they need money, let the County of Los Angeles issue bonds ―that way the markets will keep money out of their hands and possibly we may end up with a little more rapid transit.
noitats noinu♪
The caption above shows yet another way of representing "Union Station". I wonder why they chose to use reclining letters rather than the more usual; may I say, normal?, vertical format. Like this:
U
N
I
O
N
S
T
A
T
I
O
N
FREE Metro app♪
You may have to click the photo TWICE in order to obtain the most readable size. Note, please, that your Mole has highlighted the "FREE" part of the iTunes text.
BUT, that is apparently what is wrong with the app ― it is no longer free. Last month I sought your input is describing what kind of organization would try to sell you timetables that they gave away free. It looked like this:
'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”.'
It now appears that the 99¢ for the "Get All Maps & Timetables" is a requirement to make the "app" operational! The time tables are used to project the next scheduled bus at a given stop. No timetables? You will see what I have been seeing for the last two versions, viz., "No Arrivals at this time". It makes sense to this IT professional AND it fits in with the, how shall I say, parsimonious nature of the LACMTA.
If la Taupe's hypothesis is true, the bad news for the LACMTA is that they are engaging in false advertising, in that the app is nonfunctional without the additional purchase. What does your Mole say about that? He says, I won't pay them 99¢, as you can see I can operate quite well with having only the timetables. Vis-à-vis interpolation, it is a good mental and spacial exercise which also helps pass time during the usually long waits for a bus. But it may just be ineptness on the part of the developers meaning that they don't have a rigorous ―or maybe any― pre-release testing environment.
I may contact iTunes with my hypothesis and again, I may not since contacting Apple is more difficult than contacting the LACMTA. If you are experiencing the same or similar problem with the Android version, I urge you to contact Google Play and perhaps you will receive a 99¢ refund J
But I want to use this as an example of the nature of the LACMTA and encourage everyone NOT to allow than to dip deeper into our tax payments for any of their schemes. When Measure X (or whatever) again rears its ugly head at a future election, please vote in such a way so as to deprive them of your tax dollars!
This Mole, eventually, gets around to everything he promises. One promise was to research what's up with the four our-of-service seats on the New Flyer buses used by the CCMBL??
A polite letter to the New Flyer company yielded NO RESULTS!♪
I was stonewalled, so I reached out to the CCMBL: "I would appreciate knowing exactly
why I cannot take a seat, nor can anyone else, in this area. Further, it would be nice to know exactly
when the problem will be rectified."
The CCMBL's informative reply!♪
The CCMBL's kindly reply is shown above. For which prompt reply this Mole is extremely grateful. He feels the the CCMBL is "best of breed" and "ahead of the pack", certainly ahead of the LACMTA, in presenting the rider with the bus driver's number on the in-bus "crawl", so that a complement given, or rarely a complaint made. Culver City's hard-working Transportation Department is responsive to its ridership.
Although they made no requests to do so, su Topo took the decision on his own, to redact portions of their letter; portions which are not necessary in order to understand the reply.
Although they made no requests to do so, su Topo took the decision on his own, to redact portions of their letter; portions which are not necessary in order to understand the reply.
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 bus driver and former head of the LACMATA, 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 direct-to-airport 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!].
Too, we should memorialize her attitude vis-à-vis public transportation directly to LAX in following the transportation direct-to-airport 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 Los Angeles Times covers (Nelson) the LACMTA's dream come true, more spending money! Su Topo will only quote
this: “In letters sent Tuesday and obtained by The
Times, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority formally asked to join a
Federal Transit Administration pilot program that could accelerate construction
on a subway to the Westside and a rail connection to Los Angeles International
Airport.”
This Mole is
stunned! The LACMTA couldn’t bring these
projects to fruition in over twenty-five (25) years, how in the world would
they accomplish them in only nine (9) years.
I’ll tell you how, by wasting tons of money on them and then instead of
having a vast transportation network they will have a half-vast one [which is
what they have right now J] ―and an
impoverished tax payer base.
The City Council’s
[everyone wants to get into the act!] Mobility Plan 2035 is the target of a law
suit. The plaintiffs allege that the plan won’t deliver what it promises. Just this quote, please, [Implementing the
plan will result in] ‘ … “a huge
sacrifice in air quality, a huge sacrifice in first-responder times, in lost
time from work, lost time from family.”’
To which, la Taupe would
like to add, more novice bicycle riders will mean more accidents, unfortunately
some of them will be fatal. Please read the NPR report and/or listen to the NPR broadcast which raised the visibility of this issue for your Mole.
My only quote from the article will be: “Little is known yet, but this is fascinating [.]” I might substitute the word frightening
for fascinating; in that the plan's dependence on CHSRA alone makes me
shudder. When one reads of the
pioneering of the once-great American railroad system, one can only wonder how we arrived at such a sorry point in our history.
The Times covers (Weikel)
Metrolink's planned improvements in some of its rail crossings.
Unfortunately, this Mole believes that Metrolink is only incrementally improving 19th
and 20th Century technology.
I’ll quote only one sentence from Mr. Weikel’s great writing: “A $35-million project to separate the tracks
and street with an overpass has been delayed for years because of a lack of
money.”
A Times piece (Weikel2) discusses the Los Angeles City Comptroller's discovery of cost increases over for projects at Lax's Tom Bradley International Terminal. Which increases are described, "... Los Angeles World Airports paid almost 67% more for several construction contracts related to the Bradley work than it originally agreed to pay." It also turns out the the cost increases discussed turn out to approach double, "[t]he Bradley project has now cost Los Angeles World Airports about $2 billion, much higher than the original estimates of $1.4 billion in late 2009."Specifically 140.28% higher than the original contract prices.
N.B. the Comptroller's office did not review ALL of the LAX projects, just a portion of them ―so there may be more over spending that has not been exposed.
Wow, it's déjà vu all over again, please see this article. The director of the SeaTac Airport was, coincidentally, the same director who has recently left LAX and was in charge during the major portion of the new Bradley Terminal.
The take-away quote from the above-linked article is,"With construction due to resume next month, her decision to leave comes at a crucial time for a project that has doubled in cost to $1.2 billion and remains mired in lawsuits."
A Times piece (Weikel2) discusses the Los Angeles City Comptroller's discovery of cost increases over for projects at Lax's Tom Bradley International Terminal. Which increases are described, "... Los Angeles World Airports paid almost 67% more for several construction contracts related to the Bradley work than it originally agreed to pay." It also turns out the the cost increases discussed turn out to approach double, "[t]he Bradley project has now cost Los Angeles World Airports about $2 billion, much higher than the original estimates of $1.4 billion in late 2009."Specifically 140.28% higher than the original contract prices.
N.B. the Comptroller's office did not review ALL of the LAX projects, just a portion of them ―so there may be more over spending that has not been exposed.
Wow, it's déjà vu all over again, please see this article. The director of the SeaTac Airport was, coincidentally, the same director who has recently left LAX and was in charge during the major portion of the new Bradley Terminal.
The take-away quote from the above-linked article is,"With construction due to resume next month, her decision to leave comes at a crucial time for a project that has doubled in cost to $1.2 billion and remains mired in lawsuits."
What else is new? Like the LACMTA, these transportation agencies
seem to have a common approach to problem solving; let’s do it as cheaply as
possible and worry about spending too much it later, or never.
Then for those who think that making it easier to pay is an improvement in transportation, you must consider that they are not proposing loading a transfer onto your "Tap Card"! My quote, "According to Metro CEO Phillip Washington, TAP is the largest smart-card system in North America, with more than 23 million transactions and $14.5 million in passes sold every month." With a weekday ridership of 8,758,708 and a 22 day work month yielding 192,691,576 ―I would say that New York City's MTA would easily surpass these figures. It is not called the "Big Apple"for nothing! Please see this page for NYC MTA statistics. Also, please see this Long Beach Post piece (Rivera); the lady is mentioned for the first time here, so she deserves an in text link, T-elle pas?
Please
use the “Works Cited” links (below) to read the complete articles cited here. You will find pieces by Ms Makinen, Ms Nelson, Messers Weikel and Zhaniser and others.
Sam Zell's "magic" continues to haunt the Los Angeles Times with staff reductions apparently in the near future. Su Topo doesn't like to see anyone lose her job and hopes and prays that the reporters cited in these postings continue to have secure jobs into the far future!
« a vérité est en marche et rien ne l’arrêtera. »
« a vérité est en marche et rien ne l’arrêtera. »
Émile Édouard Charles Antoine Zola (1840-04-02~1902-09-29)
[The
truth is on the march and nothing will stop it.]
Ars longa vita breva
Here is just a sample of Pierre Bonnard's (1867-10-03~1947-01-23) talent: “La Lettre”. N.B. If you search for additional paintings -Please be aware that some of his work is intended for adults.
I must say Merci beaucoup à http://www.1001tableaux.net/ for allowing our linkage to "La Lettre"!
I must say Merci beaucoup à http://www.1001tableaux.net/ for allowing our linkage to "La Lettre"!
¿Musica?
Here is a beautiful work by Claude-Paul Taffanel (1844-09-16~1908-11-22): his Fantasy on Der Freischütz by Weber.
Let's see a moving performance of Weber's Der Freischütz conducted by Carlos Kleiber, presented on www.youtube.com, uploaded by raychuan. "Thank you" to him and to our good friends at www.youtube.com and to all who helped bring us this beautiful music!
Metro Area – Lower your expectations! ♪
The Mole rides again, so
you don’t have to try to why people would steal parts of your bicycle". [Answer: because they can.]
Apologetic Mole
Your Mole apologises for an error last month; specifically, "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." There is quite clearly an overpass on Westwood BL, as this Mole noted as he passed under it a week or so ago. So, the LACMTA is only partially wrong, where wrong means providing much less than rapid transit.
La Taupe was wrong, takes full blame for the error and vows to be more careful in future.
That said, let's take a closer look at Overland Av grade crossing. Overland is a busy street and it has a west bound exit from the 10 Freeway. The lack of an overpass will definitely have a negative impact on traffic.
Parada Century Bl at Aviation♪
2015-09-03, early in the day: I'm waiting for a 117 Line bus and looked down at the sidewalk, which, as you can see above, is filthy. The LACMTA I'm quite sure pays Shelter Clean to, ahaaa, clean these sites. Does it look like it was cleaned recently?
Anyone who claims to be performing cleaning of bus stop MUST have a pressure cleaning system; that way they can clean the extremely filthy sidewalks like this one with its gunk and blobs of gum. Does shelter Clean have such a device? Maybe not.
Acera sucia parada de autobús en el ITC♪
All dates are ISO8601 format, times are expressed in the 24 hour system.)
Disappointed upon return♪
One would thing so. Two things are readily observable here: (1) The owner of this bicycle was ill-equipped to live in a big city; and (2) There is almost NO security at LACMTA facilities. I was sad to see that this bicycle rider would have to purchase a new seat and front tire and if she saw the problem, an aircraft cable to thread though both tires and the frame in a figure 8 pattern.
The LACMTA placed these bicycle racks at the LAXCBC and by doing so implied the idea of security to users. Although there are security cameras at the site, I doubt that they are staffed 24 X 7.
One Way to do it!♪
(With many thanks to http://caltechbikelab.blogspot.com/p/bike-curious.html)
Please visit my fellow bloggers at their CalTech site (linked above) for lots of useful information about bicycling, safe riding and more!
N.B. It is a good idea to either better secure your bicycle's seat OR take it with you.
2015-09-02 aboard a 117 Line: Two women argue about whether one should sit in the handicapped/senior area.
2015-09-02 returning aboard a 117 Line: It is impossible to read as I am surrounded by loud cell phone users.
2015-09-09: It is mid-afternoon and I'm headed for LAX aboard a 117 Line bus. There is a drunk on board, he is cursing and in general, being obnoxious ―plus he is drinking! The bus driver does nothing!
Blue Light Special?♪
2015-09-17 around 09:00: I am part of a growing group which is waiting for a Silver Line [It' a bus, folks!] bus at the Harbor Freeway Stop. It is the longest wait I've ever experienced. While waiting I photograph the display screen ―note the glare― and its attached "blue light", above.
Obviously, it is intended to inform us of something, but what? It is either some LACMTA bold idea of past, which failed, and has yet to be removed, like the TransiTV which died a very slow death. Or it is a current LACMTA bold new idea which they haven't got working yet.
If it suddenly disappears, we'll never know which it was ―sigh.
Map of Transportation not going where I am♪
2015-09-17 around 15:00: I return from my meeting via a Gold Line train from East Los Angeles, exiting at the Little Tokyo Arts District Station and made an unpleasant discovery. There didn't seem to be any bus stops that would take me to the Silver Line Stop at 1st and Hill, so ... Caminé allí. I ended up at what I believed was NOT a Silver Line stop, but my fellow riders were discussing the possibility the the 1st and Hill "out of use".
There was signage and like much of the LACMTA it was produced by a department whose motto is: "We're not satisfied until you're not satisfied!" In other words, the signage was crummy [I evaluated several other possible adjectives, but "crummy"seemed to fit best]. In retrospect, after research, I found that one sign referred to the Silver Line by its numeric designation "910", which, at the time, was not meaningful to me.
I finally boarded a Silver Line bus which traveled for about ten minutes before the driver announced that it "was losing power" after pulling up to the curb. A wait ensued and after awhile about one-third of the passengers were placed aboard a 460 Line bus. Another wait and a packed Silver Line bus arrived to board the remaining two-thirds of our weak power bus' passengers. Today the the signage people had achieved their goal, I was highly not satisfied.
Couldn't they have put together a largish diagram showing us what to do, you know, a picture is worth a thousand words? Trabajamos juntos and decided to set off on what was a two-and-a-half block walk south on La Brea, where we waited for the next 212 bus, having been passed by an earlier one as we walked.
As we approached Queen Street I pressed the stop signal but the driver bypassed Queen Street turned east on Manchester and after a few blocks, dropped me off, forcing me into about a half mile walk to the ITC.
Yes, the Queen Street stop was no more and had been changed to Regent Street for a reason which is unfathomable to me. Unless it is punishment meted out by the LACMTA for being part of the bus-riding class.
I believe that the ASA is convenient but under-used and improperly used. Why not just tell us: "The next stop is Regent Street. Transfer here to the 111/311, 40/740 and 607 buses."
The LACMTA is boasting about their OEI. They already have one "OEI" - which this Mole decodes as Office of Extraordinary Ignorance!"
2015-09-26 afternoon: Su Topo assists a Méxicana find her bus from the LAXCBC to her destination.
Camping En Parada
2915-09-26 On Sepulveda just south of La Tiera: I am here every week or so, but this man seems to be always ensconced in the bus shelter. The faetor circumscribes a perimeter which delimits my closest approach, so I stand and wait for the bus.
2915-09-28 waiting for a bus in Beverly Hills: Three Méxcanos approach me and ask for help in finding a bus to Hollywood. I gladly put them on their way with day passes so that they can move about the city in the most economical manner.
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.
Riyadh, Saudi Arabia has a population of
about 5.7 million ―making it less than one-third the size of Los Angeles. Let's take a look at their RAPID TRANSIT plans in this project overview.
Then we can view the FAST (seven companies experienced in building world class transportation systems) consortium's approach to the project.
Then we can view the FAST (seven companies experienced in building world class transportation systems) consortium's approach to the project.
When you read about the LACMTA's grandiose, yet provincial, plans for the OEI (vide supra), it sort of makes one smile ―or even laugh out loud, doesn't it?
You can be sure that with their "world class design", that they will not end up with neither afterthought Downtown Connectors nor Toonerville Trolleys!
Thank you to SAB, the down loader of the "plans" video and to itpbusiness , the down loader of the FAST video (both above).
As always, thank you to
our host, www.youtube.com
Cosmology
Please consider this CERN (Conseil Européen pour la Recherche Nucléaire) piece as a good primer which will position one to better understand the following article. There is also a good description of the particle detection process, available on the right side of the CERN page as a link, "How a detector works".
Scientific American reports (Moskowitz) on the evidence from the Large Hadron Accelerator that some particles do not obey the laws of physics as we currently understand them.
If you would like to have an overview of particle collisions inside the LRC and some of the byproducts they produce, then this Rutgers University Physics Assignment may be just the thing. There is a description of the "four fundamental forces", a particle taxonomy, some nice, easy-to-understand diagrams as well as more than enough mathematics to keep you occupied.
If you would like to have an overview of particle collisions inside the LRC and some of the byproducts they produce, then this Rutgers University Physics Assignment may be just the thing. There is a description of the "four fundamental forces", a particle taxonomy, some nice, easy-to-understand diagrams as well as more than enough mathematics to keep you occupied.
Fare Box Score Box and
related Lists of Shame
I.D. Numbers of buses
with Out of Order Fare Boxes: xxxxx (yyyy-mm-dd etc.);
East Bound 125 Line Bus, #11038.(2015-09-04 @ 14:00); West Bound 117 Line Bus, #8301.(2015-09-15 @ 13:50)
East Bound 125 Line Bus, #11038.(2015-09-04 @ 14:00); West Bound 117 Line Bus, #8301.(2015-09-15 @ 13:50)
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.
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This site contains or
provides links to copyrighted material the use of which has not always been
specifically authorized by the copyright owner. We are making such material
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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
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this site are copyrighted by their respective artists and are made available
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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
Makinen, Julie and Weikel, Dan. “A high-speed rail from L.A. to Las Vegas? China says it's partnering with U.S. to build”. Los Angeles Times. Sep. 17, 2015. Web. http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-vegas-la-chinese-high-speed-rail-20150917-story.html
Moskowitz, Clara.
“2 Accelerators Find Particles That May Break Known Laws of Physics”. Scientific American. Sep. 9, 2015. Web. http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/2-accelerators-find-particles-that-may-break-known-laws-of-physics1/
Rivera, Stephanie. “Deal Among LA County's 26 Transportation Agencies Allows for Seamless Riding System with Metro's TAP Cards". Long Beach Post. Web. http://lbpost.com/news/2000007105-deal-among-la-county-s-26-transportation-agencies-allows-for-seamless-riding-system-with-metro-s-tap-cards
Weikel, Dan. “Metrolink will improve four rail crossings in Moorpark, Simi Valley”. Los Angeles Times. Sep. 14, 2015. Web. http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-metrolink-rail-crossings-20150914-story.html
Weikel2, Dan. “City audit uncovers big cost increases for new LAX Bradley terminal”. Los Angeles Times. Sep. 17, 2015. Web.
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