2015-10-31
Vae Viator68 2015-10-31
Vae Viator68
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 a Hertz shuttle bus which cross the solid white line and cuts off a Line 111/311 bus.
Hertz shuttle drivers are all Class-B operators and should know better; but they don't care and neither does the LACMTA and any of the policing agencies which have jurisdiction in the area.
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.
Promises, promises, promises♪
I often read just about anything available; I read the above on one bus or another. In this case I give some thought to the magnanimity J of the LACMTA. The two hour period begins as soon as you tap your card, so let’s assume a 45 minute ride followed by a 45 minute wait for your bus – you end up with a usable period of thirty minutes. The big print giveth the small print taketh away! It is easy to miss connections at the LAXCBC; in large measure this is due to the badly thought out transfer plan. Now one would expect that the LACMTA would attempt to cluster (used advisedly) its buses in order to allow for the shortest distance between buses during the transfer. Not the case here. I readdress that issue below.
Compared to the paper transfers (Muni Transfers) whose term of validity begins when the issuing bus is expected reached its turnaround point. Now that is a FAIR transfer! But, no, the LACMTA wants to "appear" to be magnanimous, while in reality they are actuality STINGY!
I addressed the issue of the poorly considered connections at LAXCBC on 2013-03-30 and again 2014-12-31. Obviously, since it would make life easier for the ridership, nothing was ever done about it!
LAXCBC Layout♪
Reconfiguring the LAX City Bus Center so that the distance between Metro buses is a minimum should be accomplished! Presently all Metro Buses drop their passengers at the far south-western corner of the LAXCBC[, i.e., Bus Bay 14]. Please note the diagram above which shows the encircled “Bus Bay” numbers. The layout above is many years out of date, but after all, this is the work of the LACMTA. For example it doesn't show the 102 Line's Bay, presently 14 Su Topo urges —as he had done before- that the bay 9 (presently unused) be made the new drop-off point. N.B. Bay 10 is shown above as being the drop-off point; in reality it is the CCMBL bus Bay.
Alternatively, ─and this may be the quicker overall option which can be easily tested─ buses could proceed to their assigned bus bay and drop off their passengers. This would alter su Topo's number of paces from incoming to outgoing buses, but, since most Metro buses could be grouped in the eastern half of the ellipse it should still be more efficient that the existing situation.
Ideally, the LACMTA could study all the transfer options, e.g., From 102 To 111; From 102 To 232 etc. Then they could plan to have buses with have the highest mean connecting passengers leave from adjacent bus bays. But we must face the fact that that will never happen! So, the best we can expect is that somehow ALL the Metro buses are relocated to the eastern portion of the ellipse. That would be the series of bus bays between 5 and 9. Well, Mr. Washington, how about that? You know (or perhaps you don't) that when one rides LACMTA buses one walk a lot! I cannot assure you that your Mole has the perfect answer, but it is orders of magnitude BETTER than anything that the LACMTA has done for us!
Alternatively, ─and this may be the quicker overall option which can be easily tested─ buses could proceed to their assigned bus bay and drop off their passengers. This would alter su Topo's number of paces from incoming to outgoing buses, but, since most Metro buses could be grouped in the eastern half of the ellipse it should still be more efficient that the existing situation.
Ideally, the LACMTA could study all the transfer options, e.g., From 102 To 111; From 102 To 232 etc. Then they could plan to have buses with have the highest mean connecting passengers leave from adjacent bus bays. But we must face the fact that that will never happen! So, the best we can expect is that somehow ALL the Metro buses are relocated to the eastern portion of the ellipse. That would be the series of bus bays between 5 and 9. Well, Mr. Washington, how about that? You know (or perhaps you don't) that when one rides LACMTA buses one walk a lot! I cannot assure you that your Mole has the perfect answer, but it is orders of magnitude BETTER than anything that the LACMTA has done for us!
Bay 14 Drop-off point to Bay 9 Drop-off point
Bay 5 [117 Line] 130 paces 20 paces – net savings 110 paces
Bay 7 [(1/3)11 Lines] 150 paces 40 paces – net savings 110 paces
Bay 8 [232 Line] 130 paces 20 paces – net savings 110 paces
Additionally, passengers could end up catching buses that now pass them as they run for the proper Bus Bay. This Mole was told as he arrived at the door exactly as it was closing, “… once the door is closed there can be no more boarding …” —he was left waiting for the next bus. Now that's service?
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!].
A Times piece (Nelson) covers the LACMTA's hopes and dreams for more money to waste, oops, spend. The piece is concise and to the point so, please read it (links are, when available, included in the Works Cited section, below). I'll follow the money and quote the first paragraph: "[A] bill that Gov. Jerry Brown signed Wednesday will allow Los Angeles County transportation officials to seek a sales tax increase in 2016 that could raise as much as $120 billion for local roads, freeways and mass transit." Oh, and the sales tax for Los Angeles County would become 9.5%.
One can just imagine the Pavlovian response engendered from the LACMTA by the words "$120 billion". The article is also a call to arms for those of us who are tired of seeing our tax monies flow to an agency whose many flaws are well documented in these pages. It is extremely important for those of us who understand that good transportation policy will NOT be enacted by politicians and that it takes dedicated professionals who understand the long term goals and are able to achieve them. We must vote to disapprove the ballot measure and understand how to vote so that the measure is disapproved. The voters have been given "pie in the sky" promises for generations; this measure will undoubtedly have that kind of verbiage behind it as well.
The Los Angeles Times reports (Nelson2) that USC will stop subsidizing its' employees in the amount of $30 monthly or 30 percent of the cost of a monthly Metro pass.
This is a nicely detailed piece that everyone should read. I will quote but a single telling section which concisely states USC's position: 'Transportation officials said administrators asked them to cut $1 million from their budget, and they chose the $1.1-million transit subsidy program. The money saved will go toward "our academic mission," transportation director Tony Mazza said. "We could have made different cuts, but that would have meant cutting service, which we weren't willing to do."'
USC's new policy seems to evidence that enticing drivers out of their cars and onto public mass transportation is an unrealistic dream. Once a person ─this is something which your Mole well knows─ experiences Los Angeles public transportation, he is less likely to support it. Los Angeles public transportation is the ride of last resort. Rude drivers, rude fellow passengers, long walks, long waits, service interruptions, loud ASAs, loud cell phone conversations, loud cell phone music, drunks, arguments, fights, little or no security, no easily accessible restrooms along the route and more administered by an agency whose concern for its ridership is, at its highest, minimal. The are almost daily occurrences and require much of those who must experience it.
Does the Mass NOT Rapid transportation being cobbled together by the LACMTA offer an attractive alternative to freeway driving in air conditioned comfort, while listening to the programming of you choice, at a volume level of your choosing? For the most part, those of us who use the LACMTA's "services" have no other option L.
Your Mole has seen it all! He perseveres because he always has reading materials in which to immerse himself; failing that, he can go into meditative mode J
It’s worse than I Thought
I have read a good deal about TBM (Tunnel Boring Machines) and have included links to coverage and photographs of them at work in these posts.\ However, Mr. Vartabedian’s article read like a primer on them and I learned more!
This is a nicely detailed piece that everyone should read. I will quote but a single telling section which concisely states USC's position: 'Transportation officials said administrators asked them to cut $1 million from their budget, and they chose the $1.1-million transit subsidy program. The money saved will go toward "our academic mission," transportation director Tony Mazza said. "We could have made different cuts, but that would have meant cutting service, which we weren't willing to do."'
USC's new policy seems to evidence that enticing drivers out of their cars and onto public mass transportation is an unrealistic dream. Once a person ─this is something which your Mole well knows─ experiences Los Angeles public transportation, he is less likely to support it. Los Angeles public transportation is the ride of last resort. Rude drivers, rude fellow passengers, long walks, long waits, service interruptions, loud ASAs, loud cell phone conversations, loud cell phone music, drunks, arguments, fights, little or no security, no easily accessible restrooms along the route and more administered by an agency whose concern for its ridership is, at its highest, minimal. The are almost daily occurrences and require much of those who must experience it.
Does the Mass NOT Rapid transportation being cobbled together by the LACMTA offer an attractive alternative to freeway driving in air conditioned comfort, while listening to the programming of you choice, at a volume level of your choosing? For the most part, those of us who use the LACMTA's "services" have no other option L.
Your Mole has seen it all! He perseveres because he always has reading materials in which to immerse himself; failing that, he can go into meditative mode J
The Los Angeles Times projects (Nelson3)
the opening of the Gold Line Extension in March 5, 2016. Please read Ms Nelson’s
nicely illustrated piece which includes a map of the six (6) new stations along
the 11 and a half mile route (linked in “Works Cited”). Too bad that it is NOT RAPID transit.
It’s worse than I Thought
The Times covers (Vartabedian) the further
challenges of the California Bullet Train, which seems more and more like a “blank”
train to this Mole.
In an excellent piece, Mr. Vartabedian covers the inadequate planning
which lead to the current state of affairs as well as the physical barriers to on time, on budget completion of the project.
A big part of the challenge is tunneling through
mountains which are unfortunately located in earthquake fault zones. Here is a
quote: In speaking about the tunneling time-frame, “It doesn't strike me as realistic," said
James Monsees, one of the world's top tunneling experts and an author of the
federal manual on highway tunneling. "Faults are notorious for causing
trouble."
Please read Mr. Vartabedian’s eminently
readable report which is linked in “Works Cited”. One more tease for it: “… [it is] estimated that the
cost of building the first phase from Burbank to Merced had risen 31% to $40
billion.”
I scanned the article to find CHSRA’s usual “go
for it” attitude but no direct CHSRA quotes were found.
It is impossible for me to be too complementary
regarding Mr. Vartabedian’s work!
Vartabedian, Ralph. “$68-billion California
bullet train project likely to overshoot budget and deadline targets”. Los Angeles Times. Oct. 25, 2015:
« On n'a pas deux cœurs, un pour les animaux et un pour les humains. On a un cœur ou on n'en a pas. »
Alponse de Lamartine (1790-10-21~1869-02-26)
[We don't have two hearts, one for animals and one for humans. We either have a heart or don't.]
Ars longa vita breva
Frédéric Bazille (1841-12-06~1870-11-28) was an excellent artist
who died too soon at 30. He might have have had a long career, except for his service in the Franco-Prussian War in which he lost his life. Please see his well-known work is Réunion defamille.
¿Musica?
Let's listen to a work by Charles-Louis-Ambroise Thomas (1811-08-01~1896-02-12). Here is his Mignon-Overture. Thank you to the downloader jolivetmania, y como siempre a www.youtube.com.
Metro
Area – Lower your expectations!♪
The Mole rides again,
so you don’t have to break out your GPS device as you attempt to quickly find a
relocated bus stop.
All dates are ISO8601 format, times are expressed in the 24 hour system.)
2015-10-01: I leave the Camarillo Metrolink station (there were no trains for HOURS and the ticket machine seemed inoperable) on a Vista Bus bound for the Thousand Oaks Transportation Center on a VISTA bus. The trip took close to one hour. Then, I traveled from the Thousand Oaks Transportation Center to the Warner Center Orange Line Bus. I spent about twenty minutes in air conditioned comfort waiting for a 161 Line bus. You can see the route and timings for this portion my trip on this Metro Schedule/Map. That portion took about an hour and a half. Then, aboard an Orange Line bus I headed toward Sepulveda BL and the Orange Line intersection in order to ride a 734 Line bus to UCLA. This Orange Line Schedule/Map will show the route and timings. That portion took about an hour and a half. Finally I boarded a 734 Line Bus and was at UCLA in about another one and a half hours; See the 734 Schedule/Map. The total trip took close to six hours for wait time for transportation and over-the-road time. It actually took more than that for the final three buses it took to get home. It was a long, long day! The same trip using an automobile with an experienced freeway driver could be made in under two hours.
2015-10-01: I leave the Camarillo Metrolink station (there were no trains for HOURS and the ticket machine seemed inoperable) on a Vista Bus bound for the Thousand Oaks Transportation Center on a VISTA bus. The trip took close to one hour. Then, I traveled from the Thousand Oaks Transportation Center to the Warner Center Orange Line Bus. I spent about twenty minutes in air conditioned comfort waiting for a 161 Line bus. You can see the route and timings for this portion my trip on this Metro Schedule/Map. That portion took about an hour and a half. Then, aboard an Orange Line bus I headed toward Sepulveda BL and the Orange Line intersection in order to ride a 734 Line bus to UCLA. This Orange Line Schedule/Map will show the route and timings. That portion took about an hour and a half. Finally I boarded a 734 Line Bus and was at UCLA in about another one and a half hours; See the 734 Schedule/Map. The total trip took close to six hours for wait time for transportation and over-the-road time. It actually took more than that for the final three buses it took to get home. It was a long, long day! The same trip using an automobile with an experienced freeway driver could be made in under two hours.
Parada Camping♪
2015-10-04 @ 12:54: I am faced with a sight seen all to often these days (above), yet another homeless person with his shopping card has set up housekeeping at a bus stop.
Republic Services Trash Pickup♪
2015-10-06 @ 13:54: I’m waiting for a bus in Hawthorne when a woman in a Republic Services Truck pulls up to the bus stop. She waits in her truck for a while and then exits continuing a conversation she obviously began earlier. The conversation is peppered with expletives. She is, how can I say this in the nicest manner?, umm, rough. She removes the trash bag from its container, ties it off and tosses it into the back of her truck. She slams the metal inner container back into its outer container and slams down the cover –no gentleness here. Then she returns to her truck and remains parked at the curb for about ten minutes. She’d have likely waited longer but a bus which will stop shows up.
As an industrial engineer I would not give her a very high efficiency rating; I can’t see her emptying more than four trash containers –perhaps less- based upon her performance at this stop. I believe that the City of Hawthorn is paying her bill, not the LACMTA. The LACMTA’s contractor, Shelter Clean, is faster, but, they do a much less than thorough job, e.g., they don’t work within a very wide perimeter, neither do they clean the riders’ detritus from the gutter. Doesn’t anyone have a work ethic anymore?
You can read about how Republic Services views itself here.
My trash can overfloweth♪
2015-10-07 @ 0900: I’m waiting for a bus on La Brea. I share a bus shelter with a well tattooed woman. She removes a piece of candy from her handbag, strips it of its’ wrapper and tosses the wrapper on the sidewalk. There is a trash can not much more than an arm’s length away. The trash can is, as shown above, overflowing –perhaps Shelter Clean will be here soon J.
205-10-07 @ 09:30 aboard a 212 Line bus: I abandon any attempt to read as
a man in a Marlins shirt plays “music” on his cell, if that’s what the distorted
sounds emanating from his phone can be called. Soon, another man joins in, making a call on his device.
There is a simpler
way♪
Walk
one and a half blocks WEST ->
2015-10-07 10:15: I want to transfer to a west bound 720 but,
the La Brea/Wilshire stop has been relocated.
Of course the map making department of the OEÏ (Office of Extraordinary
Ignorance) N.B. the special designation
so as not to confuse it with similarly acronymic designations. It is two plus blocks west, however a too quick scan of the map makes me thing is is east so, initially, I head east. I missed the "N" at the bottom of the map! Of course, the logical place to move the stop would be back across La Brea to the north-east corner. Why didn't the do that? Likely it would be too convienient for the ridership.
Metro Brain♪
2015-10-07 10:30: A ride on the 720 and more walking due to construction on Fairfax places me at an unmarked bus stop. We wait and wait. A conversation ensues; we talk about the LACMTA and one of the participants points out what he says is a sculpture honouring the Metro brain (pictured above). I say, "but it is just a big rock.". He replies, "Exactly".
Parada Century Bl at Aviation II♪
2015-10-08, just past 08:00: I'm forced to stand while waiting for a 117 Line bus do to the
incumbent lying on the bus bench (photo above).
I could have taken a seat next to the homeless person's feet, but … .
Incident at LAXCBC♪
Incident at LAXCBC♪
2015-10-08 LAXCBC @ 16:25: When I arrived the scen was much as illustrated by the above photo. There were several sheriff's patrol cars on scene and the LAFD ambulance arrived soon after and transported someone. The way the vehicles are arrayed, it would seem that the truck (in the foreground) entered the LAXCBC through the western EXIT. I don't know exactly what happened here —I arrived after it happened, but I was pleased to see so many deputies on-site! I would be even more pleased to see them arrest some of the scoff-law drivers who put bus passengers and pedestrians at risk, at the 111 Line bus stop on northeast corner of the Aviation/96th Street intersection.
One of this Mole's long-standing campaigns was to have the signage improved at the LAXCBC to avoid incidents like the one discussed here. Futher la Taupe has wanted to see more policing of the LAXCBC to prevent further such incidents.
You can time travel back to these posts and see some of my suggestions for improving safety at the LAXCBC.
http://lametromole.blogspot.com/2012/01/vae-viator-23-bbbmaxellatrash-more.html
http://lametromole.blogspot.com/2010_08_01_archive.html
You can time travel back to these posts and see some of my suggestions for improving safety at the LAXCBC.
http://lametromole.blogspot.com/2012/01/vae-viator-23-bbbmaxellatrash-more.html
http://lametromole.blogspot.com/2010_08_01_archive.html
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.
Paris whose population of 10,755,000 is about 3 million smaller than Los Angeles is light-years ahead of L.A. in transportation. Please look a the map linked here. At almost the exact center of the bottom you will see "Orly" airport referenced. Today we'll take a trip from Antony Station to Orly airport. And, considering the map and the ride to Orly, you'll see why I refer to Los Angeles as the Toonerville of transportation. N.B. this RAPID TRANSIT trip uses elevated. separated surface and subway rails to arrive at the destination! Of particular it arrives at the airport in subway mode, i.e., UNDER the AIRPORT ─Heavens Above, Ms L.
Here is our RAPID TRANSIT ride from Antony to Orly - TERRIFIC wasn't it?
As always, thank you
to our host, www.youtube.com and to the downloader, Italo Perna.
Cosmology
TED talks are always informative. This one shows us how we, as earth dwellers, fit into the lager scheme of things. I suggest viewing the video in full screen mode.
Here from AFP (Agence France-Presse) and their excellent website www.france24.com , is their coverage of the attack on the
MSF (Médecins Sans Frontières) [Doctors without borders] hospital in Kunduz Afghanistan. These doctors are BRAVE humanitarians who risk their lives while serving others.
The MSF Web sites are linked to the appropriate language, above. Those who are able, can make a donation to the organisation there.
Then, in English, some in depth coverage from FAIR's [Fairness and Accuracy In Reporting] Counterspin, featuring the enormously talented Ms Jenine Jackson and her guest the equally talented Ms Phyllis Bennis of the Institute for Policy Studies discussing the attack.
Fix The City Action♪
With thanks to Fix The City, INC.!
Fix The City, INC. didn't waste any time in mounting a challenge to the City Council's Mobility Plan 2035, partly shown above! See the document in its entirety, details about Fix The City, Inc. and more, here. I like that in an organization! I wonder if we can interest them in making the LACMTA more transparent, responsive to its ridership, professional, better planners and conscious of the necessity of husbanding the tax-payers money? Perhaps a court order forcing transparency by publishing budgets, project efficiency, value propositions, alternatives, etc. ad infinitum would do it?
¡Let's not give the LACMTA a penny until they show us what excellent fiduciaries they are!
Fare Box Score Box
and related Lists of Shame
I.D. Numbers of buses
with Out of Order Fare Boxes: Direction Line, Bus# (yyyy-mm-dd and time.);
South Bound 40 Line Bus, #9361.(2015-10-06 @ 09:50); West
Bound 117 Line Bus, #8479 (2015-10-08 @ 10:30); West Bound 117 Line bus, # 8217 (2015-10-29 @15:00;
Bound 117 Line Bus, #8479 (2015-10-08 @ 10:30); West Bound 117 Line bus, # 8217 (2015-10-29 @15:00;
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. At the present time (2015-10-31)there are too many drivers to name, whose skill at parallel parking is deficient .
XXXXX F[+0] 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 40 foot 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.
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Statement
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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
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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. “Five rail lines Metro could build with $120 billion in
new sales tax revenue”. Los Angeles Times.Oct 7, 2015. Web.
http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-train-to-lax-metro-sales-tax-20151007-story.html
Nelson2, Laura J. “Will USC employees drive more without a subsidy for transit passes?”. Los Angeles Times.Oct 13, 2015. Web. http://www.latimes.com/local/california/la-me-california-commute-20151013-story.html
Nelson2, Laura J. “Will USC employees drive more without a subsidy for transit passes?”. Los Angeles Times.Oct 13, 2015. Web. http://www.latimes.com/local/california/la-me-california-commute-20151013-story.html
Vartabedian, Ralph. “$68-billion California
bullet train project likely to overshoot budget and deadline targets”. Los Angeles Times. Oct. 25, 2015.
Web: http://www.latimes.com/local/california/la-me-bullet-train-cost-final-20151025-story.html
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