2018-01-31
Via Viator94 2018-01-31
Via Viator94
From your Mole, to all who see this in hopes that you will enjoy your visit to this site.
ίBienvenido!
Bienvenue !
いらっしゃいませ!
When politicians involve themselves in technical matters, expect failures.
CEO's Question Time
Dear Mr. Washington:
I respectfully request answers to questions which puzzle me about the LACMTA operations. I would suggest that you present your answers to Los Angeles Times reporters who have my permission to edit, rephrase as long as the intent of the question is preserved and the publication rights to my questions without cost or obligation. With the understanding that the results of the Question and Answer interview be published in the Los Angeles Times. This allows the widest possible to your answers and I, as a Los Angeles Times subscriber, will also have easy access to your answers.
2018-01-31
In a slight departure from the ususal your
Mole has listed his New Year's Wishes below and hopes that the LACMTA WILL MAKE THEM COME TRUE.
THE QUESTION: How
about it, Mr. Washington? Have your organization step up and deliver! If they rode Metro buses and trains they may even see things that need improvement. But, based upon my past experience, I wouldn't bet too heavily on them.
P.S. It shouldn't rquire two years to begin improving service, just have your staff read all the back issues of this blog and they will have a work list to start on, like, right away! Oh, you are very welcome Mr. Washington!
AMERICA'S WORST!♪
No Stop Number Sign here either♪
Here are su Topo's 2018 New Year wishes:
That the LACMTA would be more open rather than secretive. For example, reporting to us how much they spent to put up and take down the STOP NUMBER signs. And exactly why the signs were removed.
That the LACMTA would be more considerate of the needs of their ridership.
That LACMTA would provide more and better security aboard trains and buses. And appreciate the hard work of the LAPD. Especially when they are cursed at and spat upon by passengers who have no consideration to the rights of other passengers and obviously have no manners.
Close Enough for LACMTA Work♪
That LACMTA would train their drivers to position their buses at the bus stop "flag" and close enough to the curb to be a safe, easy step away.
Good Enough for LACMTA Work♪
That the LACMTA
would supervise their bus stop cleaning contractors so that they actually clean the bus stop, not just do the absolute minimum. Shown above is an often seen condition, the dustbin inside the metal frame is emptied, but the litter below the dustbin, which accumulates over weeks or months, is left in place.
That the LACMTA would supervise their contractors so that they set the volume of their on board stop announcements, dispatch radios [why can't they use the same "telephone" system used by Metro?]at a comfortable listening level.
That the LACMTA would supervise their contractors so that the contractor's drivers would not "entertain"riders by turning off the ASA and then singing out stops. many, if not most riders want a safe, quiet trip so that they can listen to personal audio equipment, sleep, read or just sit quietly.
That the LACMTA would collect fares from all passengers [see security above] rather than having income be drained away —it is a crime, theft of services.
That the LACMTA would disallow
boarding of passengers with unpleasant body odors, dragging trash bags
stuffed with recyclables, drunk and/or threatening, unruly etc., etc. [see security above].
That the LACMTA would add the bus drivers number to the scrolling sign inside the bus, so that riders can report those drivers who are rude, crude and have poor driving skills.
That the LACMTA would add the bus drivers number to the scrolling sign inside the bus, so that riders can report those drivers who are rude, crude and have poor driving skills.
That the LACMTA would insist that their drivers —regular and contractors— secure wheelchair passengers. Rather, they ask the passenger if they wish to be secured; most seem to reply "NO". In
the event of an accident, these heavy wheelchairs could bounce around
the bus and injure other passengers. But like many items, safety to
passengers is extremely low on the LACMTA's priority list —if they even have such a list.
That wheelchair bound passengers would board AND exit last. Agroup of people can board fast and present little delay to the wheelchair boud passenger, as opposed to vise versa.
The the LACMTA is spending the taxpayersmoney on Rent-a-Bike
programs and other adventures only tangentially related to transportation, all the while their pockets are being picked by LAWA!
Riding LACMTA services is generally not that pleasant to begin with and is only made more unpleasant by experiencing the above "punishments".
That wheelchair bound passengers would board AND exit last. Agroup of people can board fast and present little delay to the wheelchair boud passenger, as opposed to vise versa.
LAWA Flyaway Bus with a METRO tribute!♪
That the LACMTA fosters a culture of openness and transparency! Providing
quarterly and annual reports for each significant project, reporting
which reflects project status in terms of ahead of or behind plan and a
budget metric showing dollars over/under budget would allow the public
to evaluate their competency.
Riding LACMTA services is generally not that pleasant to begin with and is only made more unpleasant by experiencing the above "punishments".
Trash cans? We don't need no trash cans!
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
inter-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
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.
Further, when the agency responsible for public transportation is so lacking in every skill necessary for success yet will apply their only tool to the job. when you only tool is a PR flack; then every issue seem soluble by issuing a press release.
Further, when the agency responsible for public transportation is so lacking in every skill necessary for success yet will apply their only tool to the job. when you only tool is a PR flack; then every issue seem soluble by issuing a press release.
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.
These incursions happen multiple times per day so it is only a matter of time before an accident occurs.
Airport auto rental shuttle drivers, FlyAway drivers and others, if shown in the above videos, are all Class-B operators and should know better; but often they don't care and neither does the LACMTA nor any of the policing agencies which have jurisdiction in the area.
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 the current CEO of
the LACMTA.
Mr. Washington, 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. That would provide a safe-crossing interstice for the alighting passengers. But, with the LACMTA nothing is simple.
Although the solution could be implemented with nothing more than a memo
to the 111 Line drivers, it is a task for which the LACMTA so far has
proved to be inadequate.
Office of Exceptional Ineptitude♪
Dirty Bus Stop.♪
When
one encounters a situation like this, try to rectify it by calling the
number below which usually appears on the bus bench. When the stop is
cleaned, the detritus inside the metal framework and under the blue
litter can is almost never removed. The word "third rate" comes to
mind. Also the words unsupervised and/or poorly managed play a large
role in the way the LACMTA interfaces, if they do actually interface,
with their contractors.
Bus stop benches often have a contact number affixed to them. I
can't say always because as you have seen, the LACMTA seems to lack
effective processes —they could never conform to ISO 9000 requirements—.
As for calling maintenance, la Taupe called once, and surprise, no action was taken.
As for calling maintenance, la Taupe called once, and surprise, no action was taken.
An Accident Waiting to Happen!♪
Confused
drivers, pedestrians, tired Train Operators, or any combination or
permutation of these, which at grade level, can cause fatalities. Note
the downward slope of the tracks which can result in an additional
operator workload in controlling trains.
What bus am I riding?♪
The "shakeup" (bi-annual schedule changes) has been in effect for about three weeks and finding on-board schedules which match the route of the bus in which you are riding, is next to impossible. HINT: It is NOT the 128
Line!
Oops, trip on this OOII artifact and you'll be under the bus!♪
Extremely
sloppy work! A bus stop flag pole was removed here leaving the pole's
foundation very near the curb, for children, the aged or anyone at all
to trip over and fall into the street. If one was hurrying, one might
well end up under
the bus' wheels. Al that needed to be done here was to remove the four
nuts holding the base in place, remove the base and then with a metal
cutting blade saw the protruding bolts level with the concrete. A
professional could perform the job in minutes. But the LACMTA's failure
to supervise its' workers or contractors results in the situation
depicted above.
How will the LACMTA solve this problem? Well, the LACMTA will hold a series of meeting over months and then likely forget about the problem.
Your
Mole proposes this solution: Whenever a training bus is covering a
route, on the first and last trip of route training, the operator being
trained and the trainer would both alight at each stop and check it for
safety. Both parties would fill out a bus stop safety report. That way
new operators would be indoctrinated into a culture of safety and know
how to report bus stop safety issues; the experienced trainer would add
to his/her knowledge and be able to discuss issues he/she had seen with
their trainee.
Brilliant idea Mole! Hardly that, but it is logical thinking.
The Sign Most Dreaded by LACMTA Riders!♪
One
can't find a loo when they are most needed! Does anyone really believe
that the LACMTA management really cares? After all, they just tell
their chauffeur to pull into the nearest coffee shop so that they can
have a "break".
They are going to spend $8,000,000 on a few new restrooms and the rehab of a few more at Union Station! When will those restrooms be ready? La Taupe's estimate: it will be a couple of years and the restrooms in Union Station will likely be out of service for a long while too.
They are going to spend $8,000,000 on a few new restrooms and the rehab of a few more at Union Station! When will those restrooms be ready? La Taupe's estimate: it will be a couple of years and the restrooms in Union Station will likely be out of service for a long while too.
How BBB Gets It Done!♪
This
worker, using a high pressure delivery system leaves a clean, really
clean bus stop. Not like the messes found at LACMTA Transportation
Centers, such as ITC! And at the many filthy bus stop around the city.
BBB has Nextbus!♪
This
is not related to the Office of Incredible Ineptitude, but rather
another BBB work product which serves to show how a more honest
transportation provider names their supplier's product, i.e., correctly,
viz., "nextbus" and they kept the stop numbers and texting in place as a
benefit for its ridership.
While the LACMTA, sneakily, er, covertly did away with the stop numbers.
Nextbus on my iPhone, it's GREAT!♪
I simply opened the nextbus.com site using a browser, it took over asked permission to use my location, which permission I granted and voilà; I was presented with all the bus availability at stops within reasonable walking distance of my position. Shown above is on the first screen of several. importantly, there is no need for an "app", because since Tim Cook stopped updating my iPhone at iOS6 which then froze all my apps, which, although had updates available, they were denied to me. When this iPhone fails, I'm going with Samsung!
The nextbus site, a valuable tool!♪
But,
where there is the will, there is a way. Su Topo visited the nextbus
page at nextbus.com: set the nextbus service provider to Los Angeles
Metro using the drop down menu; set the bus route number to 130;
selected the stop that I have used and will be using at some other time
in the future, to Hawthorne Blvd and Artesia and voila, the stop number "00147" was filled in for me.
Now I can note that stop number and its location in my agenda and soon I will have reconstructed the subset of stop numbers which I require.
It would had been much easier if the LACMTA,stupidly,
er, I mean, with lack of intelligence, had not rushed to waste money
and removed the stop number signs which had cost quite a bit to install
in the first place.
Please contemplate Mole's Law Number 1: "When politicians involve themselves in technical matters, expect failures."
Now I can note that stop number and its location in my agenda and soon I will have reconstructed the subset of stop numbers which I require.
It would had been much easier if the LACMTA,
Please contemplate Mole's Law Number 1: "When politicians involve themselves in technical matters, expect failures."
They Should Have just placed the stop number as shown above♪
That way the numbering system would have had relevance far into the future. it could been adapted to emergency services, 911 reporting when an incident occurs away from numbered houses or people have trouble pronouncing local street or intersection names.
But no,the LACMTA seems to act before it thinks.
But no,the LACMTA seems to act before it thinks.
Torrance Transit Uses NextBUS Too!♪
That is how we can tell that the LACMTA have made an error; because everyone else is using Nextbus texting and the LACMTA have removed most of their bus stop numbering signs.
Metro's Flag a revés♪
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.
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, "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.
Mr. Joseph Hedges becomes "[t]he chief operating officer, a new position at the authority created more than six months ago, is supposed to “ensure” that construction and engineering on the program are delivered on budget and schedule. Hedges has 35 years of experience in construction, engineering and project management."
Su
Topo believes that your time will be well spent in following the link in “Works
Cited” to read all of the works of these hard working reporters cited herein.
The Times self reports (Koren) that the Los Angeles Times employees will unionise. Your Mole says "Congratulations". After reading about how prior management tried to kill a story about goings-on of a fund-raising head of department at USC, things can only get better.
Here are a few quotes from Mr. Koren's piece:
'Guild organizer Kristina Bui, a copy editor at The Times, said: "This was a long time coming, and we're all thrilled that this has finally happened. The newsroom has put up with so much disruption and mismanagement, and this vote just underscores how much of a say we need to have in the decision-making process. The newsroom is demanding a seat at the bargaining table."'
"A staff organizing committee of 44 Times journalists had urged workers to unionize in response to years of corporate turnover, advertising declines and cutbacks that have shrunk The Times' staff from more than 1,000 in the late 1990s to fewer than 400 today. Organizers said they hoped to bargain for job protections, salary increases and equal pay for men and women, and they argued that executives of the Chicago-based owner are overpaid."
Please read the entire article by using the link in "Works Cited".
The
Los Angeles Times reveals(Nelson) lots of interesting news related to
the LACMTA, its management and politicians. Ridership
is down on Metro buses and trains, mostly showing two digit declines
over several years. One area of continuing concern is security.
Ms
Nelson writes about the decline in ridership: "Experts and officials have no firm answers, but
have attributed the decline to a combination of factors, including
changes to immigration policy, competition from Uber and Lyft and
more people buying cars — as well as perceived problems with
existing transit service and security."
Mole: The LACMTA seems to have excuses by the score but very little in in the way solid analytical thinking. Their usual approach is "We'll do a study. Ms Nelson's article is well supported with graphic materials. So, please use the link and get the full picture.
The Los Angeles Times reveals(Nelson) lots of interesting news related to the LACMTA, its management and politicians. Ridership is down on Metro buses and trains, mostly showing two digit declines over several years. One area of continuing concern is security.
Ms
Nelson writes about the decline in ridership: "Experts and officials have no firm answers, but
have attributed the decline to a combination of factors, including
changes to immigration policy, competition from Uber and Lyft and
more people buying cars — as well as perceived problems with
existing transit service and security."
Mole: The LACMTA seems to have excuses by the score but very little in in the way solid analytical thinking. Their usual approach is "We'll do a study. Ms Nelson's article is well supported with graphic materials. So, please use the link and get the full picture.
Mole: The LACMTA seems to have excuses by the score but very little in in the way solid analytical thinking. Their usual approach is "We'll do a study. Ms Nelson's article is well supported with graphic materials. So, please use the link and get the full picture.
While the LACMTA sends their rental bicycle customers out into traffic without even a helmet, New York City is beginning to protect their bicycle riders.
Amny.com informs us (Barone) that, "Following
an uptick in cycling deaths last year, the city is pursuing its first
protected crosstown bike lanes in Manhattan."
"The
lanes — which would run between curbs and a row of parked cars —
are in the early planning stages for four streets in midtown, the
city’s Department of Transportation announced Wednesday. First will
come two lanes on 26th and 29th streets, both stretching from the
East River to the Hudson. Then will come the second pair of lanes on
two, to-be-determined streets in the 50s."
Nice
work NYC! Isn't it great what applied brain-power can accomplish!
Read
the full story by using the "Works Cited" link below.
The bizjournals.com covers (Siu) Caltrain in San Francisco. Ms
Siu writes"Those
trying to get a free ride will pay a penalty of $75 on first and
second
violation.
A third offense or more can lead to a citation by transit police,
ejection or exclusion for 90 days from the system. The rule does not
apply to those under 18."
Amny.com informs us (Barone) that, "Following
an uptick in cycling deaths last year, the city is pursuing its first
protected crosstown bike lanes in Manhattan."
"The
lanes — which would run between curbs and a row of parked cars —
are in the early planning stages for four streets in midtown, the
city’s Department of Transportation announced Wednesday. First will
come two lanes on 26th and 29th streets, both stretching from the
East River to the Hudson. Then will come the second pair of lanes on
two, to-be-determined streets in the 50s."
Nice
work NYC! Isn't it great what applied brain-power can accomplish!
Read
the full story by using the "Works Cited" link below.
The bizjournals.com covers (Siu) Caltrain in San Francisco. Ms
Siu writes"Those
trying to get a free ride will pay a penalty of $75 on first and
second
violation.
A third offense or more can lead to a citation by transit police,
ejection or exclusion for 90 days from the system. The rule does not
apply to those under 18."
"Conductors
will switch to an electronic citation system, using a handheld device
to scan the violator's ID, rather than filling out a paper citation,
Lieberman said."
bizjournals.com tells us (Siu(2)) about Bart changes in 2018.
One of which is a fare increase but, please N.B., that BART is ALL Rapid Transit – No Toonerville Trollies there. Unlike our situation in Los Angeles, where we pay more for less, well, we do get more Mess Transit.
One of which is a fare increase but, please N.B., that BART is ALL Rapid Transit – No Toonerville Trollies there. Unlike our situation in Los Angeles, where we pay more for less, well, we do get more Mess Transit.
Another bizjournal.com article relates (McDermid) THE BART plan to reduce fare avoidance.
"BART
estimates that fare evasion costs the agency [between]
$10 million and $25 million a year and says it will now charge fines
of $75 for an adult an $55 for a juvenile if they are caught riding
the system without tickets or proof of payment. BART says fare
inspectors will typically go from one person immediately to the next,
so if you see one board your car and start checking fares, be ready
to pull out your own ticket in preparation."
The
Times covers(
Vartabedian)
on three recent additions to the CHSRA management."
"The
hirings aim to bolster the organization’s management following the
appointment of Brian Kelly as chief executive earlier this week."
Mr. Joseph Hedges becomes "[t]he chief operating officer, a new position at the authority created more than six months ago, is supposed to “ensure” that construction and engineering on the program are delivered on budget and schedule. Hedges has 35 years of experience in construction, engineering and project management."
"Ms
Pamela Mizukami assumes her role "as chief deputy director."
Please
follow the Works Cited link in order to read Mr. Vartabedian's full
article to learn more about these additions to the CHSRA staff, their
backgrounds and experience.
The Los Angeles Times details (Vartabedian (2)) the further intricacies of the lives of people devoted to building a "Bullet Train". Here are three quotes from Mr. Vartabedian's work.
"The disclosure of higher costs by the state's leading consultant, WSP, marked the first time that the rail authority publicly discussed the magnitude of its financial problems.
"Until now, rail authority Chairman Dan Richard has repeatedly disputed assessments that its cost estimates were too low, including a confidential analysis by the Federal Railroad Administration in late 2016 that projected rising costs in the Central Valley and a projectwide cost estimate in 2013 by WSP."
"The authority has asserted it could build world-class tunnels through California's geologically complex mountains much faster and for far less than the nation's top tunnel engineers believed."
Mole: It appears that their motto was 'Go for it!". This piece is a must read for those who can take the bare truth.
The Times reports Zahniser) that City
Councilwoman Martinez indicates that she will not take her daughter
on the Red Line Subway which to this Mole is more actual security
concern rather than than a perceived problem.
Ms Martinez says, ""As
a mom, I can tell you it's terrifying to sometimes think of having to
get on the Red Line. I won't for that very reason," she said. "I
don't have to see the data collection to know that if I feel unsafe
to ride the train with my kid, that I'm just simply not going to use
it.".
Hmmm,
that is certainly not a ringing endorsement of the LACMTA's aproach to security!
In a Times piece (Winton) we have all the ingredients of a great story.
Your Mole has heard the Mayor of Los Angeles, Garcetti, talking about transportation security.
Placing one's feet on bus/rail seats is discouraged by lots of on-board placards.
It seems to su Topo that when a police officer orders one to remove one's feet from a seat, one had better do it. I believe that police officers deserve better treatment than being cursed at and spat upon!
In this article the LACMTA CEO, Mr. Washington expressed his criticism of those upon whom he depends for security, the LAPD, on LACMTA conveyances transportation. Then we have the LACMTA CEO, criticising the police department's handling of the situation. Indicative of the LACMTA'S approach to management the CEO said, in effect, Metro Riders deserve better.This must have sent the LAPD morale skyrocketing!
This Mole can see no reason for Police Officers to be cursed at and spat upon. Please see the video of the foul-mouthed young woman and others who interfered with the police officers.
Generally, peoples shoes are dirty. That is why Japanese remove their shoes before entering their homes. I would not want mi abuelita, dressed nicely and returning from having lunch with friends, to have her dress soiled by the act of some thoughtless young woman like the one who is central to this issue.
Please read the above articles by using the "Works Cited"links and draw your own conclusions.
The
Daily News publishes (City) further sad proof that rail at grade
level and pedestrians don't mix.
"VAN
NUYS — A person was struck by a Metrolink train and killed Thursday
night near the Home Depot on Roscoe Boulevard, leaving riders
stranded for about four hours."
Of course, it is cheaper to build infrastructure at grade but, here we can see the real cost of building it "cheaper".
Of course, it is cheaper to build infrastructure at grade but, here we can see the real cost of building it "cheaper".
The LACMTA's Own Crumbling Infrastructure♪
Elevator at the Harbour Freeway Busway Station
Note the filthy condition of this elevator. The LACMTA never seems to fix or clean anything.
The Los Angeles Toonerville Trolley experience♪
«“Le chemin est long du projet à la chose.”»
Molière (1622-01-15~1673-02-17)
[The path is long from project to thing.]
Molière (1622-01-15~1673-02-17)
[The path is long from project to thing.]
Merci beaucoup à http://evene.lefigaro.fr pour la citation et à google.fr pour le matériel biographique.
-
¿Musica?
Merci bien à www.google.fr pour le matériel biographique, .
Shall we listen to Georges Onslow's (1784-07-27-~1853-10-03) Symphony No. 1 (1831)
Thank you youtube.com for allowing us to hear this beautiful performance. We also thank Unsung Masterworks for uploading this work.
Thank you youtube.com for allowing us to hear this beautiful performance. We also thank Unsung Masterworks for uploading this work.
Merci bien à www.google.fr pour le matériel biographique, .
Here is something from a musical genre which I hope you'll like.
Seranata de Trios - KXLU . Musique en Eapañol Sunday evenings Pacific Time.
One can also listen on kxlu.com at Pacific Time or at the UTC day/time noted, record the broadcast if you can. Su topo uses VLC) to Record Internet broadcasts for more a more convenient listening time.
Here is is an example of the musical genre heard on Seranata de Trios. Here is Pedro Infante's despierta.
Thank you youtube.com and to Guro for the upload!
¡Muchas gracias a Serenata de Trios y KXLU for their terrific music and inspiration!
Here is is an example of the musical genre heard on Seranata de Trios. Here is Pedro Infante's despierta.
Thank you youtube.com and to Guro for the upload!
¡Muchas gracias a Serenata de Trios y KXLU for their terrific music and inspiration!
Serenata de Trios on KXLU, (88.9 FM Los Angeles) features authentic acoustic musica, which your Mole really likes! :-)
Metro Area – Lower your expectations!♪
Inured? You'd better be inured if your only transportation is Metro!
The
Mole rides again, so that you that you don't have to look at the rear of a bus and see that prescient graffiti artists have warned you about the future of Los Angeles transportation.♪
(dates are ISO8601 format, times are expressed in the 24 hour system.)
BETTER TOGETHER, OR NOT?♪
The graffitists have done a professional job of "tagging" this poster. We'll have to follow up on this because it appears to be a work in progress.
This
is just another example of quite a number of bus flags which don't have
stop numbers indicated. The intention was to be able to text the Next Bus, oops, I mean the Next Trip system. This
Mole will never understand the reason was it was renamed from the
original developers and owners designation, Next Bus, to Next Trip.
These signs are rarely seen these days. But they can be found by the careful observer.
As promised here are la Taupe's estimate of the costs involved in affixing these texting Artifact signs and removing them.
Stop Number as a Texting Artifact!♪
Texting for the bus arrival times has been a highly hyped feature and now stop numbers seem to be disappearing from the flags?
Is this yet another case of the LACMTA becoming enamoured with something that is too costly, or requires too much maintenance to continue? Think TransiTV!
Your mole has theories: Either (1) they put signs up in the wrong order; (2) the texting load was to great for the LACMTA's IT infrastructure; (3) they found a way to charge for the service using an "app";
Your mole has theories: Either (1) they put signs up in the wrong order; (2) the texting load was to great for the LACMTA's IT infrastructure; (3) they found a way to charge for the service using an "app";
As promised here are la Taupe's estimate of the costs involved in affixing these texting Artifact signs and removing them.
Stop Number Signs Install & remove Costs♪
The above is portion of my spread sheet which shows your Mole's total estimated costs in US$ for the installation an partial removal (pictured above is a missed removal).
There are 15,967 bus stops, along an estimated 2,661 miles of bus routes, transportation and labor costs. I estimated
that a 5 person crew could install 300 stop number signs per day,
remove 600 signs per day and that there would be four of these crews in
operation.
The
LACMTA may say either (1) "we could never had done it so cheaply!" or
(2) "He is way too high!" Or (3) An even larger figure if the work contracted. We will never know. But when your read (vide
supra) about the $8,000,000 they plan to spend on two new and fixing up
two or three existing toilets, they will probably say (3).
Crenshaw Line - Rapid Transit♪
This portion of the Crenshaw Line is rapid transit, i.e., grade separated (Manchester at La Brea).
Crenshaw Line - Mass Transit (In Process)♪
This portion of the Crenshaw Line is at grade (Arbor Vitae north of
Aviation)
and therfore mass transit. It is a street car that will bring traffic
on this busy street to a halt and possibly halt itself and definitely
proceed at a reduced sped, after the barriers are lowered and then creep
across the street.
At one time the LACMTA knew how to build rapid transit, example: the Green Line. They stopped building rapid transit when they felt that saving money was more important. A likely decision when you consider that LACMTA management almost never ride their system. It management rode the lines, all stations and bus centers would have restrooms!
At one time the LACMTA knew how to build rapid transit, example: the Green Line. They stopped building rapid transit when they felt that saving money was more important. A likely decision when you consider that LACMTA management almost never ride their system. It management rode the lines, all stations and bus centers would have restrooms!
Bus Stop with Temporary sign.♪
La Taupe has improved it by affixing a sturdy sign to the flagpole. It is readable and is not subject to as much wear and tear. If you click on the photo to enlarge it, at about the mid-point of the flagpole, you will see the remnants of the mostly unreadable paper notice. Why can't the LACMTA post more durable notices? Why indeed??
As su Topo rides and reads transportation related bizpress.com articles, like the ones above concerning action taken in San Francisco to improve fare collection, along with estimates of losses, he began to think about the many people who ask for and are given "free rides" here in Los Angeles.
Here is your Moles work sheet with his estimates of loss due to "free rides".
Spread Sheet Showing "Free Rider Loss"♪
The daily loss is the result of 24 "Free Riders" per bus during the 12 hour day X $ 1.75 loss per passenger X 6000 buses.
The annual loss is the result of multiplying the daily loss by 365. Please keep in mind that the main estimate here is the number of free riders per bus per hour, i.e.,2! So, let's say that la Taupe overestimate by 50% which would result in halving the daily and annual loss estimates; Yielding a daily loss of $126,000 and an annual loss of 45,990,000. Both NOT insignificant values!
Of course, the best practice would be for drivers to have "Free Riders" sign a log or to take photos of Free Riders which could be input to a facial recognition database to identify abusers of the LACMTA's largesse.
Next Stop, Really?♪
The graffitists have been diligently at work on this billboard! And it looks like they have spot on.
Crenshaw Line (and other lines) as Mess Transit!
Combine rapid and mass Transit in one line and you have created Mess Transit.
Bringing better service to others, by bypassing you♪
So,
equal taxation but unequal provision of service that is the LACMTA way.
But it is time to bring an end to that approach. This Mole has
commented on the Rapid service in the past. Pointing
out that Rapid lines don't always stop when the cross other LACMTA
lines, nor do they stop at county facilities, e.g., the excellent Los
Angeles County Libraries. Why not? Well one could ask the Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Association.
So
what if the line took six minutes longer but, some students could get
to a library sooner. And while they're at it, stops should be added for Los Angeles City Libraries too!
This Is Not Rapid Transit♪
The
photo above concretises the idea that the EXPO line will not deliver
deterministic travel because, look at the signals and the traffic
folks, it isn’t RAPID TRANSIT.
At one time the LACMTA knew how to build RAPID Mass Transit, viz. the Green Line. Take the Green Line ratio of aerial portions of the line to total length of the line, let's call this the Mole's Index of Rapidity [MIR in acronimic form].
For the Green Line the ratio is 100/100! Not so with other recently built lines; the Expo and Crenshaw Lines which both have lower indices of Rapidity. Any value less than 1 shows that determinate travel times are impossible. The overall MIR for the LACMTA's built portion in miles is 20/105 which is equal to 0.1904 ... much less than 1! The result is a fifth class transportation system; one befitting a third-world country.
Your
Mole feels that by showing you month-by-month examples of the LACMTA's
failures, you will come to see that throwing more money at this
dysfunctional organisation is not the path to solution. It is a direct
path to more money wasting by the LACMTA.
Eye (and Ear) to the Rail
Transit as unseen and unimagined by the LACMTA
The LACMTA (Subordinate to LAWA)
Presents
Every Which Way But Right!
OR
Four (OR Five) Seats to LAX!
OR
The LACMTA Tries Again; Asymptotically to LAX!
OR
Metro is the worst way from the City Center to the Airport, LAX, that is!
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 transportation challenge.
Cautionary Note: Those employed by the LACMTA, LAWA or CHSRA 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.
FINAL WARNING: N.B. LACMTA, LAWA OR CHSRA staff and management, avoid cognitive dissonance, DO NOT CLICK on THE LINK BELOW!
While the LACMTA attempts to hype its Toonerville Trolley system and CHSRA ponders the necessity of safety features, forward thinking planners in 2007 have already bullet trains at speeds in excess of those planned for California.
This section has been devoted to pointing that the LACMTA is far behind the rest of the world in rapid transit. La Taupe has pointed out that fact on innumerable occasions. Their approach, rather than providing Los Angeles with a transportation legacy of which to be proud, prides themselves on building cheap, loo-lehttps://scitechdaily.com/messenger-mission-measures-solar-system-expansion/ss infrastructure.
Let's take a ride on Sound Transit Central Link LRT - SeaTac Airport to Seattle. OMG, it is grade separated! Nice work Seattle!
Cosmology
Your Mole has seen reports which seemed to forecast danger in the February 4th 2018 passing of an asteroid near our home planet.
However
a detailed report from an unimpeachable source, the Jet Propulsion
Laboratory, should make everyone feel at ease. please read it here. This one, at least, doesn't have our name on it.
SciTechDaily.com features an interesting article describing the expansion of the orbits of planets in our solar system, here.
bigthink.com asks": Will humans ever travel to different dimentions? It also has a video of Michio Kaku explaining string therory and other interesting ideas.
Access this material here.
http://bigthink.com/philip-perry/will-humans-ever-travel-to-different-dimensions
https://scitechdaily.com/messenger-mission-measures-solar-system-expansion/
Your Mole has seen reports which seemed to forecast danger in the February 4th 2018 passing of an asteroid near our home planet.
SciTechDaily.com features an interesting article describing the expansion of the orbits of planets in our solar system, here.
bigthink.com asks": Will humans ever travel to different dimentions? It also has a video of Michio Kaku explaining string therory and other interesting ideas.
Access this material here.
http://bigthink.com/philip-perry/will-humans-ever-travel-to-different-dimensions
https://scitechdaily.com/messenger-mission-measures-solar-system-expansion/
Fare Box OOS and related Lists of Shame
I.D. Numbers of buses with Out of Service Fare Boxes:
2017-12-25/15:25, 125 Line/ Bus# 5778, West Bound
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 = (+URsticker 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 (2016-05-31) 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:
LINE/OP ID XXXXX(L/T) date; XXXX-XX-XX(code);
LINE/OP ID XXXXX(L/T) date; XXXX-XX-XX(code);
Codes: S = not wearing seat belts; J = bad judgment (unsafe driving practices).
111/84559(L/T) 2017-09-08(J)
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)
GTrans (Gardena transit?) formerly 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. [2015-12-31]
The feedback section disallows screen shots which show problems with
the "final posting", such as, orange sections which cover blocks of text
and change the font size. All it would take is allowing and attachment.
But, ... [Addenda 2016-03-31] Since Blogger.com forced me to
learn HTML 5, I can fix "many" of the problems which apparently were
caused by using Word notation in "imported" files. The mystery failure
to save problem still occurs but have diminished. [insert crossed
fingers icon here :-) ].
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
original photographs and original written materials are copyrighted ©
2007~2016 by LAmetroMole. As of 2016-06-01 copyrighted photographs will
include copyright text. ♪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. Single use publication rights are
granted provided the following statement is prominently displayed below
the photograph: "copyrighted © 2007~2016 by LAmetroMole (http://lametromole.blogspot.com)"
FAIR USE NOTICE
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 available in our efforts to advance
understanding of environmental, political, human rights, economic,
democracy, scientific, and social justice issues, sustainable
development, environmental, community and 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
for research and educational purposes and to those who access the site
via any and all other channels. If you wish to use copyrighted material
from this site for purposes of your own that go beyond 'fair use', you
must obtain permission from the copyright owner. Music or other recorded
material on this site, or referred to by this site are copyrighted by
their respective artists and are 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 bloger 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 organisation 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 organisations having transactions with any of the entities about which I have written.
There are no exceptions.
Date: 2009-06-24 s/LametroMole
Works Cited
Barone, Vincent."Protected bike lanes coming to 26th, 29th streets in wake of rising cyclist deaths". amny.com. Jan. 17, 2018. Web. https://www.amny.com/transit/protected-bike-lanes-midtown-1.16227764
City News Service. "Person struck, killed by Metrolink train in the North Hills/Van Nuys area". dailynews.com. Jan. 25, 2018. Web. https://www.dailynews.com/2018/01/25/person-struck-killed-by-metrolink-train-in-northridge/
Koren,
James, Rufus. "Los Angeles Times journalists vote 248-44 to
unionize". Los
Angeles Times.
Jan. 1, 2018. Web.
http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-times-guild-vote-20180119-story.html
Nelson,
Laura J. "Ridership
on Metro fell to the lowest level in more than a decade last year".
Los
Angeles Times.
Jan.
25, 210. Web. http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-metro-ridership-20180124-story.html#nt=oft01a-1la1
McDermid, Reily, "Get your BART ticket ready — starting this week, the Inspector may want to see it". bizjournls.com. Jan. 2, 2018. Web. https://www.bizjournals.com/sanfrancisco/news/2018/01/02/bart-ticket-enforcement.html
Siu, Antonette."In new year crackdown, Caltrain adopts zero tolerance fare evasion policy". bizjournls.com. Jan. 5, 2018. Web. bizjournls.com. Jan. 5, 2018. Web. https://www.bizjournals.com/sanfrancisco/news/2018/01/05/caltrain-adopts-zero-tolerance-fare-evasion-policy.html
Siu( 2), Antonette."Here are the 5 biggest changes coming to the Bay Area commute in 2018". bizjournls.com. Dec. 28, 2017. Web.
Vartabedian, Ralph. "Two executives appointed to California High-Speed Rail Authority". Los Angeles Times. Jan. 1, 2018. Web. http://www.latimes.com/local/california/la-me-bullet-train-executives-20180119-story.html
Vartabedian(2), Ralph. ""Massive
cost overruns threaten to derail the bullet train. Here's what has to
change". Los Angeles Times. Jan. 21, 2018. Web. http://www.latimes.com/local/california/la-me-bullet-train-crisis-20180121-story.html#nt=oft01a-1gp3
Winton,
Richard and Branson-Potts, Hailey."She put her foot on the seat
of a Metro train and got detained. Did the LAPD overreact?". Los
Angeles Times.
Jan. 23, 2018, Web.
http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-lapd-sergeant-investigation-metro-20180123-story.html#nt=oft01a-1li2
Koren,
James, Rufus. "Los Angeles Times journalists vote 248-44 to
unionize". Los
Angeles Times.
Jan. 1, 2018. Web.
Nelson, Laura J. "Ridership on Metro fell to the lowest level in more than a decade last year". Los Angeles Times. Jan. 25, 210. Web. http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-metro-ridership-20180124-story.html#nt=oft01a-1la1
McDermid, Reily, "Get your BART ticket ready — starting this week, the Inspector may want to see it". bizjournls.com. Jan. 2, 2018. Web. https://www.bizjournals.com/sanfrancisco/news/2018/01/02/bart-ticket-enforcement.html
Vartabedian(2), Ralph. ""Massive cost overruns threaten to derail the bullet train. Here's what has to change". Los Angeles Times. Jan. 21, 2018. Web. http://www.latimes.com/local/california/la-me-bullet-train-crisis-20180121-story.html#nt=oft01a-1gp3
Winton, Richard and Branson-Potts, Hailey."She put her foot on the seat of a Metro train and got detained. Did the LAPD overreact?". Los Angeles Times. Jan. 23, 2018, Web. http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-lapd-sergeant-investigation-metro-20180123-story.html#nt=oft01a-1li2
Zahniser, David and Nelson, Laura J. "Councilwoman says Red Line subway isn't safe and won't ride it with her daughter"Los Angeles Times. Jan. 24, 2108, Web. http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-martinez-metro-sexual-harassment-20180124-story.html#nt=oft01a-1li2
An artifact of the streets of Los
Angeles, created by a brother Mole!
### .. . ###
.
.
The above is ### 30 ### in Braille
Footnotes
Footnotes
