Beach Biking Fun

I know this is a late entry, and I apologize. Circumstances (mainly due to the holiday weekend) limited my ability to write in a timely manner, but I still hold that my deadline helps in getting me to actually write these posts. So here is why I could not complete my post on time. Initially, I was going to start a series called “biking to the bare necessities,” focusing on the Westside LA Farmers Markets, but was too distracted in my apartment to finish. So I decided to go to a local café with internet access. Except the local café was closed, due to the holidays. Instead, I chose another café further away. But after I got there, I found out that there was no internet for me to use to look up the information I needed on the various locations of the Westside Farmers Markets. Also, considering I have not yet been to all the Farmers Markets on the Westside, I figured I would scrap it for a later entry after I have been to all of them. So expect it in the future. For today, with the holiday weekend in swing (albeit coming to an end), today’s topic will be about the very LA leisure activity of going to the beach with a Carless LA spin.

With the recent heat wave on the random days of Southern California, the beach is a great place to be to avoid the cabin fever of being holed up in the domicile, especially without air conditioning. And if you are lucky to live close enough to the beach, biking is a great option to get there. Because of the popularity of the beach as a destination of both locals and tourists, traffic can be a mess on the weekends, as can parking. Biking to the beach avoids all that hassle, gets you exercise, and can be relaxing and even cooler through the nice sea breeze that you get when biking.

The beach in particular that has the easiest route from my neighborhood is Santa Monica and Venice Beaches, respectively. I will try to show other routes, from other locations, but if you live south of Marina Del Rey, it might serve you better to go to a beach that is closer to your location such as Manhattan, Hermosa, or Redondo Beaches.

The route heading from Westwood and Wilshire is pretty simple. Head south on Westwood Boulevard until Ohio Avenue. Make a right on Ohio Avenue. Continue on Ohio Avenue until Westgate Avenue. Make a right onto Westgate Avenue, and then a left onto Texas Avenue. Continue on Texas Avenue until it becomes Arizona Avenue after Centinela Boulevard at the West Los Angeles/Santa Monica border. From there, continue on Arizona until you hit Santa Monica Beach. (see the Red route on the map)

From Santa Monica Beach, you can either stay there for beach fun, (there is the Santa Monica pier for various amusements) or you could continue south to Venice Beach. For a relaxing bike ride, you can go on the very convenience Ocean Front Walk bike lane on the actual beach (see the Burgundy route on the map). It will take you south from Santa Monica Beach to Venice. To get to the bike lane, make a left from Arizona Avenue to Ocean Avenue. From there, go south on Ocean until Seaside Terrace, after Colorado Avenue. Seaside Terrace is the second road you can turn right on after the pier. Make note of this because if you go on the first road, you could end up on the Pacific Coast Highway instead of the bike path, which would be potentially very bad.

Other alternative routes from West LA to Santa Monica Beach could include any side street that parallels a major street, and using main streets when necessary. For example, coming from Brentwood, one could take Montana from San Vicente, until making a left on 26th street. From 26th street, make a right on Idaho for side-street protection in fewer cars and slower car speeds. Idaho will take you all the way down to Ocean Avenue, north of where Arizona deposits you. (see the Blue route on the map)

Another route south of Arizona avenue could be Colorado avenue for people living south of Santa Monica Boulevard in West LA. Starting from the Stoner Recreation Center at Missouri and Westgate Avenues, head north on Westgate Avenue. At Idaho Avenue, turn left onto Idaho and continue even after Idaho turns into Colorado. Similarly, follow Colorado Avenue all the way to Ocean Avenue. (see the Green route on the map)

South of the 10 freeway, similar parallel-to-main-street side streets are a good idea, except that some of that area is extremely hilly and makes for difficult biking. One option would be to go so far south that your main artery is Rose Avenue and Palms Boulevard. Rose does not have a proper bike lane; however, it is safe enough to bike without too much difficulty from car traffic. Rose begins at Walgrove Avenue, and is connected to Palms Avenue via Beethoven Street. Starting from Palms Boulevard and Centinela Avenue, head east until Beethoven Street. Make a right onto Beethoven Street and follow it until it curves into Rose Avenue. Continue on Rose until you hit the beach. (see the Yellow route on the map)

And those coming from south of the 10 freeway could use Venice and head to Santa Monica using the bike lane heading north. With a very nice, wide bike lane on Venice Boulevard, that option is definitely viable. Just take Venice Boulevard from wherever you happen to be closest to the street, and head west until you hit the beach. There is a slight split when Venice Boulevard becomes North Venice Boulevard and South Venice Boulevard, respectively, but use North Venice Boulevard and head to the beach front bike lane for a more relaxed ride all the way to Santa Monica Beach. (see the Purple route on the map for Venice Boulevard, see the Burgundy route for the beach path)


As mentioned above, if you are coming from south of Marina Del Rey, the beaches south of you might be better accessible. And on a later date, I will try to accommodate those locations, also for Westside residents not wanting to go just Santa Monica or Venice. Additionally, those living east of Westwood and West LA should find appropriate bike routes to the streets I mentioned, and go from there. In later entries on getting to West Hollywood and further east, there will be connecting routes to get to any of the streets I mentioned. So please be patient as more entries come.

Coming up next time, I’ll try to finish up my initial goal of writing about biking to the bare necessities in the Farmers Markets, but I do not know if I will be able to attend all the different markets on the west side in time to properly write about it. Regardless, it will be an endeavor for the future.

Cheers!

Riding on the Metrooooo, Part Two: The Rush Hour Revenge

In continuation with last week’s entry, this week’s is also about taking the metro. It is one thing to take the metro on a random Saturday afternoon just for the sake of taking it; last week was just to see how one would go about using LA’s rail lines. It is another to take the metro on a week day during standard business hours when one actually has to go somewhere. This week, I took the metro system to actual destinations where I met up with friends.

On Friday, I was meeting up with some friends in Hollywood for dinner at Toi Thai at Sunset and Gardner. We were supposed to meet up at 7PM. Given the timing of last week, I thought that leaving at 6PM would be adequate for getting to Hollywood in time. I got to the Westwood and Wilshire 720 Rapid stop on time and waited. And waited. And waited. It was about 6:20 PM before a 720 bus actually got to the stop. I got to the Wilshire and Western metro stop at about 6:50 PM. It was 7:30 PM by the time I got out of the station and was on my way to the restaurant. Fortunately, my friends were understanding about my little experiment, and when I got to the restaurant at 7:40 PM, they had just gotten started with an appetizer.

After dinner, we went around to various places for drinks in Hollywood, Los Feliz, and Silverlake, and I ended up at the Sunset and Vermont Station at about 10:20 PM. I waited for the metro again, and was soon on my way. Instead of taking the metro to Western and Wilshire like before, I decided to get off at the Vermont/Wilshire stop to wait for the 720 Rapid Bus. After the bus came, I got back to Westwood and Wilshire at 11:20 PM, an hour after I had started my return home.

On Saturday, I took the metro with a friend to go to the Sunset Junction Street Festival to catch the Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, the Eels, and the Elected, among others. The same route was taken- 720 Rapid Bus to the Vermont/Wilshire station, and then the rail to Vermont and Sunset to get to Sunset Junction. This part of the journey was similar to the entry last week and is not anything new. The addition for this week is the journey back after the concert finished. Up until yesterday, the latest I had taken the metro was at 10:20 PM on Friday. Saturday, my friend and I were to push the later limits. After the concert was over, my friend and I went up from Silverlake to Los Feliz to get a late night snack. When we left the restaurant, it was 12:30 AM, so we had a half hour to get to the Sunset/Vermont station before the last train was to leave. We caught the train back to the Vermont/Wilshire station and got out of the station at 1:10 AM. We finally got on a bus at 1:35 AM, and got back Westwood and Wilshire at 2:00 AM.

It’s nice to know that if I have taken the metro out, I can still get back home after, but aside from this reassurance, there are some more observations in addition to last week.

Based on the three times I’ve taken both the bus and the metro, the worst part of taking the metro system is waiting. In the two times I took the metro this weekend, the wait at the stop for the bus was over 10 minutes, even in the middle of the day. And at night, the 20 regular bus runs all night (which has the same route as the 720 Rapid Bus, but is not rapid), but has a frequency of one every half hour, so be prepared to wait. My friend and I waited at least 20-30 minutes on Saturday night at the 720 stop and ended up taking the regular bus when the 720 bus did not come. I guess I was just lucky the first time I took the 720 bus, because when I arrived at the stop and a bus promptly came. Ironically, when waiting for a bus heading one direction, there are several busses readily available for the opposite direction. This happened both on Friday and on Saturday, day and night- there were at least four busses heading in the direction I did not need to go.

The train also takes a long time between transfers. This was part of the reason I began using the Vermont/Wilshire station instead of the Western/Wilshire station- to get to Hollywood from Western/Wilshire requires a transfer which can take more time. Since the 720 bus heads along Wilshire anyway, I figured it is easier to continue along Wilshire on the bus to avoid the waiting for the transfer. The lesson is that if you’re planning on taking the bus, allow for adequate waiting time.

Another observation is the time difference between night and day. During the day, the bus takes longer because of traffic is worse, and rail is not beholden to it. But during the evenings, the train takes longer than the bus because traffic is not as bad and trains are so infrequent that waiting ends up taking longer than the traffic (or lack thereof) on Wilshire.

Finally, I realized that the Metro Day Pass covers rail and bus. So last week I spent an extra $2.50 because I bought two one-way tickets on the 720 Bus. Had I just purchased a Day Pass in the beginning, I would have only spent $3.00 instead of $5.50. This makes the metro even more comparable to driving because of gas costs, traffic fuel inefficiency, and parking.

Riding on the Metroooooo.....to Los Feliz, Hollywood, and Silverlake

This past weekend, I decided to do a little urban exploration. Not in the sense that I was going to a part of town that I hadn’t been to before, but more in the method of travel. As this blog is called “Carless LA,” I decided to explore the infamous Los Angeles Metro system. I had always heard about it and seen the stations while driving through Hollywood to Silverlake or Los Feliz, but I had never actually taken it because I didn’t have a reason to- the stations were always so far away, and if I was going to drive to the station, I might as well just drive the entire way.

Yesterday was different. Yesterday, I wanted to specifically take the subway just to see how the ride was, compared to public transit in the San Francisco Bay Area, or New York. Given that I have friends in Silverlake and Los Feliz, I figured that would be the first destination highlighted in Carless LA.

First was deciding how I was going to get to a subway station. My initial thoughts were to get the full LA Metro experience, with transfers and everything. This would entail taking the #3 Big Blue Bus to the green line LAX station. Then, I’d take the green line to the blue line, and take the blue line all the way to the red line stations in Downtown LA. This would be an added time commitment, and I had planned to leave the house by 10:00 AM to pursue this. But unfortunately, I didn’t get out of the house until about 2:00 PM, so instead, I took the more direct route.

At 2:15, I got to the 720 Rapid metro bus stop at Wilshire and Westwood Boulevards. I got on the eastbound 720 rapid bus along Wilshire, and got off at Western.

Ticket cost: $1.25

By 2:50, I had gotten to the Western Avenue and Wilshire Boulevard subway station in Koreatown across the street from the Wiltern Theater where, evidently, The Sounds were playing. From there, I took the red line to the Vermont and Wilshire station to transfer to the North Hollywood bound red line train. I bought a day pass in case I needed to take the train extensively.

Ticket cost: $3.00

By the time I got out of the Sunset Boulevard and Vermont Avenue station and walking up Vermont Avenue, it was about 3:15 PM, an hour after I had gotten to the bus stop. Considering that it takes me about an hour to get to Los Feliz or Silverlake by car in traffic anyway, the timing aspect wasn’t bad.

Total cost so far: $4.25

From the subway station, I walked up Vermont into the heart of the Los Feliz Village, past Fred 62 and House of Pies(I had already eaten), instead heading into Psychobabble for some coffee and a nice place to sit for a while; even though the purpose of the trip was to use the metro and go east, I still had other things that I needed to do.

After I had finished with my work at Psychobabble, I decided to go to Hollywood to browse at Amoeba Records. I took the metro from the Sunset and Vermont station to Hollywood Boulevard and Highland Avenue to get a more scenic walk to Amoeba (I could have gotten off at the Hollywood and Vine station for a shorter trip). From Hollywood Boulevard, I walked east on Hollywood Boulevard until Cahuenga Ave. There, I went to Amoeba to browse a bit. This is just a personal preference- Hollywood and Highland has a huge mall with retail outlets, restaurants, and clubs for entertainment. And Hollywood Boulevard is adorn with movie theaters, restaurants, museums, and other touristy kitsch for other things to do.

Anyway, after browsing Amoeba Records for a while, I decided to head back because it was getting late, and I had plans later in the evening. I left Amoeba Records at about 7:30 PM. By the time I got to the Hollywood and Vine station, it was 7:50 PM. After waiting a while for a train to take me back to Western and Wilshire, I finally got out of the station at about 8:30 PM. And it was 9:00 PM by the time I got back to my apartment after getting off the same 720 rapid bus (westbound) at Western and Wilshire.

The return trip cost: $1.25
Total cost for the entire trip: $5.50

Some observations while doing this little public transit excursion:

The bus going to the metro station took longer than getting back because of traffic, and waiting at the stations in the afternoon was much shorter because of greater frequency of trains. On the way back, waiting for the subway took ages (the schedules in the station said that evening trains on the weekends could take as long as 20 minutes in between trains, while afternoon trains averaged 6-12 minutes between trains), while waiting for a bus after getting out of the Western and Wilshire station was no waiting at all; when I got out, there were two #20 busses heading west on Wilshire to Santa Monica, and two #720 rapid busses heading to the stop.


Aesthetically speaking, the trains resembled the New York subway trains, but the stations were more in line with BART, with each station trying to have a personality all its own. The stations were also way less crowded than either New York or San Francisco transit line stations. But that’s also because of LA’s car culture, and the fact that the subway stations are limited in their ability to serve lots of people not near the stations. But I also didn’t feel like I was in danger at any time while taking the train, or the bus for that matter.

Aside from that, the metro was not too bad in terms of cost and time. The cost of the trip was $5.50 for the entire round trip, and might have been cheaper, had I taken the #720 bus after 9:00 PM, when the fare goes down to $.75. Given that gas is over $3.00 per gallon, and that traffic driving means fuel inefficiency, the $5.50 is a little pricier than driving. The time was also relatively comparable. It took me an hour to get to the intersection of Hollywood Boulevard and Vermont Avenue, pretty much the cusp of Los Feliz, Hollywood, and Silverlake. It would take me more than an hour during rush hour, and probably 45 minutes on the weekend. The way back had more of a disparity of time; it usually takes me a half hour to get back from Silverlake in the evenings, but it took me over an hour to get back to my apartment heading home.

So time-wise and money-wise, public transit is still not necessarily the best way, but definitely close to driving. The main difference is the peace of mind. Not having to worry about parking, parking time limits (if you’re at a meter), or just dealing with traffic, makes the cost and time more worth it, and evens out the driving versus public transit-ing to these destinations. While on the bus, you can read, people watch, or just sit back and relax and not think about the bumper in front of you, and how close or far you are away from it. Given all these pluses, I would definitely do it again, and regularly.

Activities with Biking: Sawtelle and Olympic

So I know I’ve been seriously lagging with this, but I promise there will be some more-meaningful entries soon, and more regularly. Because of the slow entries, maybe I will put some pressure on myself through using an actual hard deadline. The blog will be updated every Sunday at 10:00 PM starting next week (because I’m getting a late start with this one). Plus, I figured out how to do pictures, so expect maps. I will update the critical mass entry with photos too, so keep an eye out for that.

In any case, this entry is again going to be a little short. I'm going to cover getting to the Sawtelle and Olympic intersection. It's also going to be more Westside-centric by virtue of Sawtelle Boulevard being in West LA.

Living on the Westside can be problematic for varieties of food- there are not many good, authentic East Asian (Chinese, Korean, Japanese) restaurants in west LA. At all. There are a few adequate ones, but all of those are much more expensive than anything in Chinatown’s one (near downtown), two (Alhambra/Monterey Park/San Gabriel), and three (Hacienda Heights/Walnut). Westwood itself has some decent pan-Asian food, but the concept of pan-Asian restaurant kind of irks me; if I wanted good Chinese food, I’d go specifically to a Chinese restaurant. If I wanted good Korean, I’d go specifically to a good Korean place. Etc. All that aside, the haven for Japanese and Asian snacks/pop culture on the Westside has to be the area slightly north of Olympic Boulevard. Lots of great, cheap Japanese restaurants, a Japanese supermarket, Karaoke rooms, Asian cafes with Boba, shaved ice, and other snacks, and quirky shops like Giant Robot, and GR2, right across the street from each other.

So with Sawtelle known as the “Little Little Tokyo” in the Westside area, it makes it appealing to want to get to during leisure time. Given that it’s only about a mile and a half from my apartment, and that gas is expensive and parking can be a pain, biking is definitely an appealing alternative. And considering that traffic can be terrible, biking is a quick way to enjoy the outdoors and run some Asian-y errands on a slow day. The directions are kind of going to be all over the place because LA is so spread out, so I’ll try to accommodate for the different places in LA. Although, if you are reading this and coming from Hollywood, or anywhere east of West Hollywood, a better option for some of the Asian cuisine might be Korea, Japan, or China towns, respectively, since it might be closer.

Since Sawtelle itself is somewhat of a side street, biking on Sawtelle is relatively easy, and cars will watch out for you. If you are concerned for your safety biking on the road with cars, the way to go is the side streets from Sawtelle. If you take a side street, it has to be parallel west of Sawtelle because east is the 405 freeway. During the major intersections such as Santa Monica Boulevard, get back to Sawtelle for the stop lights, but get back on the side streets for a more pleasant ride.

With this safety information in mind, from the Westwood/Wilshire intersection, this is the most direct route. Take Westwood Boulevard down to Ohio Ave. There are bike lanes on Westwood Boulevard between Wilshire and Santa Monica Boulevards, so it should be safe. Make a right on to Ohio Ave. and continue on Ohio past the 405 freeway overpass. The first light after the overpass is Sawtelle Boulevard. Turn left to head south on Sawtelle to the restaurant/shop area at Olympic Boulevard.

This is generally the route I take from Westwood.

From Santa Monica, any bike route that you use that you are familiar with heading east is suitable. Personally, I generally use Texas Avenue before Westgate Avenue, to get back to Ohio Avenue (at Westgate Ave.), in which case, the directions are similar, except you make a right on Sawtelle from Ohio. Another route could be Colorado Boulevard east toward the neighborhood slightly west of Sawtelle.

From Texas Avenue, head east to Westgate, south on Westgate, and then East on Ohio to Sawtelle.

On Colorado head east. Go south on one off the side streets west of Barrington, to one of the side streets heading east (in this case Missouri). Head east on the side streets until Sawtelle.

Similarly, if the bike route you take is south of Olympic, for example, Venice Boulevard, make a left onto Sawtelle to get to the Sawtelle/Olympic intersection.

Take the Venice Boulevard bike routes east to Sawtelle. Head north on Sawtelle until Olympic. Cross Olympic and get to the Asian goodness.

From Culver City, take Venice Boulevard east, using the safety of the bike lanes to get to Sawtelle Boulevard. Make a right on to Sawtelle, and use the same route from south Santa Monica. And from Hollywood and further East, get to the Westwood/Wilshire intersection, and follow the instructions from Westwood.

Take the Venice Boulevard bike routes west to Sawtelle. Head north on Sawtelle until Olympic. Cross Olympic and get to the Asian goodness.

But again, if you were coming from east of Beverly Hills, you might fare better for Asian food/shops if you were to go downtown to Japantown or Chinatown, or maybe Koreatown on Wilshire.

The Sawtelle/Olympic area is a great little two block East Asian Haven for people who want authentic and inexpensive Asian food and shops without having to drive all the way to Downtown for Chinatown, Koreatown, or Japantown. With biking, it makes it that much more accessible.

Next column will be about using the LA metro system. I haven’t figured out how I’m going to get to a station, but that is part of the fun of it- a little urban exploration. You’ll see what happens in the next post.

Cheers!

Critical Mass

On Friday, July 28^th 2006, I joined in on the Los Angeles brand of Critical Mass. For people who don’t know what Critical Mass is, it was started in the early 1990s in San Francisco by cyclists who just got fed up with the lack of respect bikers got on from motorists. On the one hand, bikes were (are) considered motor vehicles. On the other hand, the motor of human energy versus the internal combustible engine is far weaker, and far more dangerous. Part of the motivation was to get people to question the “motor vehicle” classification. Another more general reason the rides began was to force the existence of a public space where an alternative to automobiles took center stage as cars were displaced from roads. What initially started in the Bay Area spread to other cities in the US and eventually the rest of the world. Currently, the Los Angeles area boasts five such rides: North East LA, Central LA, UCLA, Pasadena, and Santa Monica.

The UCLA Critical Mass: Critical Mass, My Ass!

The ride I went on was the UCLA branch, which starts at Westwood Blvd. and Le Conte Ave. at 5:00 PM and leaves at 5:30 PM to meet up with the Central LA ride at Western Ave. and Wilshire Blvd. at 6:00 PM. I got there at about 5:10 PM just to be on the safe side- 10 minutes after they said to meet, but 20 minutes before leaving. When I got to the meeting location, there were several people on bicycles, but no solidly organized group. Thinking that it was already 5:10 PM, and that it would likely take longer than a half hour to get to Western Ave. and Wilshire Blvd. myself, I decided to leave at that point, and head to the Central LA ride using the Venice Blvd. bike lane as safe passage. I got to the Western Ave. and Wilshire Blvd. metro station at about 6:10 PM, and rested up a bit, as it was going to be a while before we left anyway. It was also interesting because Daryl Hannah was there interviewing people for her website about social causes. But I guess that’s LA for you.

The ride started at 7:00 PM and we headed west on Wilshire Blvd. and made a right onto Highland Ave. From there, we went all the way to Hollywood Blvd. and headed east to Virgil. Then we made our way to Sunset Blvd. in Hollywood, and headed to Fairfax Ave. From there, I split from the group and headed home. By that point, it was already getting dark, and I didn’t want to have to bike by myself back to Westwood all the way back from our original meeting point. Since Fairfax was close enough, I headed home.

My thoughts on the ride as a whole are a very mixed. These feelings stem from the diverse types that are attracted to the ride. There are those that go to the ride looking to smash the system of car dominance on the roads. Then there are others that go with the hope of showing co-existence with the other cars on the roads- to show cars and LA residents that it is possible to get out of your car and get places. Personally, I’m more inclined to fit the mindset of the latter. But because of the dichotomy between the two types, the ride itself is kind of mixed. The more extremist riders are overly antagonistic to the motorists that get angry for being blocked. They make an effort to block all lanes of traffic in their direction for the purpose of the ride, when in reality the ride was only about 50 people and did not merit all lanes being blocked off. They also had blatant disregard for the traffic safety laws and also for the slower bikers and those in the back of the mass; if a light was on its last few seconds of green, the lead bikers would plow on ahead without stopping, forcing the middle and back to run the red lights (though to be fair, the front would send people to block the oncoming traffic as we ran the reds).

Ultimately, I think that if the goal of the group is to foster a sense of peaceful co-existence on the roads, then it fails because blocking all lanes of traffic forcing all motorists to go at the speed of the ride, and disobeying traffic safety laws forcing motorists to stop on their green all work to dissuade motorists of bicycle rights. As someone from the LA Critical Mass mailing list put it- in order to make it better and less antagonistic, the ride should 1) not stay on any one street too long, 2) obey traffic laws and be courteous to the riders in the back, and 3) limit the mass to one lane. If these three are met, I agree that the ride will do much more to foster a more positive attitude on the road among motorists and bikers alike. It might also be more fun.

In short, if one is looking to join up with the Critical Mass ride specifically to find safe bike routes, then one should look elsewhere. Critical Mass does not serve that purpose because it creates a biking block that allows for safe biking anywhere, not just by oneself. Do go, however, if you are interested in having a good time biking in a massive group, ignoring traffic laws and having a general bike party. I’m not sure if I would personally do it again.

Who needs a car in L.A.?

Who needs a car in L.A.? We have the best public transportation system in the world.
- Eddie Valiant, Who Framed Roger Rabbit?

Ah, the Los Angeles transportation system of the 1930s. Despite what Angelenos have allowed their rail transportation system to atrophy to, Los Angeles once had a stunning, comprehensive mass transit rail system that served to transport the public without extensive use of the automobile.

The Los Angeles trolley system was in its heyday in the 1920s and 30s, as illustrated in the film, Who Framed Roger Rabbit?. Back then, there was no MTA or governmental operation. The system was run by the Pacific Electric Railway as a subsidiary of the Southern Pacific Railway, and was more commonly referred to as the Red Line, inclusive of bus, rail, and street cars. And a competing system run by Henry Huntington called the Los Angeles Railway was also established. Even though the population of Los Angeles at that point was no where near the population today, the rail line was comprehensive in that it served all the major areas of Los Angeles, including Pasadena, San Gabriel, Santa Monica, Hollywood, the San Fernando Valley, Burbank//Glendale, Long Beach, San Pedro, and even the outer areas of San Bernardino, Newport, and Santa Ana.

The formation of nascent Los Angeles transit began in 1895 when the Pasadena and Pacific Railroads merged to allow for transportation from Pasadena to the Pacific. This merger led to the formation of the Pacific Electric Railway, controlled and established by Henry Huntington. But Huntington’s reign over the Pacific Electric Railway was short-lived. Soon after, the South Pacific Railway Company purchased all the stock, effectively controlling the Pacific Electric Railway. The Southern Pacific Railroad Company also completed its consolidation of other smaller railways as well, streamlining their efforts to create a transit authority, and firmly establishing the transit system also known as the “Red Cars.”

Meanwhile, after Huntington was bought out of his Pacific Electric Railway, he rebounded through purchasing the Los Angeles Railway, a similar system of street cars. Competing with the “Red Cars,” were LA Railway’s “Yellow Cars.” At its peak, the LA Railway had 20 lines with over 1000 trolleys and served a greater population than the Pacific Electric Railway, mainly because of the routes mainly served the inner Los Angeles area. Areas served by the Echo Park, Westlake, Hancock Park, Exposition Park, and West Adams, the Crenshaw district, Vernon, Boyle Heights and Lincoln Heights.

So what happened?

Some believe that the mass transit system was purposefully destroyed by a consortium of companies who had an interest in the demise of public transit. Mainly, General Motors, Standard Oil, and Firestone Tires banded together to deter mass transit use in the interest of selling more cars, gasoline, and tires. But conspiracy theories abound, there are several reasons why the Los Angeles Transit System of yesteryear fell into disuse and disrepair.

The slow decline of Los Angeles transit was caused by the fact that the system was largely unprofitable. In the days of Huntington’s control over the Pacific Electric Rail, the losses of the rail line were off set by the profits of Huntington’s real estate holdings. As real estate development became more saturated, profitability of the rail lines were of greater concern. These concerns led the company to convert some of the non-performing lines into cheaper bus lines. The addition of buses and the development of cars into Los Angeles transportation also helped. As mass transit shared road space that was also accessible to other vehicles, the trolley lines and street cars were not immune to traffic which slowed the system to an average of 13 miles per hour on its busiest, most popular Hollywood-Santa Monica line.

Another factor was the mass migration into Los Angeles during the Second World War. While ridership was up during the war years as gasoline and automobiles were rationed for the war effort, the influx of people led the city planners to think further about the future of Los Angeles transit. As the city administrators planned to absorb all the new residents, they knew infrastructure was needed to avoid gridlock. But instead of improving the mass transit system, the city instead built up a freeway system that would turn into what we have today, using the federal funding under Eisenhower.

Lastly, the fact that all the railway companies were not owned or operated by the municipal government had a play in the dismantling of the system. Attitudes and expectations of mass transit today mandate public operation. While transit lines might take losses, the idea is that today’s transit lines are an addition to public infrastructure, and are subsidized to maintain their operation to provide that service, hence government ownership and operation. But attitudes from the 1900s when these lines were started up, throughout the Great Depression and FDR’s New Deal were based on a more laissez-faire opinion. Whereas the federal freeway system was subsidized by government money, municipal rapid and mass transit systems were privately owned and the operators had to purchase the land for the tracks, while profits and losses would dictate the gutting of track lines, and provide a private disincentive to operate the system. Weak companies would be bought out by richer companies who would continue the downward spiral. By the 1960s, all of the commuter rail lines had been converted to bus lines.

Los Angeles mass transit continued to rely on buses until 1985 when a movement began to revive rail-based public transit. (Among the reasons for the revival movement were the increased population in Los Angeles, the increasing cost of gasoline, and greater environmental awareness) This ultimately led to the formation of our current fledgling LA Metro rail system that began with the Blue Line lightrail from Long Beach to Downtown. Later, the Red Line subway was opened, serving Downtown to Hollywood and the Valley. By 1995, the Green line lightrail system was set up, running through South and Central LA. More recently, the Gold Line from Downtown to Pasadena was completed, with further plans to connect it to stops in East LA. And plans are in the works for an Exposition line running from Culver City to Downtown by lightrail. Out of the ashes of the old trolley and streetcar system, the new system rises, occupying much of the old rail space that was last used over 40 years ago.

Coming next week, my experience with the Los Angeles Critical Mass bike ride. If you have a bike and you are looking to join me, the ride starts at 5:30 PM at Westwood Boulevard and Le Conte Avenue and meets up with the Central Los Angeles ride at 6:00 PM at the Western Avenue and Wilshire Boulevard (Metro stop) on Friday, July 28, 2006. Company is always welcome in my urban explorations.

LAX by Public Transit

So here is the first proper entry for Carless LA. Coming (relatively) hot off my trip to New York City, I decided to experiment with public transit back from the airport. I would have liked to experiment with going to the airport, but my flight was at 7:30 AM, and the Big Blue Bus route that would have taken me there didn’t stop anywhere near me at the hour I needed to leave. So Primetime Shuttle it was! Heading back from the airport, my flight was at a more reasonable hour, so I looked into which bus would take me back.

Compared to the amazing public transit of New York City, Los Angeles is severely lacking. When I got into JFK Airport, it was so easy to just get on the airport rail system and transfer to the subway system. Similarly, coming from the San Francisco Bay Area, the Air BART system that was finally built several years back is pretty easy to use getting to and from SFO along any BART line. But public transportation in Los Angeles is still available for those who would want to use it.

From the airport terminals, there is an LAX bus line to get to the transit terminal. The LAX airport bus is the C bus line that will take you to long term parking. From the drop off point of the LAX C bus, LA Metro, Culver City, and Big Blue Bus lines are accessible.

Big Blue Bus and LA Metro Bus Transfers

Given the location of my apartment in West LA/Westwood, the most obvious solution to my public transportation needs from the airport was Santa Monica’s Big Blue Bus #3 line. There are Rapid and regular bus line options for the #3 bus. The route runs from 96th street to Sepulveda, Sepulveda to Manchester Blvd, until Lincoln Blvd. From Lincoln blvd. the line goes up through Venice Beach and Santa Monica. There’s a slight detour to 4th street between Pico and Wilshire. If you are taking the Rapid bus, the line stops at 4th street and Wilshire. With the Rapid bus, the best way to head east is to transfer on the #1 Big Blue Bus at the Santa Monica Blvd. exit on the #3. From the #1 bus, access to west LA is very east, and transfers to LA Metro busses are available to head further east on Santa Monica Blvd.

The regular #3 bus line continues north until Montana Ave. and heads east through Brentwood merging onto San Vicente and then along Wilshire. The Wilshire corridor is fairly transferable to other bus lines, both Big Blue Bus and LA Metro. But the regular #3 route is in dispute. A friend from the Bay Area flew into LAX, and I left him bus instructions with both the Rapid and regular bus lines to get to my apartment. He happened to get on a regular bus, and it stopped running at Wilshire and 4th Street. So if that’s the case, then transferring can be done at either the Santa Monica exit or the Wilshire finish. Otherwise, the #3 bus is supposed to end its route at the UCLA Bus Terminal.

Culver City Bus and LA Metro Bus Transfers

Using the Culver City bus, the #6 line heads up along Sepulveda to the UCLA Bus Terminal. Transfers within the Culver City bus system along the #6 line are generally along Sepuleda Blvd. with many transfers at Slauson Avenue.

LAX to Union Station

And another bus line takes you directly from LAX to Union Station in Downtown LA. The link is: http://www.lawa.org/flyawayinfo2.cfm.

LAX by Rail

From LAX to the limited Los Angeles rail lines, take either the free LAX G shuttle, or the #3 Big Blue Bus line south to the LA Metro Green line light rail. The Green line can take you west to Redondo Beach, or East to Norwalk. The Green line rail system also transfers to the Blue line which heads to Long Beach or Downtown Los Angeles. From the Blue line to Downtown LA there is a transfer to the Red line to get into Hollywood and North Hollywood. And from the North Hollywood exit, there is a transfer to the Orange line in the Valley. Also from the Red line, there is a transfer to the Gold line heading to East LA or Pasadena. In this respect, LAX is very accessible via public transit through the many available transfers to all the different systems.

General Information

For more specifics on getting to and from LAX using public transit, please go to http://www.mta.net for LA Metro, http://www.bigbluebus.com for the Big Blue Bus, or http://www.culvercity.org/depts_bus.asp for the Culver City bus lines to look for the nearest bus line and transfer points for your individual needs. Or if you already know the closest bus line, look on these sites to get the transfer information to head off to the airport.

Coming up next, what could have been for Los Angeles public transit through the trolley system.