Los Angeles is working hard to rapidly build a new subway system from scratch, but is there a better way to do this, and does it even matter?
Thanks to:
https://www.reddit.com/user/CalcagnoMaps/ for the BART style LA map
https://www.youtube.com/@nandert for the sepulveda pass footage
https://thesource.metro.net/ for detailed info on the regional connector and other transit projects and statistics for the video
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Los Angeles Transit faces challenges such as limited platform capacity, inadequate service frequency, and missed opportunities for expansion, leading to overcrowding and delays on crucial rail lines. Despite these flaws, Metro has made commendable progress in building a substantial transit system in just 30 years, with the potential to rival major subway systems, and there is room for improvement in prioritizing transit, addressing environmental concerns, and realizing a more interconnected and efficient future for Los Angeles.
public transit,urban planning,public transportation,Are Los Angeles Transit Expansions Flawed?,Los Angeles,Metro,Metro LA,los angeles metro,LA metro,Los Angeles Transit,Regional Connector,Light Rail,Rail Line Expansion,Transit Planning,Sepulveda Pass,Monorail Proposal,Downtown Transit,Public Transportation,Metro Improvements,Commuting Challenges,Urban Mobility,Transit Infrastructure,Environmental Impact,Future of Los Angeles Transit.
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I made a map last week showing an automated elevated high speed metro on Venice Blvd
all the lines should be at least 4 cars, and i have a crazy idea that just might work…
instead of having the k line end at expo/crenshaw they could fix that up and have it follow the e line's path into downtown and east la, creating a one seat ride to the airport for waaay more people. then when they do the k line northern extension it can be part of the e line, the c line could go from its path along the 105 up the current k line corridor (interlining with the k) and then keep going north to interline with the e as it goes to hollywood
I think your premise is good, but I can't agree with your conclusion. The biggest problem with LA is the "Quantity over Quality" mentality, LA Metro is so concerned about expanding access to rapid transit to as many places as possible, any form of quality goes out the window in the name of saving money. This leads to the overuse of LRT as a mode, not building lines with future extensibility, and very short sighted thinking. What needs to happen is we sit down, think of what are the highest priority corridors, build those corridors to be as fast and high capacity as possible, and maximize their value by providing high quality and frequent bus services to those corridor. A good comparison would be the Toronto Subway, and how that interfaces with the arterial bus services.
Saw myself at 0:15 😮
I really think that if Sepulvada is to be successful, it has to be Heavy Rail like what nandert suggested. There is no way a three car light rail can handle Valley and Westside residents, UCLA student, airport travelers, port workers, and South Bay residents and students.
But yeah it seems no one is on the same page at Metro. Hell if they could work together with OC, that would be awesome.
Why you can't compete together Muni and BART?
What's really annoying is that the A and E Lines run aboveground in Flower Street until the A Line branches off to head for Long Beach. If the LACMTA had any foresight they could have extended the tunnel until the A Line turn and put a junction box there and have the two lines come aboveground after the junction box (or better still a flying 'J' interchange).
LA Metro is very slow to expand ral lines
Any rail line is NOT crowded outside of Rush Hour, about four hours out of the day. Maybe it isnt future proofed, but this remains to be seen.
sooo much agree about the need for smth in downtown, i’ve been obsessively checking the website for the broadway streetcar for years now hahaha. Although I agree it looks now like it’s less likely to happen than ever, they recently updated a lot of the info on the website for the project, which seems like a good sign to me. afaik theyre just needing a final boost in funding to actually start constructing the project, but they sound very hopeful on the website, there’s even a few things on there that make it sound like they want to build a network of these lines, alas thatd prob be wayyyy in the future, but i think depending on how the OC streetcar and eventually also the Glendale streetcar projects go there’s a chance we could see streetcars popping up all over LA and hopefully downtown sooner than later. Also you should consider posting your vids on the r/lametro subreddit, i think people would really enjoy your research on there!
Of course they're flawed. ALL planning–transit or otherwise–is imperfect because all planning is embedded in the decision-making fabric of the political process. There can and will never be a "perfect" transit system anywhere because of this. There will always be some local politician dragging planning off course for hyper-local, NIMBY reasons. What you should really be paying attention to is how cities course-correct afterwards. L.A. Metro is doing spectacularly in that regard.
‘DON’T YOU EVER SCREAM INTO THE MICROPHONE AGAIN!!!
wow. LA is spending money on public transit. While my city is spending it on widening the I35 Freeway
Just be glad metro exists in LA and connects to some places smh
would love to see your fantasy map for LA!
the fact that we still dont have an easy way to get from LAX to downtown shows how bad and weird things are. and who knows how long it wouldve taken to finish if it werent for the olympics 28 by 28
Lol Los Angeles need some kind of crosstown esque subway like in London UK, bypassing downtown/central business districts
Great video! Another think I think is quite telling is the poor transfer between the E and K lines, esp considering how important it will be for airport connections. I think it’s super important for system legibility to have transfer points under the same station roof without crossing streets or having to go down a sidewalk