Why I like the "Hybrid" Option for the Crenshaw Northern Extension Project

As we get closer to Metro selecting a "Locally Preferred Alternative" for the Crenshaw Northern Extension Project, a new round of community meetings is about to take place.  On the menu for discussion will be a new "hybrid" option (seen below).

The more I study the "hybrid" alignment (A2 plus A/A1 above) for the Crenshaw Northern Extension Project the more I like it. At first the geometry of the line threw me, but this option hits all the major job/entertainment/retail generators north of Wilshire.

Going to where people actually want to go is what will make this line the tremendous success it is destined to be.  People don't just travel through this area, they travel TO this area and within this area.

Let's just remember why we need this line.  It intersects so many other Metro lines (Green, Expo, Purple, Red) and major bus corridors (Santa Monica, La Cienega, Fairfax,,etc.) that it will increase ridership on the whole system.  Plus, this extension will vastly increase mobility for disadvantaged communities with direct connections to job and entertainment centers like Cedars-Sinai, Beverly Center, The Grove, and West Hollywood.

There is a minority of people out there that prefer La Brea for this alignment. They look at La Brea on the map, see a "straighter" line, and say, "We want speed, speed, speed!  They don't seem to care about direct access to any of the ridership generators between Wilshire Blvd. and Hollywood Blvd. further west (like Cedar Sinai, the Beverly Center, the Grove, West Hollywood, etc.).  This is why I do not agree with them:

As a daily user of the transit system I think to myself, "If the options are: (A) riding a few more minutes underground to go directly to the location I actually want to go (West Hollywood, Cedar Sinai, Beverly Center, The Grove, etc.), or, (B) getting off the train at La Brea and THEN waiting above ground to transfer to a bus and THEN riding through heavy surface traffic to finally get where I actually want to go, well (B) really does not seem like the "speed" option after all, does it?

I'm sure a nurse riding from Leimert Park to her job at Cedar Sinai would rather take a quick one-seat ride underground rather than ride to Beverly/LaBrea, wait for a bus at LaBrea for however long, and then ride stop and go in heavy traffic to finally get to her job.  When you conceive the whole trip, the notion of the "speediest" option changes.

I say build this line and put the alignment directly stopping where people actually want to go.  And make its northern terminus at the Hollywood Bowl to help relieve nighttime Hollywood Bowl traffic there.

I believe the few extra minutes of curves required to make these stops, which no one will notice or care about underground, will still be MUCH quicker than sitting in heavy surface traffic above ground, and will not at all be a deterrent to its success.

I also reject talk of breaking this project up separately into “two-lines” as there is only going to be one line built in this area for decades.  By the time all of the current Measure R and Measure M projects are finished it will be decades for a second line is even proposed.  So don't be fooled or distracted by those people advocating a  so-called "speed" line on La Brea today while leaving second "access" line to be proposed and built at some vague date decades later (or never).

There are also those who will wonder, "what about the people traveling from the San Fernando Valley to LAX?"  Good question! I think most of them will likely use the coming Sepulveda Transit Corridor Project (seen below), but will still find this hybrid underground alignment MUCH quicker than sitting in surface traffic.

The next round of Metro Community Meetings for this project are soon.

Tuesday, October 22, 2019, 6 – 8 p.m.

Plummer Park, 7377 Santa Monica Blvd. West Hollywood, CA 90046.

Accessible via: West Hollywood Cityline and Metro bus lines 2, 4, 212, and 704.

Thursday, October 24, 2019, 6 - 8 p.m.

Wilshire Crest Elementary School, 5241 W. Olympic Blvd. Los Angeles, CA 90036.

Accessible via: Metro bus lines 20, 28, 212, 312, 720 and 728.

Saturday, October 26, 2019, 10 a.m.  – 12 p.m.

Virginia Road Elementary School, 2925 Virginia Road, Los Angeles, CA 90016.

Accessible via: DASH, Metro Bus lines 37, 38, 210, 710 and 740.

Tuesday, October 29, 2019, 6 – 8 p.m.

Rosewood Avenue Elementary School, 503 N. Croft Ave. Los Angeles, CA 90048.

Accessible via: DASH, West Hollywood Cityline and Metro bus lines 10, 14, 105 and 705

I will see you there!  You can also submit your feedback about this line to crenshawnorth@metro.net.

Although I very proudly sit on the City of West Hollywood's Transportation Commission, this blog post is my own opinion.  I am not claiming to speak for the Commission, the City Council, or our hardworking city staff.  

What will eventually be the northern extension of the Crenshaw/LAX Line to Hollywood?

On the new Expo light-rail line there is a stop at Crenshaw & Expo, which will eventually be a transfer to the proposed Crenshaw/LAX light-rail line.  Most transit advocates in Southern California see the natural northern terminal of the Crenshaw/LAX Line not at the Expo Line where the first operating segment will end, but past Wilshire Blvd. and the Purple Line to the Hollywood/Highland Red Line station.

When Metro finally studies this transit corridor they will have to consider the needs of all the stakeholders in the area.

There will be those people who primarily care about getting the quickest and most direct route between Crenshaw/Expo and the Hollywood/Highland station and they will want La Brea as the alignment obviously.

Then there will be people who live, work, play and want to travel to/from high ridership destinations in between these two points, especially West Hollywood and surrounding destinations, who were disappointed in not being part of the Westside subway extension and whom voted most heavily in favor of Measure R, and their primary concern will be accessing Metrorail at all.

Metro will need to balance the cost of building a longer alignment to provide access to more stakeholders with the desire of those who primarily want speed through this area to create an alignment that serve the most people with the maximum ridership. ALL of the potential alignments through this area would still be quicker than riding a bus through traffic.

Here are the most likely potential alignments of the northern extension of the Crenshaw/LAX line as shown in this Metro study map:

Here are my guesses of the most probable potential stops with their accompanying ridership destinations, along with the length of these potential alignments connecting Crenshaw/LAX at the Expo Line station with Hollywood/Highland:

All of these four alignments would have stations at

- Crenshaw and Expo (transfer to Expo Line)

- Crenshaw and Adams

- San Vicente and Pico/Venice

Here is where they differ on the route to the Hollywood / Highland Red Line station

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SAN VICENTE / LA BREA ALIGNMENT (4.2 miles total)

- Wilshire/LaBrea (needs to junction with LaBrea/Wilshire Purple Line station)

- Beverly/LaBrea

- SantaMonica/LaBrea 

- Hollywood/Highland

(This route misses nearly all of the high-ridership generators in this area, and would be sort of like running the Blue Line up Alameda instead of the heart of downtown to Union Station.  You'd get there the quickest, but miss where the riders are actually going in between.)

-------------

SAN VICENTE / FAIRFAX / SUNSET ALIGNMENT (6.0 miles total)

- Wilshire/Fairfax (LACMA/Museum Row - needs to junction with Fairfax/Wilshire Purple Line station

- Beverly/Fairfax (Grove/Farmer's Market/CBS)

- Santa Monica Blvd/Fairfax (West Hollywood east)

- Sunset/Gardner (Sunset Strip access)

- Hollywood/Highland

(As this was the original northern alignment of the Red Line before the NIMBYs thwarted the Purple Line extension through Hancock Park back in the 80's, there would be sweet justice of a Fairfax alignment eventually being built.)

-------------

SAN VICENTE / LA CIENEGA / SUNSET ALIGNMENT (around 7 miles total)

- Wilshire/SanVicente (transfer junction with LaCienega/Wilshire Purple Line station)

- Beverly/LaCienega (Beverly Center / Cedar Sinai)

- SantaMonica/LaCienega (heart of West Hollywood)

- Sunset/Fairfax (Sunset Strip access)

- Hollywood/Highland

-------------

SAN VICENTE/SANTA MONICA BLVD. ALIGNMENT (7.3 miles total)

- Wilshire/SanVicente (transfer junction with LaCienega/Wilshire Purple Line station)

- SanVicente/Beverly (Beverly Center / Cedar Sinai)

- SantaMonica/SanVicente (heart of West Hollywood)

- Santa Monica/Fairfax (West Hollywood east)

- Santa Monica/LaBrea

- Hollywood/Highland

(This alignment has the advantage of the portion north of Wilshire as already having been studied by Metro as part of the Westside subway extension.)

--------------

Why not have two or three separate Metro rail lines some people might ask?  Why not have one line traveling only on LaBrea for speed between Hollywood and LAX and another separate line entirely that integrates West Hollywood and environs for access into the Metrorail system.  Why not indeed?  

Well, to be frank, two or more lines won't happen because of MONEY -- because nearly all of this light-rail line will have be constructed underground.   (Look at the current difficulty in getting the Wilshire Blvd. subway extension and the Regional Connector projects funded and built.) 

If we are lucky and the pieces somehow come together, we will get to have one light-rail subway funded and constructed through this mid-city, mid-west side area.  ONE.  And it is going to need to serve all the stakeholders, or as many stakeholders as possible, in this area, not just those transit riders traveling between Hollywood and the airport quickly, but also those who live, work and play in points between such as the Grove, Beverly Center, Cedar Sinai, West Hollywood, the Sunset Strip, and their environs.

Not just because it is geographically in the middle between the other alignments and in the middle with the lengths of these alignment, I think Metro may end up deciding that Fairfax is the best compromise alignment between ridership destinations and speed through the area, but we will see.  Everyone will have their vocal opinion I am sure.  Hopefully, either the SanVicente/SantaMonica alignment or the SanVicente/Fairfax alignment will be built in our lifetimes.

My Westside Mass Transit Dream

Isn't this beautiful?

This is my Westside Mass Transit Dream.

I was inspired by the Westside Transit Corridor Extension Project public briefing meetings held last week. There are still two more for you to attend:

• Tuesday, August 11, Beverly Hills Public Library, 444 N. Rexford Drive, Beverly Hills
• Wednesday, August 12, Westwood Presbyterian Church, 10822 Wilshire Blvd, Los Angeles

What we see here is existing Metro Rail on the Red and Purple Lines plus the completion of the Exposition Line.

In addition, we see completion of the Westside Subway Extension Project extended all five phases:

1) Extend Purple Line from Wilshire/Western to Wilshire/Fairfax;

2) Extend Purple Line to Century City;

3) Extend Purple Line to West L.A.;

4) Connect Hollywood/Highland and Purple Line through Santa Monica Blvd. (The "Pink" Line);

5) Extend Purple/"Pink" Lines to Santa Monica

The new map of Alternative 11 of the Westside Subway Extension presented at last week's public briefing contained two "new" fingers added to a possible northern extension of the proposed Crenshaw Light Rail Line. The previous maps only contained a possible light-rail leg to LaBrea & Wilshire. The new "fingers" at Fairfax/Wilshire and SanVicente/Wilshire seem to indicate that Metro wants a northern extension of the Crenshaw Line to head west of LaBrea. Most Southern California transit advocates see the Hollywood/Highland station as the ultimate northern terminus of the Crenshaw Line.

In thinking about this as to what I would select, I ruled out the SanVicente "finger" because there is no Purple Line stop there and I am sure Metro will want Crenshaw Line riders to be able to transfer to the Purple Line. I ruled out LaBrea because even though it would be cheapest and more direct for the Crenshaw Line to head straight up LaBrea, it would leave out numerous ridership opportunities such as the Grove and a stop on the Sunset strip. Since I see the Pink Line already serving the Beverly Center, therefore I opted for Fairfax/Wilshire for a transfer station with the Crenshaw Line. This would allow service at the Grove, West Hollywood, and it includes a Sunset Strip stop around Sunset/Gardener. I think the added ridership of the Fairfax alignment justifies it over the less expensive cost of the LaBrea alignment of the northern extension of the Crenshaw Line. If Metro heartbreakingly decides it cannot go forward with Santa Monica Blvd. subway alignment (Phase 4) because of funding, then heading to Fairfax/Wilshire instead of LaBrea/Wilshire becomes even more imperative.

What is so delicious about a Fairfax alignment is that Fairfax was originally the planned northern route of the Red Line from Wilshire towards Hollywood before NIMBYs and anti-rail idiots sabotaged the building of the Red Line. (Just think. If it wasn't for the NIMBYs and misguided organizations like the so-called Bus Riders "Union" we might already be riding a completed Purple Line.) It would be beautiful karma to see a Fairfax alignment rise from the ashes.

In Measure R, there is a Sepulveda Pass transit project connecting the Valley from the Westside. I envision for the health of a region an alternative to the parking lot that is the 405 Freeway with a Sepulveda based line moving north from LAX and the Green Line up to the Exposition Line, the Purple/"Pink" Lines, and into the Valley connecting with Ventura Blvd, the Orange Line, Van Nuys Metrolink Station and ultimately Sylmar Metrolink station.

What an amazing system this would be if this were all constructed and operating.

Now that I've showed you my dream for the Westside, and I am sure you all have your own transit dream, let me admit to some stone cold reality.

There is no funding identified for most of this -- and funding is what will determine whether a transit line gets built, and that is assuming you[ve gotten past the inumerable NIMBYs and competing interest gauntlets pulling at Metro to come to a heavy or light rail line preferred alignment proposal that Metro and the Community is strongly enough supporting.

What transportation capital funding there is will go towards constructing the transit lines and segments with the highest ridership. As passionate as I am about Phase 4 of the Westside Subway Extension Project, the Santa Monica Blvd. subway, I fully realize that Phases 1, 2 and 3 of the Westside Subway Extension (Wilshire plus Century City) and the super crucial downtown Regional Connector, come first, and then there are all the worthy competing Los Angeles County projects out there (i.e. finishing the Expo Line, extending the Green Line to LAX, upgrading the Orange Line to light rail, TWO Gold Line extensions, Crewnshaw Line, a Sepulveda Line, etc.)

Also, don't forget the need to maintain a comprehensive and robust bus system and the desire of automotive diehards to expand roads.

In fact, there is no shortage of need and desire, but not an abundance of transportation money for public transit.

The good news is that there has been a sea change of opinion within Southern California. Only the willfully delusional still believe that Los Angeles can preserve a car-only transportation system forever. In fact, the 67% vote in favor of Measure R demonstrates that the overwhelming majority of Los Angeles County knows better. $4.00/gallon gasoline and ever-worsening congestion beat a lot of people into reasonableness. We need alternatives. However, Measure R won't pay for all of my dream or your dream or anyone's dream. The State Budget is a basket case for the forseable future and if the State ever gets out of financial crisis, it really needs to put its transportation focus on transit operation (not capital) funds and seeing the needed High Speed Rail project into manifestation.

So, if you like my transit dream or have a dream of your own for the Westside or anywhere else in Los Angeles County and Southern California, you will need Federal dollars. Please join a transit advocacy organization such as Southern California Transit Association or The Transit Coalition (but not the misguided Bus Riders "Union"). Please write your member of the House of Representatives and our state's two U.S. Senators. Please write your County Supervisor and your city mayors and councillors and ask them all to support mass transit not just in words, but financially too.

Any transit dream without adequate funding is just a fantasy. So let's start advocating for transit dollars to start turning some of these dreams (many of which are absolute necessities for our economic and environmental future) into reality.