Although Santa Monica’s Big Blue Bus has STILL not put its info on Google Transit to make trip planning easier for riders, the city’s made life easier for drivers by providing realtime parking info via a Google Map mapplet. (via LAist)

What is the holdup, BBB? I’ll try to find out more about why our award winning bus system’s way behind the OCTA, Burbank Bus, and Metrolink on this issue. But the Big Blue Bus has more pressing news right now –

Ridership’s up but state funding is down, says the Big Blue Bus, which wants to change up its schedules “to best allocate our limited resources and improve timeliness on select routes.” You can read the full details of the proposal on Big Blue Bus’ website, but here are the highlights:

>> Line 3 would get an extra trip each day, while lines 4, 5, 8, 9, and 10 would lose a few trips.

>> The Tide Ride may lose a whole bunch of trips — or get eliminated altogether.

>> The Sunset Ride would run half as frequently.

>> The new Beach Ride to the Annenberg Community Beach House at 415 Pacific Coast Highway would run Fri - Sun. between May and October.

I remain pretty much unaffected by these changes since I stick to the 1, 2, and 10, which perhaps shows that the trips being cut are indeed not that popular — though I’m still sad to see state funding for public transportation going down at the same time that ridership’s going up. Learn more about the proposed changes and put in your two cents at the Big Blue Bus community meetings:

>> Mon., Dec. 8, 6 pm - 8 pm, Fairview Library, 2101 Ocean Park Blvd., Santa Monica.

>> Tue., Dec. 9, 10 am - noon, Ken Edwards Center, Room 104, 1527 4th St., Santa Monica.

>> Tue., Dec. 9, 6 pm - 8 pm, Westside Pavilion Community Room B, 3rd f., 10800 W. Pico Blvd., Los Angeles.

>> Sat., Dec. 13 10 am - noon, Santa Monica Main Library, Multi-Purpose Room, 2nd fl., 601 Santa Monica Blvd., Santa Monica.

Can’t make it to the meeting? Then send your thoughts to Dan Dawson, Customer Relations Manager, at Dan.Dawson@smgov.net or 1660 7th St., Santa Monica, CA 90401.

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A series featuring car-free women in LA.

Kathryn Pope of Car Freela

Basics: 31-year-old college English instructor, writing tutor, and the director of an educational outreach program for adults. Lives with a partner in Mar Vista. Child-free.

Car free since: June 2008.

Blogging since: September 2008.

Notable posts:
>> Kathryn’s pick: My Parents take a Car-Free Vacation
>> green LA girl’s pick: De-car-ing: The idea of cars as safety devices
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On going car-free….

When I first came to the idea of going car-free, my car was in a geriatric state. I was sick of getting it fixed but not excited about the extra debt I’d have to take on to replace it. I didn’t want to buy a new car, and I hated driving.

I had also recently heard about people who were making the decision not to own cars -– even people in LA who were doing this. I was concerned about the environment. I also disliked the role that cars played in society –- as flashy objects used to show status and wealth – and to separate people along socio-economic lines.

One morning, a hunk of metal fell off my car and started dragging on the pavement while I drove down Centinela Blvd. This was after getting a ticket for a burnt headlight, failing my smog test, having my battery die, and having my idle control (whatever that is) stop working altogether –- all in the span of 2-3 months. I was mad at the car, and I wanted to punish it!

My biggest obstacle was the fact that I often teach night classes and am unable to head home until after 10:18pm, when the last bus passes my workplace. I saw cycling as something that required spandex and special shoes, so I resisted the idea of pulling my old bicycle out of the garage. I tried an electric scooter for a while, and when that didn’t seem so reliable (the battery kept failing, leaving me stranded on my way to work), I nearly gave up. I finally gave the bicycle a try again (sans the spandex) – and it worked out just fine.

I was interested in reducing my environmental impact – and in social justice. These were both reasons to be car-free for me – and to stick with it when I had rough times.

How she gets around.

I ride my bicycle [to work]. My primary mode is the bicycle, and I use the bus when traveling farther than 6 miles.

I don’t think [Mar Vista] is the best neighborhood for car-free living, but it’s not bad. I’m on the edge of the Big Blue Bus, Culver City, and Metro bus systems, which is great sometimes (because of all the options) and not-so-great at other times (because not all the lines run regularly). Luckily, I do live close to work, and there’s both a bank and a grocery store within walking distance of my home. If I didn’t live so close to work, I don’t think I would have made the decision to go car-free.

My partner does own a car, but I don’t get to use it whenever. It took a little convincing to show him that I could go car-free without making life more difficult for us, so part of the initial deal was that I wouldn’t ask to use his car unless I really really needed it. The result is that I haven’t depended on access to his car. We do use the car together for some of the grocery shopping and when getting heavy items (like cat litter), but I’ve driven only twice since June –- once borrowing my partner’s car to pick up my parents (and their luggage) from the train station and once using Zipcar to get my parents (and luggage) back to the train station after the visit. I actually expected to have to get a car more often than I have. Then again, the rainy season is on its way. We’ll see how I do then–

On the upsides and downsides….

The longer I went car-free, the more reasons to be car-free I discovered. As I biked, I felt more connection with my city, neighborhood, and the LA River (which I ride over every day on my commute). I started recognizing my neighbors, waving and smiling to people I would never have met in my car-driving days. I also started shopping less (who wants to buy all that stuff when you have to carry it all the way home?). I realized that I was saving money left and right, which was very fine indeed.

After a few months, it seemed like car-free living might be the panacea to what ails our society – environmentally, socially, and politically. Without cars separating us from our cities, we can become citizens again, not just workers and consumers. That changes the game entirely, I think.

Once I got on my bike, the morning and evening commutes have been quite easy. I actually get to work almost as quickly as I did driving (no traffic). I didn’t think about the exercise I would get by riding my bike. When I started the car-free thing, I owned a gym membership that I hardly used. Once I started biking 6 miles/day, I could cancel my membership, save $30/month, and still get regular exercise.

Before going car-free, I also had the impression that I was going to far-flung territories for necessary things each week. It turns out that I don’t really need to venture far in a week, except for a special occasion every now and then. When you have a car, you find uses for it. When you don’t have one, it can be surprising to see how little you really need it.

I do have to think twice before saying yes to a trip across town – especially on nights and weekends, when buses run less frequently. I have a friend who moved to Silver Lake a year ago, and I’ve only met with her once since the move. It’s a long trip for her to get here – and twice as long for me to get to her. That’s been hard – I think for both of us.

Also, when I’m going somewhere new, it takes planning. The planning-thing took a while to get used to. I was so accustomed to jumping in the car at a moment’s notice that it was hard to think a day or two in advance, to be sure I could get there. For example, I once missed a colleague’s book launch party because it was on a Sunday night – and I hadn’t bothered to check the bus schedules until the last minute – after the last bus of the weekend had already come and gone.

Biking in the summer was tough for me at first. I’m not an LL Bean kind of gal, and I promised myself that I would not have to change my wardrobe in order to be car-free. I would not wear spandex to get to work, and I would not let my office smell like a locker room, after I climbed the hill to work every morning. With a little ingenuity, a comb in my purse, handy-wipes, and layers (always wear layers!), I’ve been able to bike to work and still wear suits, skirts, and earrings.

On car-dependent people.

It’s been difficult to explain to people why I’ve gone car-free. Some people, I’m sure, believe that I’m downright crazy. Other people seem to react with guilt for their long commutes and car-riding habits. Both of these reactions are tough, in their own ways. I’m most comfortable when my mode of transport isn’t a big deal to others.

When I tell people that I don’t own a car, some people react with shocked silence (as in “you don’t look like a weird person, but apparently you are crazy”). Others react with pity. Others worry about my safety. Some react with admiration. At first, each of these reactions worried me. A few things happened, though. First, people who see me every day got used to the fact that I walked back to my bike (rather than a car) after work or after a visit. Second, I felt less of a need to explain myself, as being car-free became more of a normal part of everyday life for me. It wasn’t a big deal to me, and the people around me seemed to pick up on that.

Advice for the car-free curious.

I had a lot of questions when I first decided I might want to go car-free. How would I get home from work at night? Could I get groceries, if I had to? Could I get the cat to the vet? What about downtown, off-site meetings for my job? What do people think, when you arrive for a meeting on a bike? How do you keep your hair looking decent under a bike helmet? Can I still carry my laptop to work? Is my bike cool enough to be seen in public? Can I still wear high heels?

I know it might sound silly, but questions like these can be a big deal. Transportation is part of the structure of our lives, and little questions can stand between a successful experience and the conviction that it’s just not possible to live without a car. Do seek out the answers to questions like these — and expect that it might take a little creativity and patience to get answers that work for you and your life.

With that in mind, I think it’s good to ease into car-free living, to get all the kinks out of your new transportation structure before you take the plunge to sell your car. Going car-free is a big life change, right up there with moving to a new city or changing jobs. It affects everything you do away from home, and it’ll take time to adjust to the change. As you’re figuring out your new system, you may get stuck waiting 30 minutes for a bus one day. You will probably be late to something once or twice. You might be unexpectedly early. You might also have some anxiety about getting stranded or feeling like you “need” your car more than ever, as you consider losing it.

It took me 6 months to get ready to ditch my car (and I hated driving in every way). I was anxious and excited and nervous and frustrated in those six months. Life seemed so hard sometimes, but over time, I adjusted, and I found what worked for me. The day I sold the car, I felt free – but it took time (and a lot of stubbornness) to get to that place. Make gradual steps until you’re ready.

It’s okay to be nervous at first about being out in the world (rather than hidden in a car). As women, we get a lot of fearful messages about how dangerous the world is. It’s good to be smart, of course, but I think it’s not a good idea to let the fear stop you from going places. I’m no jujitsu master, and since going car-free, I’ve gotten around safely without a car. I’ve taken buses into south central, downtown, and Brentwood, and I’m still alive.

Because there are plenty of messages out there about why not to go car-free, make a point to talk with other women who are car-free. When I was thinking about car-freeing my life, I read everything I could get my hands on. I remember seeing a blog post written by a woman who was car-free, and I emailed her with a question. She emailed me within a couple of hours and gave lots of encouragement. That email meant so much to me – and helped me find creative ways around the problems I faced. Talk to others.

Also, if you’re biking, do take a bike safety class. The class I took (from the LA Bicycle Coalition) changed my attitude and was empowering.

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green LA girl’s notes: The Culver City / Mar Vista area is very cute with a lot of amenities near by, but the area’s also surprisingly difficult to get in and out of using public transportation — so I’m impressed that Kathryn’s made it work.

Beginning de-car-ers would especially benefit from reading Kathryn’s blog, Car Freela, which has a lot of super practical tips for people who are considering driving less. Kathryn started the blog to fill a de-car-ing void she saw: “A lot of what I found was written by men, and I longed to hear that women did this too….. I wanted to ask someone how to avoid helmet head. I wanted to hear about how women got around at night without cars.” Now, Kathryn’s answering those questions herself and helping others out.

Photo by Michael Shaw

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The Subway to the Sea may not get to Santa Monica until well after 2020, but we could get dedicated bus lanes running down Wilshire by 2011, thanks to the Wilshire Bus Rapid Transit Project.

We’ve already got the rapid 720 and rapid express 920 lines running down Wilshire — but because those buses share the same roads as the rest of the traffic, they don’t run as rapidly as they should. This BRT Project would create bus-only lanes during peak hours — 7-9 am and 4-7 pm — and hopefully get those red Metro buses zooming past cars in regular traffic. Drivers, then, may be enticed to stop clogging up the roads and start getting on the bus.

The one downer part of this plan: Neither Beverly Hills nor Santa Monica are included in the project at the moment. While Santa Monica tends to be transit friendly — and is just not as jammed up as other areas to begin with — traffic around the less public transit-friendly Beverly Hills sucks.

In fact, 90210’s the exact spot where the rapid buses get jammed up right now. For proof, read Wad of MetroRiderLA ’s review of the 920 line, a post which Wad says could also be titled “F— Beverly Hills. F— everything about Beverly Hills. F— Beverly Hills with the business end of a rake and Ann Coulter’s head.” Wad found that the trip from Santa Monica to Koreatown took 75 minutes: “Of this, 40 minutes was passing through Beverly Hills.” If Beverly Hills remains uninvolved with the BRT Project, the bus-only lanes would only speed up the other 35 minutes of the ride, without dealing with the main time-suck that’s making every rider and driver miserable.

On a more positive note, perhaps the time savings gained from the rest of Wilshire will be enough to get many more people out of their cars. I’m curious to find out at the meetings exactly how much Metro anticipates the time savings will be once the bus-only lanes are implemented.

Other details of the project: Between Fairfax and Western, some roads would be repaved and 11 parking spots would be eliminated. Between Barrington and Sepulveda and between Federal and Bonsall, Wilshire would be widened for an eastbound bus lane.

Assuming all goes well, Metro would approve the BRT project around summer 2009. Final design and construction would take about 2 years. The project will cost about $31.5 million, with $23.3 million coming from the Federal government and $8.2 coming from Metro and the City of LA.

Find out the details of the BRT plans and let your voice be heard at the upcoming Wilshire Bus Rapid Transit Project meetings!

* Wed., Nov. 12, 6-8 pm, Wilshire United Methodist Church, 4350 Wilshire Blvd., Los Angeles
* Mon., Nov. 17, 6-8 pm, Westwood Presbyterian Church, 10822 Wilshire Blvd., Los Angeles
* Tue., Nov. 18, 6-8 pm, Southwestern Law School, 3050 Wilshire Blvd., 5th Floor, Los Angeles
* Wed., Nov. 19, 6–8 pm, Felicia Mahood Center, 11338 Santa Monica Blvd., Los Angeles

Photo by Wad / MetroRiderLA

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A series featuring car-free women in LA.

Narinda of South of Downtown

Basics: 23-year-old who works for an LGBT nonprofit. Lives with a cat in what she calls SoDo, South of Downtown, adjacent to both the Fashion District and South LA. Child-free.

Car free since: Oct. 20, 2008, when her car was towed away by Car Angel.

Blogging since: January 2008.

Notable post:
>> Ride Against Hate: A Moving Rally Against CA Props 4, 6 & 8
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On going car-free….
I didn’t intend on becoming car-free in LA, but as much as people think it’s impossible to live in LA without a car, it was, for the sake of my sanity impossible to live with one.

Honestly, it all started with parking. Finding parking, and the veritable parking lot that traffic creates. I hated dealing with it. With a passion. I suppose I just lack patience — though I’d happily take forty minutes to bike somewhere that would be a 15 minute drive. Go figure. I could say that I do it to be healthier, to be more environmentally friendly, but really, those are actually just icing on the cake.

I got a bicycle in February of this year and began to drive less and less. Over the last three months I only drove my car a couple of times a month other than to move it to avoid parking tickets.

I had kept my car around despite hardly ever driving it because everyone told me that I should have it “just in case.” Well, that “just in case” came so rarely that my car began to have problems — they’re kind of use-it-or-lose-it machines. I decided that if my car was going to end up malfunctioning from lack of use, and I would have to make up reasons to use it, then it would make much more sense just to be rid of it.

I was worried about becoming dependent on the kindness of others for rides and such, but the occasion for me to actually ask someone to go out of their way to help me with their car came up so seldomly that I realized that it actually wasn’t as big an issue as I thought. Also, there is always the option of getting a ZipCar membership if I really needed a car.

How she gets around.

Biking has been a huge part of going car free because it’s just been so much fun and rewarding. Breaking into a sweat biking is sort of worth it when you’re cruising past rush hour traffic. Ohhh yes. I bike [to work], but I live close enoughto walk– it takes about 10 minutes biking, 25 minutes walking.

I consider my bike my primary mode [of transportation], but I supplement that a lot with public transit, both rail and bus. I am near a Metro Blue Line station and near many bus routes, which has made it quite a bit easier. Many would find the relative safety of this area questionable, and I stay cognizant of that when I’m walking/biking around. So far I haven’t had any problems, though.

I haven’t had occasion to drive, other than to be DD once when a friend was unable to.

On the upsides and downsides….

I like not dealing with traffic, parking, parking tickets, car maintenance, vehicle registration, vehicle insurance. Maintaining a bicycle is much easier, less complicated, and less expensive than maintaining a vehicle. And it’s been easy to learn how to do it myself. The money I used to spend on gas, insurance, and maintenance can now go to feeding the ravenous appetite I have from biking so much. I never have to worry about the parking situation when I visit a place again

I look forward to traveling/moving in the future and the car was like another piece of furniture I’d have to worry about. I have been trying to simplify my life and keep fewer non-necessities around, and the car was a huge one.

I thought that having a nightlife would be a problem, but living close to freeways has made it easy to carpool with others. The only [downside of not owning a car] I can think of is going out with friends– and even that has been both unexpectedly hard and easy. Easy in that I’ve been able to find surprisingly simple ways of taking public transit to see people, and hard because I have to think about staying overnight when public transit doesn’t run.

I don’t have a laundry facility in my building. Luckily I am able to do my laundry in the building next door (same management company as mine), and I have friends nearby who let me use their washer/dryer in return for cooking.

It’s difficult to think of any hardships that I didn’t expect, possibly because I don’t really think of them as hard, just different than the way I lived before. And I chose this, so it’s hard to complain.

On car-dependent people.

People are surprised but generally encouraging/supportive about it. A few have said I’m crazy not to have a car in LA, but when I express my intense dislike of traffic and parking, they can empathize. My mother is the only person who has actually said to me that having a car is a part of growing up and moving forward/upward in life, but even she has come around and accepted it. I think once or twice people have been indignant about how “not everyone can be car-free,” but I’ve learned to try to stress that I don’t do it to be holier-than-thou, but because it works for me.

Being car free just makes sense for my life, maybe in part because I’m willing to go through it just to avoid the complications of car ownership. But I’d rather deal with finding a ride and mapping out a public transit route than sitting in traffic. Not all are like this.

Sometimes it feels like your life just won’t permit being car-free — that’s understandable. I don’t expect everyone to go out and become car-free; I didn’t do it to make a statement, I did it because it felt right, because I really wanted to. I made an intentional decision to live near work, which was the biggest thing, and everything else kind of fell into place (in terms of grocery stores and friends and other logistics).

When people ask me about safety, I tell them I feel safer riding my bike right up to my door than having to find parking somewhere and then walk.

Advice for the car-free curious.

I would say get familiar with public transit; it is your friend. It can even end up being more convenient than driving. It’s always important to be careful about safety, but walking the distance from a parked car to an entrance can’t be any more dangerous than biking up to it. Give it a try. Do a test run, start slowly. I sort of transitioned into being car-free just because I started thinking about driving less and less, until it didn’t make sense to have it any more.

Biking and walking can be good. It might be worth it to take a bit more time getting to a destination. Also, there’s the whole calorie-burning thing. I’ve managed to stay fairly fit despite having butter everyday. I love butter.

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green LA girl’s note: From the 3 interviews so far, getting a bike really seems to be the easiest first step towards going car-free!

Read South of Downtown and follow the wanderings and eatings of a SoDo dweller. Narinda says she started blogging because “I realized I couldn’t find much of anything that was centered around the blocks near where I live.” She blogs about biking and public transit “just to show people that it Is possible and that it’s not actually as hard or crazy as they may think.”

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Forgot what the Propositions were already? Here’s what happened on Tuesday.

>> Measure R: I joked about it, but will I really not see the Subway to the Sea until I’m in my 50s?! Reports the Bottleneck Blog: “Metropolitan Transportation Authority chief Roger Snoble said it may now be possible to extend the line to Fairfax Avenue within six or seven years and the line could get to Westwood in 20 years.” Mayor Villaraigosa says he’ll push to build it faster –

>> Prop 1A: It seems the high-speed rail will be built faster than the Subway to the Sea. According to Wired, the line linking LA to San Francisco could open as early as 2020.

>> Prop 2: A UC Davis Agricultural Issues Center study says treating Cali chickens humanely is unlikely to raise egg prices.

>> With the election safely behind him, Schwarzenegger now wants to raise sales taxes by 1.5 cents per dollar while cutting education, health care and welfare payments. The governator’s proposals are an effort to make up for Cali’s projected $11.2 billion revenue shortfall. Reports the San Francisco Chronicle: “the governor’s proposal was immediately criticized by groups whose programs would be cut as well as by Republican lawmakers who steadfastly refuse to raise taxes.” (via LA Daily)

Photo by FredCamino

3 Comments

A series featuring car-free women in LA.

Enci of illuminateLA

Basics: Actress-photographer-designer who’s in her “late 20s to early 30s” and lives in Hollywood with her husband. Child-free.

Car free since: November 2006.

Blogging since: Late 2007, when illuminateLA metamorphosed from a website into a blog.

Notable posts:
>> Enci’s pick: A Little Help For Those Who Want to Ride a Bike
>> green LA girl’s pick: I have been fooled by metroRiderLA
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On going car-free….

When I used to drive a car, I used to be very tense and after hours of being stuck in traffic, I used to be so tired for the rest of the day that I was pretty much defunct. I had no energy to do anything or go anywhere.

Two years ago I did a commercial audition in Santa Monica and the drive back home took over 2 hours. That’s the day that I told myself to never ever drive to SM anymore, only go there via bike and that’s what I’ve done ever since.

How she gets around.

My primary mode of transportation is my bike. I sometimes hop on the bus or the red line, but I like to always have my bike with me. With my bike I never feel stranded. With my bike I always feel like I have a choice to either ride, or walk, or take public transit.

I get to work, be it acting jobs or photography gigs (I’m also a photographer) via bike and sometimes I get a car if the job is very, very far and if there are no public transportation options.

My husband and I live in Hollywood where it’s easier to be car-free because Hollywood has the Red Line, Dash bus, Metro bus and there are plenty of shops, theaters, and stores that are easy to walk or ride to. [We] own a VW Westfalia bus but it’s not running unfortunately. The clutch and the breaks are shot and need fixing.

I still drive about once a month. I either borrow from a friend who works just a few blocks from me or I rent a car for a day or two. One afternoon I was riding out towards Santa Monica and my agent called me and said, “Enci, the good news is that I have and audition for you at Universal. The bad news is that you have to be there within the next hour.”

I could have never made it in time to Universal from the west side, so I rode up to a car rental place (LA has one every few blocks) rented a car for a day, left my bike there and made it in time for my audition.

And I used that day that I had the car to do my shopping for can foods, cat litter, milk, and all that is usually too heavy to carry. I also use the days that I have a car to take my batteries, light bulbs, electronics, and any hazardous materials to the recycling center.

On the upsides and downsides….

The financial benefits of going car-free are pretty huge. Also the convenience of parking is enormous. I can park my bike in most cases right outside the door of my destination, or even better, I can take my bike inside with me. I don’t need to hassle with parking tickets, tow-zones, street sweeping, etc. I love it. Also, since I’ve been riding a bike, I’m a more relaxed person because I can cut through the traffic with ease and if I decide to take public transportation, I can enjoy the scenery, or a good book or I can study for my next role.

As much as the parking convenience is an upside, it also is a downside sometimes. There are not many bike racks and if there are any, the chances of them being up to safety standard are pretty slim. I can’t take my bike always inside, especially not to auditions which means that my bike is subject to tempering or theft.

Another downside of biking is that I gained weight…in muscles. :-) Okay, so maybe it’s not a downside but I outgrew a lot of my pants because my thighs got bigger and all of a sudden my pants didn’t fit anymore. So I made this downside into a positive thing and I went on a shopping spree :-)

On car-dependent people.

People generally think I’m pretty gutsy and brave to ride in LA traffic and I often get asked by strangers or by friends how I can ride in heels and dressed up. There is a preconception that I should be wearing tights and bike shoes. Or sweats and tennis shoes.

Sometimes when I tell people that I have a rental they are surprised to know that I have a license. That I can drive. And that I can drive a stick-shift :-).

Sometimes people offer a ride out of goodwill, but sometimes it feels like they are pitying me, so I have to reassure them that I love riding my bike and that I’m okay on the road in the middle of the night. I do sometimes bum rides when I’m lazy or when it rains but I love riding! I love the air, the motion, the ease of navigating through the city.

I love to ride! There are days that are rougher then others but a bad day never discourages me. It makes me stronger and it makes me more adamant to spread the word amongst motorists that they should be careful around humans, not just other cars. Cyclists are vulnerable, we don’t have the metal protection around us. We are using the streets with the same goal as drivers: we are trying to get from A to B safely, efficiently and alive.

Weekly I hear motorists point out cyclists’ bad behaviors on the road and about how cyclists need to do this and that. But I never hear motorists tell other motorists how they just killed another child, or another cyclist or a pedestrian. I don’t hear motorists complain about drivers running reds, cutting off other people, making illegal turns and stops, etc. But I always hear these complaints about cyclists. I wish that would stop and I wish people would talk about how we can protect each other and how we can safely co-exists as opposed to blame and attack.

Advice for the car-free curious.

Dress up and look good. People are much more aware of you than if you dress down. Drivers are giving me much more room on the road when I wear heels then if I dress down. You can be green and look good.

Cyclists are safer on the street than on the sidewalk. Cyclists are safer riding with traffic than head-on (riding against traffic is called suicide riding for a reason and riding against traffic prevents you from seeing any traffic signs.) Ride like you drive, follow all traffic rules.

If you have a nice commuter bike like the Flying Pigeon that can hold your bag in the front basket, make sure that you secure your bag in that basket with something so that nobody will be able to grab your hand bag.
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green LA girl’s notes: So there you have it — Even those whose work requires a lot of random travel across the city can still be car-free. Of course, those who work at home like me may have it quite a bit easier — though I do get out to a lot of events.

So far, we’ve had one biking girl who’s put on weight (Enci), one who’s lost weight (RVMB), and one who hasn’t changed a bit (me). We all agree on one thing though: Biking in heels is A-Ok.

Read illuminateLA for Los Angeles culture, the community and the Ride that takes you there. Enci started the blog to promote her friends’ theatre and art shows, but the blog slowly evolved as she got to know the bike culture. Now, in addition to artsy events, Enci posts green tips and other topics interesting to her. Says Enci: “Of course, every event has bike and/or metro directions posted. There is no car directions on my site. I want to encourage people to think outside the box and to get around by foot, by bike or by public transportation.”

Photo via enciperforms.com

9 Comments

Question: I’m planning on relocating to L.A in January from Honolulu to accept a new position. I’ll be working at the federal building on Wilshire. My question to you is: Where is a good place to live in L.A that’s close to the bus line and rail lines? Derek.

Answer: Welcome to LA, Derek! Lucky for you, the Federal Building (1100 Wilshire @ Sepulveda) in Westwood is a very transit accessible destination.

Though no rail line comes anywhere near there as of yet, many of the major speedy bus lines converge there: The 720 down Wilshire alone easily connects you to work from Santa Monica, Westwood, Century City, Beverly Hills, Miracle Mile, Koreatown, and Downtown LA. The 704 — which near your work is just a few blocks south — can shuttle you between work and West Hollywood / Hollywood. Even the 761, which connects you to the valley, will deliver you to work with relative ease, should you decide to relegate yourself to the ‘burbs.

This means you can pick any of the above neighborhoods simply based on what sort of neighborhood and apartment / house you’re looking for. Settle in Santa Monica if you love the beach, the Miracle Mile area if you’re a museum buff, Downtown LA if you want an urban loft in an up-and-coming spot.

The key with picking a specific apartment / house is to make sure that you’re close enough to any of the bus stops I mentioned above that you can walk there with ease, so you don’t have to bother with transfer hassles. To that end, download this Metro Bus and Metro Rail system map (PDF) to help you make your housing decision.

The simplest solution would be to just live in Westwood itself, IMHO, so you can take a pleasant stroll to work, save commute time, and retain all the options to go to all the different places I mentioned not just when you’re at work, but from home too.

Westwood’s a very cute ‘hood with lots of UCLA kids running around. The vegan joint Native Foods is yummy and super popular. And on a transportation-related note, Zipcar has a bunch of locations there, so if you need a car in a pinch, you’d have an easy per-hour rental option too. If you’re a cyclist, Westwood’s pretty central too, so you could bike to the beach or to Beverly Hills with relative ease.

Welcome to Los Angeles!

Photo of Federal Building by Anthony D. Davis, Coyote2012

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Unexpectedly, I got a package from Metro — containing an organic T-shirt in my size!

Was it an early birthday present? I dunno. The shirt, however, has been immediately relegated to workout wear, for fear of looking like too much of a transit nerd. I ran in it on Tuesday –

The package also contained a couple Metro maps — somewhat helpful — and a whole buncha little badges. They’re cute enough, but what am I supposed to do with these, exactly? Why are there so many?

At the moment, I’m thinking of including one in each freebie package I mail off. But if you have better ideas for putting these badges to good use, please let me know –

And thanks to whoever it was at the Metro who sent me the little gift. The shirt I have doesn’t seem to be in the Metro store yet, but some eco-friendly items are available now.

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How I’m voting for the environment in the Nov. 4, 2008 election.

Wanna get from LA to San Francisco in 2.5 hours for just $55? Thought so. So vote yes on Prop 1A.

Neither flying nor driving gets Angelenos to San Francisco within that time frame right now, if one accounts for the post-9/11 plane boarding process — not to mention the time (and CO2 emissions) spent bagging liquidy stuff in ziploc bags.

Prop 1A authorizes $9.95 billion in bonds to build a zero-emissions, high-speed electric train between LA to San Francisco. To build the whole train network, it’ll take 8 years and cost $40 billion. According to the SF Chronicle, “State funding would account for about half of the project; the balance would come from the federal government and private sources.”

So yes, we’re talking about a lot of money and a rather long time. Still, the end results, I believe, will be well worth it. As the SF Chronicle opines:

The passage of Prop. 1A would generate an estimated 160,000 construction-related jobs at a time when the state could use an economic stimulus. But its even greater long-term value to the state will be the economic and environmental benefits of connecting urban centers with growing inland cities that don’t have major airports - and providing an alternative to the cattle-call flights between the Bay Area and Southern California.

The California League of Conservation Voters is pro Prop 1A:

California will grow by at least 15 million people over the next 25 years. Unless we make a serious shift in in-state transportation travel, we’ll have to invest in major freeway and airport expansion up and down the state even sooner. A high-speed rail system would cost less than half of what it would cost to get the same increase in capacity from highway and airport expansion.

Local blogger Gary of Gary Rides Bikes is so enthused about Prop 1A that he’s started a new blog, dubbed Trains Are Awesome!

Convinced — or at least intrigued? CALPIRG, a statewide public interest org that works on a number of enviro issues, wants you to come learn more at an educational forum, happening Tues., Oct. 21 from noon - 1 pm at UCLA’s Kerckhoff Grand Salon, 308 Westwood Plaza, Los Angeles. Speakers Include Darrell Clarke of Los Angeles Sierra Club, Maria Elena Durazo of Los Angeles AFL-CIO, and others. RSVP’s requested to Sean Carroll at sean@calpirgstudents.org.

Update, 10/26/08: A very informative video on Prop 1A from KQED’s Quest multimedia series shows that with our population growing, the train’s really the best option for addressing transportation needs. We can’t, after all, double or triple the size of our airports and freeways. (via Grist)

Image via CALPIRG

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>> Metro’s taking seats out of train cars to make room for bikes, wheelchairs, and luggage. De-seating’s expected to commence in 30 - 60 days.

>> Metro may have to cut services due to lease-back deals it made involving AIG back when the financial company was doing okay:

AIG provided $1 billion in loans to finance the transactions. The company, in return for fees paid by the transit agency, also guaranteed that the lease payments to investors would be made on time.

But now AIG’s financial troubles have

triggered a clause in the lease-back agreements that require the MTA to either find a new firm to guarantee the deals or reimburse investors for their down payments and lost tax benefits, a scenario that could cost the transit agency between $100 million and $300 million….

Under a worst-case scenario, [Metro treasurer Terry] Matsumoto said, the bill could rise to $1.8 billion, more than half the MTA’s annual budget for this year. “There is no practical way we could ever pay that back,” he said.

Metro seems to be scrambling to find a way out of the mess.

>> Unrelatedly, my lettuce is slowly growing, but my squirrel Nutta’s already started nibbling on the baby greens!

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