The Bus Bench

Straphangers: Let Folks Exit FIRST

Just as Los Angeles is experiencing a swell in its population, so, too, is Metro undergoing a surge of straphangers. Unfortunately, simple word balloons, such as the one pictured below should eschew the complexity exhibited and just state something such as, "Socks, then shoes!"

Will Detour be Detoured?

UPDATE: I spoke this afternoon with Goldenvoice event producer Phil Blaine—a downtown resident, I might add—and he stated that with the coöperation of the Secret Service, LAPD, LAFD and Clinton's people, the two events should pose no problems to the attendees. Clinton's fund-raiser will take place from 6 p.m. until 7:30 p.m. and will have reserved parking as well as offer egress in Harlem Place (the alley between the Edison and the cigar/art shoppe) whereas the main gate of Detour—half a block away—will not interfere with the Edison soiree. The security perimeter for Clinton will not intrude on Detour.

The Detour Fest will be this weekend, and Browne and I will once again be marching proudly and unpaid through the gates because, well, it's a street festival and we already paid when the taxman had his hand out.

Or so we hope. . .

The REAL Reason for Exorbitant Oil Prices

Don Pardo tells us why oil prices are so damned high. In 1976.

-BusTard

The Bus Bench Service Alerts. Oct 2. How many hours does Metrolink drivers get between shifts?

Rice-A-Roni in honor of Downtown’s future streetcar
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Obama on transportation.
Barack Obama website.

McCain on transportation.
John McCain website.

McCain and Obama interviewed on transportation.
Via Magazine

The NY MTA is going to take a page out of LA MTA by wrapping subway cards in ads.
Newsday

The Senate passed safety measures. Doesn’t include to stop the barbaric practice of virtually no time off for human engineers, but you know it’s all about appearing to do something.
LA Times

Under Alexandria almost was no more. Apparently according to Li and MB of UA the lights were working oddly and not only did the lights not come on at the appropriate time, but came on and told them to turn into an incoming train. Maybe Metro should look into that.
Under the Alexandria

You need a license to ride a bike.
Streetsblog

Broadway Streetcar has funding. I want to sing the rice-a-roni song, but then no one will buy that I’m 23 1/2 anymore.
Angelenic

US will have largest biodiesel market by 2012.
Bizjournal

Income inequality around the world.
Economist

Compiled and edited by Browne Molyneux

Bus Bench Service Alerts. Oct 1. Tolerance issue.

Audre Lorde writer.

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Not having a car I get to see the ugly of LA up close and personal.

I was walking around yesterday and I saw this big VOTE YES on Proposition 8 and I was very disturbed by this. To me I can’t be ok with people thinking it’s ok to take away something from another person. I am pretty open minded and tolerant. You can think what you think, but when you make a law to take something from someone else that’s where I draw the line. You want to be a homophobic, sexist, racist asshole, fine, but keep that in your own house.

Since June same sex couples have been getting married and now someone wants to take that away? I find that disturbing. What two adults do is no ones business and the church should have nothing to do with this and the only basis people have to be against this is man-made divisive religious blah-blah-blah. I lost a job over this very issue. I was working as a community organizer through a church and I said my god has no problem with same sex marriage or homosexuality and I wouldn't let it go and then they found some stupid reason to fire me. I would say don't work for religious organizations, but intolerance is everywhere and that would be intolerant of me to say that. Judge everything on a case by case basis. 

I can see no reason why same sex marriage is a problem for society. It would be good for society. It would make society more equal.

Here are some news bits to help you think about tolerance:

Our Governor vetoed a bill that would have made Harvey Milk's birthday the first openly gay politician of significance birthday into a day of remembrance.
AP

Ecuador voters ok gay friendly constitution (there's alot of other good stuff in there too!!!)
Planet Out

Sir Ian McKellon promotes tolerance for gay and lesbian people in British school yards. Hey why don’t we have a program like that here, no, like a real one. I don’t remember too many people in LA being beat up for being any particular race in my progressive section of town, but I knew plenty who were teased and ostracized for seeming to be gay or lesbian.
Guardian

Marcher demand action on hate crime death of  Tony Randolph Hunter on Sept 17 he was attacked and beaten. He later died of his injuries. Maybe this started off as a robbery, but you don't get beat like that with no hate involved, so possibly started off as a robbery, but it ended as a hate crime.
Washington Blade

People are preparing to remember the anniversary of Matthew Shepard who was murdered by hate.
On Top

Justice delayed and denied in many transgendered hate crime cases.
Racialicious

British MP married her partner.
AFP

Arguments against proposition 8.

Compiled and edited by Browne Molyneux

The Bus Bench Service Alerts. Sept 26. The Homeless edition

Stevie Wonder's Living For the City

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Yesterday outside my apartment there was a march. Bail out Main St. not Wall St.
Workers World/ Sept 25

It’s easy to be a homeless person in Beverly Hills; according to a very idiotic story on AP.
AP/ Sept 13

The Homeless blog tells the many ways the above story is not too smart.
Homeless Blog/ Sept 15

Homeless people set the tone for a story on an art gallery. Setting the tone like a piece of furniture is a negative. I know online my sarcasm sometimes is missed, so I wanted you to know that was indeed me being an ass.
ESG/ Sept 25

Homeless people don’t cause violent crime, so the police bothering them just points to people finding them annoying. If being annoying is a crime then Nature Mart should be on lock down.
UCLA/ Sept 25

Homeless people need your clothes.
Blogdowntown/ Sept 25

A homeless woman got stomped to death in downtown.
NBC/ Sept 12

Compiled and edited by Browne Molyneux

 

Bus Bench Service Alerts. Sept 25. There is a public transportation day? Wow.

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MTA wants safety improvements, oh...I thought the NTSB had been asking for those since 2005.
Bottleneck/ Sept 25

McCain is a bit negative on public transportation.
Art Voice/ Sept 25

Israel celebrated public transit day on Tuesday. Hey why don't we have one of those?
Israel Ministry of the Environment/ Sept 24

Is LA ready for bike sharing? The negative side of me says no.
Streetsblog/ Sept 24

Eat late in downtown LA. It's one of the few places that has reliable 24 hour public transit service, depending on where you live. We also have that cab thing.
Angelenic/ Sept 25

compiled and edited by Browne Molyneux

Bus Bench Service Alerts. Sept 24. Red Line to 3am is getting closer.

Story comparing bike and car production in the Economist.
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We’re a step closer to normal subway service, for the Red Line for a little while.
Blogdowntown/ Sept 23

Congress meets a compromise, but the President hasn’t signed the bill on rail safety yet.
LA Times/ Sept 24

NY Subways now have Google Transit, we sort of have it with Metrolink, but not with Metro.
NY Times/ Sept 23

The Amber Alert signs could soon be available for ads.
LA Times/ Sept 24

Lawsuit against Metrolink contractor filed by employees.
Mercury/ Sept 19

Compiled and edited by Browne Molyneux

Bus Bench Service Alerts. Sept 23. Ian Dury's dad was a bus driver.

Ian Dury sings a song for his old man who was a bus driver in London.
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Simon got on Metro and nothing (bad) happened.
The Bus Bench/ Sept 22

Damian Goodmon has some studies and says your chance of something bad happening really increases on certain forms of LA public transport.
Citywatch/ Sept 19

A guy who used to work for Metrolink (or rather was on the board), but doesn’t anymore got arrested for something totally not related to the Metrolink thing, but you know it’s in the LA Times, so I am so sure something really relevant will come out connected to this in a later edition.
Bottlneck Blog/ Sept 22

You know those science fiction movies where the cars drive themselves, well that’s coming to Ithaca (that’s a city in New York), maybe...
Smart Briefs/ Sept 22

More people are turning to transit, but you might not all fit, so vote for your gov’t to give transit more money.
AHN/Sept 22

Some people think bicycles don’t offer the flexibility of cars, that’s crazy. You can even do bank robbery using your bike.
San Diego News 6/ Sept 22

Compiled and edited by Browne Molyneux

Bus Bench Services Alerts. Sept 17.

 

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Making parking easier will help public transportation.
Economist/ Sept 17

No electronic billboards along LA Freeways
LA Times/ Sept 17

South LA may not be very black anymore, but life is still rough and most of the residents still have to pay more for transportation that in surrounding communities.
Physorg/ Sept 17

There is a planning conference coming to Hollywood from Sept 21-24. There’s a mobility section. Roger Snoble will be chatting. According to the schedule there is going to be a section on lofts, with a tour…
APA Conference Sept 21-24

London’s Tube upgrades could be painful.
Economist/ Sept 11

Electric biodiesel busses will be in New York thanks to grants.
Buffalo News/ Sept 17

Compiled and edited by Browne Molyneux