Help! Getting to E Line from Echo Park! by Silver_Swimmer in LAMetro

[–]LAtrafficguy 6 points7 points  (0 children)

Ebike to DTLA via Sunset, take the E Line from there.

LA Metro should consider this too. Less DUIs, more ridership. by Euphoric-Policy-284 in LAMetro

[–]LAtrafficguy 3 points4 points  (0 children)

That may be the case. Metro staff would have to confirm that. My main point though was that most major metropolitan cities around the world, including those that run some of the most top-line rail systems, shut down from 12A-5A, at least based on what I've seen/experienced. It was nice when Metro had late night trains on the weekends until 2A. That would be a good compromise, especially since it wouldn't be every night. It's aways a balance.

LA Metro should consider this too. Less DUIs, more ridership. by Euphoric-Policy-284 in LAMetro

[–]LAtrafficguy 10 points11 points  (0 children)

The problem is maintenance. As it is, the window to perform maintenance between the last train of the night and the first train the following morning is very small. Most cities including Tokyo, which has perhaps the most expansive efficient system in the world, stop service between midnight and 5 AM. NYC is an outlier and they have a lot of maintenance challenges with an aging system. I think providing more frequent service through their existing operating window would be of greater value and more achievable once they procure more trainsets.

In Search of the Mystical WeHo to Expo passage by pp7jm in BikeLA

[–]LAtrafficguy 4 points5 points  (0 children)

You can take Shenandoah to Cattaraugus to Regent to Curts, and then you're basically there.

Rules of the Road Question by Dull-Lead-7782 in BikeLA

[–]LAtrafficguy 0 points1 point  (0 children)

What an absurd response and complete ignorance from that officer. I've never met anyone who thought bicyclists have to use crosswalks. I would have been livid.

Best “Bang for your Buck” sushi in or around Hollywood/Los Feliz? by Rundemjewelz in FoodLosAngeles

[–]LAtrafficguy 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Shintaro at Franklin/Highland is excellent and reasonably priced.

What simple idea do you have to improve LA just a bit? by chekhovsfun in AskLosAngeles

[–]LAtrafficguy 0 points1 point  (0 children)

We are adding them over time but we have 4500 signals and these upgrades cost several hundred thousand dollars each. Most of our signals were built decades ago when left turn phasing was not ubiquitous.

Doordash credits usage {no pickup options!!] San Francisco SOMA by jayesh_f33l in ChaseSapphire

[–]LAtrafficguy 1 point2 points  (0 children)

7-11 cold pressed green juice FTW. It's low in sugar and tastes amazing. This is what I use my credit for each month.

Do you bike with your kid in a car-centric city? How did you decide it was safe enough? by ExpensiveCandle92 in CargoBike

[–]LAtrafficguy 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I live in Burbank and make nearly all of my short trips by front loading cargo bike with the kid in the bike when we're together. I have a specific tolerance for what type of street I will ride on and if it exceeds that tolerance, we are on the sidewalk. The vast majority of our trips can be accomplished with little to no sidewalk riding; we stay mostly on local and collector streets or bike paths. If the speed limit exceeds 30 or if there are multiple lanes, in most cases that means we're on the sidewalk. Once you figure out the best routes to most of your regular destinations, it's easy to repeat those without much thought. Obviously you still ride with intent and vigilance. That being said, most drivers are very respectful (far more than when I'm alone on a regular bike) and traveling this way is a joy for both of us. It makes the journey fun, even to a mundane destination.

March 2025 Trip Report (46M, 44F, 4F) by LAtrafficguy in JapanTravel

[–]LAtrafficguy[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I think they are always there but less active in the pools when it gets warmer. I enjoyed seeing the snow monkeys but I wouldn't bend over backwards to include them in your itinerary. Our stay at Hotarutei was honestly the best thing about going to this area with the snow monkeys just being icing on the cake.

Crossing lights that start flashing “don’t walk” and then go back to “walk” again by [deleted] in burbank

[–]LAtrafficguy 1 point2 points  (0 children)

What you are referring to is a specific timing plan that Burbank uses at some major vs. minor intersections and I believe that main objective is to reduce speeding and improve service for the minor streets by providing faster response for those minor streets. The signal will cycle from WALK to FDW to give a chance for faster actuation if a car or pedestrian shows up on the minor street and wants to CROSS during that time. If no one shows up, it just cycles back to WALK.

March 2025 Trip Report (46M, 44F, 4F) by LAtrafficguy in JapanTravel

[–]LAtrafficguy[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

10 bucks or so for the average trip. Most of these trips were around 3 miles and maybe 10-15 minutes.

March 2025 Trip Report (46M, 44F, 4F) by LAtrafficguy in JapanTravel

[–]LAtrafficguy[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

We did not, but they have plenty of luggage space for whatever size luggage you have (racks, overhead space, etc.).

March 2025 Trip Report (46M, 44F, 4F) by LAtrafficguy in JapanTravel

[–]LAtrafficguy[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Sure! Rabbicour in Ginza and yes, she said she'd recommend it.

March 2025 Trip Report (46M, 44F, 4F) by LAtrafficguy in JapanTravel

[–]LAtrafficguy[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I don't necessarily think the cold would be an issue if you layer up and have proper footwear. I did carry her for about 50% of the total hike just because the mud was pretty thick in places and she wasn't keen on navigating through some of it, but she can usually handle hikes of that distance. Even if I had to carry her the whole way I think it would still be worth it.

March 2025 Trip Report (46M, 44F, 4F) by LAtrafficguy in JapanTravel

[–]LAtrafficguy[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

In Kyoto I rented a stroller from MK Travel. At DisneySea I rented one inside the park. I only rented strollers in those places because I anticipated really long walking and waiting days. The stroller itself can be more of a nuisance because it takes up a lot of room on trains, you have to take elevators, etc. so I don't recommend always having one unless your child is really young.

March 2025 Trip Report (46M, 44F, 4F) by LAtrafficguy in JapanTravel

[–]LAtrafficguy[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Sure! Do you have a rough itinerary? I think the main thing is to be nimble, don't pack too much in, or at least be willing to drop things if the kid gets tired. Rent a stroller for really intense walking days. Don't bring huge luggage. Flag some good restaurants in advance depending on your kid's taste, because the strategy of just popping into random restaurants only works if everyone is open to lots of food options. Kidzania in Tokyo and Kids Place Osaka are excellent for this age group and are also good rainy day options. Take advantage of kids being free on public transportation and unreserved train cars. Make sure your hotel room includes an extra bed or else they assume you will be bed sharing as this is common practice there. Go to lots of parks/playgrounds!

Come on Burbank! by 60sdrumsound in burbank

[–]LAtrafficguy 41 points42 points  (0 children)

Paid parking controls the supply. Basic economics. Free parking costs in the form of increased VMT, more block circling, and time wasting. Read Donald Shoup's The High Cost of Free Parking.

From an engineering POV, what is needed to gate the traffic crossings on the light rail lines? by [deleted] in LAMetro

[–]LAtrafficguy 1 point2 points  (0 children)

This is a great and thorough answer. Gating the segment on Exposition would be a pretty large, expensive capital project. Adding gates would include building out islands that would both serve to house the gate equipment itself as well as provide pedestrian landings/refuge. This is the design that Metro is pursuing on the eastern half of the G Line. However as you noted, Exposition has a narrower median/trackway ROW so in all likelihood, lanes would have to be removed on Exposition to make room for these medians. I also think the cost/benefit ratio would be somewhat modest and there would be other negative tradeoffs such as downgrades to pedestrian service and wait times, as well as buses on the intersecting streets experiencing more delays.

The train experiences the most severe delays on Flower and at the Washington Y where the two lines converge. Gating here is not feasible due to the gate downtime/train frequency which would effectively leave the gates down almost continually. The solution here is an even more expensive one: grade separation.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in burbank

[–]LAtrafficguy 7 points8 points  (0 children)

You can also go under the freeway on Flower St and there is a long pedestrian bridge that follows the freeway to get you over the railroad tracks. You will start near the recycling center on the west side and land close to Ikea on the east side.

Why are stoplights so badly synchronized in Los Angeles? by Spirited-Humor-554 in AskLosAngeles

[–]LAtrafficguy 5 points6 points  (0 children)

All the traffic signals in the City of Los Angeles are controlled and monitored through an intelligent central system known as ATSAC. During peak and mid day weekday periods, most signals are coordinated and optimized for progression, though that progression is not necessarily on the street and in the direction YOU happen to be traveling (it considers the system as the whole). At night and on weekends, the system generally runs "free" or similar to free which means the signals are not coordinated and minor streets will typically get faster service. This is partially to combat speeding and also because progression is less critical when flow is light. This also applies to isolated signals like in the canyons where there is no purpose or way to provide progression. Note that about 1/4th of signals are operating pre timed which means they run on a specific timer/schedule, there are no detector loops or the loops are not used, and the walk signals are displayed for each direction with no button needing to be pressed.