Daily Trojan: Published: Thursday, October 12, 2000 Letter to the Editor: Rail line not new issue (232 words) Copyright 2000 by the Daily Trojan. All rights reserved. What? A streetcar line down Exposition Boulevard! The very idea! (Some call it "light rail," but as it says in "Romeo and Juliet," "A rose by any other name would smell as sweet.") Well, there was a streetcar line down Exposition Boulevard. It was called the Santa Monica Air Line. And I rode it. And I rode the last car. And many people fought to keep the service. And the body politic at the time said that it was old, passé, not in keeping with the image the so-called City of Los Angeles needed to project, costly and why should the Southern Pacific (Pacific Electric) get any subsidies from the government. And now, choke, wheeze, gasp, there is a possibility of a return of that service? Perish the thought that the university would support such an effort. What the Regents do not understand is that, during a number of dull nay moribund philosophy lectures to undergraduates at Mudd Hall circa 1954, the only thing of real interest that occurred was the passage of the trains along Exposition Boulevard. Here is a real study of what we had and lost. Fie on a board that would rather support an NFL farm system than a quality of life issue in what was, once, El Pueblo de Nuestra Señora la Reina de Los Angeles. Kenneth Harrison Alumnus Class of 1958 End of Letter to the Editor: Action Requested---->> Write a Letter to the Editor (see above for details) |
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Daily Trojan: Published: Wednesday, October 11, 2000 Letter to the Editor: Rail issues complex (518 words) Copyright 2000 by the Daily Trojan. All rights reserved. In regards to a light rail installation on Exposition Boulevard, USC's leadership favors improved transportation for the under-served areas of our region, including University Park and Exposition Park. A chief concern, however, is that the mode of transportation chosen will have direct and indirect effects on the business operations and academic programs of every institution in Exposition Park, University Park and the immediate vicinity for the better part of the century. It is imperative that the planning assumptions and long-term implications with respect to each alternative mode and alignment be thoroughly understood. USC's leadership believes that if a transportation mode is chosen for the Expo MTA median, whether it is a light rail or fast bus, it should be built below grade or tunneled for the 1/2 mile distance it traverses through the Exposition Park-USC area from Flower Street on the east, and beyond Vermont Avenue to the west. This is consistent with an approved 1992 Environmental Impact Report on a previous and similar light rail project, the Exposition Park Branch Blue Line extension, which failed due to a lack of funding. USC had actively supported the Exposition Park Branch project. The previously mentioned EIR report essentially supports USC's present position that if constructed at-grade or above ground, the bus or light-rail operations would create impossible safety and environmental impacts which would negatively impact the operations of the institutions in this neighborhood. This area already experiences the impact of the Harbor Freeway and Figueroa Street freeway alternative route on our eastern border, and Vermont Avenue the most traversed bus route in Los Angeles County on our west side. The museums and the Coliseum Commission staff in a joint resolution to the MTA Board (March 23, 2000) recognized major safety concerns of the proposed at-grade light rail or fast bus along Exposition Boulevard as well as adjoining streets. The resolution urged "serious consideration of below-grade options along Exposition Boulevard from the Harbor Freeway to just west of Vermont Avenue similar to one of the route alternatives proposed in the Final 1992 Environmental Impact Report." It should be recognized that two approved and mostly funded light rail corridors in southern California will utilize the below-grade option: the MTA's Eastside Light Rail (with one and a half miles underground) and Mission Valley East Trolley Blue Line (with one mile underground) connecting to San Diego State University. Concerns for pedestrian safety regarding the rail or bus project on the Expo MTA median are heightened by two recent deaths (one a faculty member) which occurred at the intersection of Exposition Boulevard and Figueroa Street, and the severe injury of a young student in an accident at Exposition Boulevard and Pardee Way. In conclusion, the draft EIR of the proposed alternatives of the Expo MTA median project (light rail and fast bus) will be available in the next several months. I look forward to reviewing and discussing it with Daily Trojan staff when it is available. A. Bingham Cherrie Associate Vice President, Planning Business Affairs End of Letter to the Editor: Action Requested---->> Write a Letter to the Editor (see above for details) |
Daily Trojan: Published: Thursday, October 12, 2000 Letter to the Editor: Ride the rails, 'SC (190 words) Copyright 2000 by the Daily Trojan. All rights reserved. So, USC wants to be the university for the 21st century, huh? Well, what a way to show its faculty, staff, students and surrounding neighbors a cool reception towards the proposed Exposition line. As a Bruin alum, I'd really hate to someday admit that 'SC did the right thing and helped build one of the most important and innovative rail lines in the country. Nah, come to think of it, 'SC and its powers-to-be, don't have that kind of foresight, do they? Maybe Steven Sample and company can prove me wrong, and I'll for once give 'SC some credit. Actually, I would look forward to the day when I hear 'SC students bragging about having a rail station while UCLA will probably have a wimpy bus stop courtesy of Zig-Zag Zev Yaroslavsky. But, as a lifelong Angeleno, I'll enjoy hearing the words, "Next stop...USC/ Exposition station!" For once, 'SC students, get off your spoiled behinds and protest about something other than the parking spaces that aren't big enough for your Daddy's BMW! Andre Morimoto Assistant Director, Business Development Japan External Trade Organization End of Letter to the Editor: Action Requested---->> Write a Letter to the Editor (see above for details) |
Exposition Transit Corridor 2 USC News Contents: 4. 10/11/00 Letter to the Editor 5. 10/12/00 Letter to the Editor 6. 10/12/00 Letter to the Editor 7. 10/12/00 Letter to the Editor |
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Created: 10/15/00 Last Updated: 03/21/01 Page 2 |
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Daily Trojan: Published: Thursday, October 12, 2000 Letter to the Editor: Trains for Trojans (136 words) Copyright 2000 by the Daily Trojan. All rights reserved. As an alum and former Daily Trojan staff writer who first covered this story back in 1992, I am disappointed, yet not surprised, at the university's opposition to the light rail line along Exposition Boulevard. I do attribute its stance as being consistent with the anti-rail, anti-growth philosophy of USC's urban planning school, whose professors almost always downplay the importance of rail transit in Los Angeles. I only wish such a line was in existence during my college days. The implementation of such a line would contribute positively to the economy and local mobility. Imagine attending a Lakers game at Staples Center, an internship Downtown or access to the beaches, the Promenade and the high-tech/entertainment corridor in Santa Monica? Imagine several thousand jealous Bruins across town.... Elson Trinidad Alumnus Class of 1996 End of Letter to the Editor: Action Requested---->> Write a Letter to the Editor (see above for details) |
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