Expo Line3: USC Trojan Opinions & Support

Daily Trojan:
Published: Thursday, January 11, 2001
Letter to the Editor:
Traffic problems to SC
(232 words)
Copyright 2001 by the Daily Trojan. All rights reserved

     Anyone who goes to the USC campus for classes, work, or to watch sports knows that getting to USC and parking can be time consuming and expensive.

     The federal and California state governments have agreed to provide almost $500 million for building mass transit for LA mid-city and West LA. In the next few months, the Los Angeles County MTA will decide how to best spend this money. The MTA is considering three options.

     One option is building a dedicated busway along the center of Wilshire Blvd. from downtown, past UCLA to Santa Monica. The alternative to the Wilshire busway is a Light Rail or busway from the existing MTA Blue Line station at Staples Center past USC along Exposition Blvd, past Culver City, to West L.A. and Santa Monica.

     We prefer the Expo Light Rail option because the speed and comfort of a train will provide better transportation options for USC students, employees and alumni traveling to and from the campus and sporting events.

     The MTA already owns the train track right of way down the center of Exposition Blvd to West L.A, where trains used to run years ago. The MTA is now expanding their existing rail network, building new Light Rail lines from downtown to Pasadena and to East L.A.

     Many USC students and employees will be able to use
this Expo Light Rail to travel quickly and comfortably to
West LA or downtown with quick connections to Long
Beach, Hollywood, San Fernando Valley, Pasadena,
and East L.A.

The Expo Light Rail would draw well over 50,000 daily trips, which will reduce car traffic and improve parking around
the campus. Expo rail could also benefit those who visit
or work at the Coliseum or in Exposition Park.There are
many of us out there who support Expo Rail because it
will also improve air quality for L.A. USC supports building
Expo Light Rail.

Daniel Walker,
Alumnus, Class of Ś93

This Letter to the Editor was published in Vol. 142, No. 03 (Thursday, January 11, 2001), beginning on page 4 and ending on page 14.

End of Letter to the Editor: Action Requested---->>
Write a Letter to the Editor (see above for details)

Daily Trojan:
Published: Wednesday, November 1, 2000
Letter to the Editor:
Accuracy derailed
(518 words)

     I couldn't sit back and let the mistruths spread by the Bus Riders Union sit unanswered any longer. It repeatedly mixes up its facts in an attempt to support its arguments, just as it did in the initial article appearing in the Daily Trojan ("University, bus riders resist city rail line," Oct. 3).

      It first refers to the diversion of funds from bus
operations to constructing rail lines serving suburban whites. Apparently the union members have never taken a ride on
the highly successful Blue Line between downtown
and Long Beach.

     They must also be expecting a large influx of "suburban whites" along the planned Eastside light rail line to displace the largely Latino population it would otherwise serve. The BRU uses its race rhetoric to avoid having to provide facts against rail, because it knows it would lose a factual debate.

     The weakest argument appearing in the original article, however, is when it states that cuts to MTA bus service have resulted in vastly increased travel time for bus riders. The example given is an increase from 39 minutes to one hour, 18 minutes from Santa Monica to downtown.

     In not doing her research, Daily Trojan writer Amanda
Carraci did not realize that the times given are for the
Santa Monica Big Blue Bus route 10, which is not operated
by the MTA at all. Furthermore, the increase in time has
resulted from increased congestion along that route, in
particular the 10 freeway.

     Traveling on congested streets is a problem that buses face, and is actually a great argument in favor of constructing light rail along the Expo right of way to provide a high capacity transit route that doesn't have to sit in traffic.

      It is unfortunate that the Daily Trojan, like other media, so eagerly publishes everything the BRU spouts without digging beneath the surface. The BRU has very little basis in fact to stand upon, but by playing the race card they are able to get plenty of uncritical media coverage.

David Knight
Los Angeles, CA

This Letter to the Editor was published in Vol. 141, No. 45 (Wednesday, November 1, 2000), beginning on page 4 and ending on page 7.

End of Letter to the Editor: Action Requested---->>
Write a Letter to the Editor (see above for details)

Daily Trojan:
Published: Monday, January 29, 2001
Editorial:
USC students deserve more parking options
(190 words)

Imagine a quiet line of exhausted students waiting outside of Transportation Services with a glimmer of hope that the first-come, first- served process of parking allocations will reward them with a parking spot of their own.

Some of these hardy students have been waiting outside all night, while others with delusions of obtaining a parking space merely woke up at 5 a.m. with the pathetic dream of getting that last spot. After waiting for several hours, the doors open and students begin filing in, then walking out with despondent looks on their weary faces.

A man walks out and tells the hundreds in line that parking is full for the most desired spaces, but the Parking Center is still available for those willing to brave the terrifying walk through the scummy freeway tunnel.

Some students walk away, feeling jaded and upset as their early-morning excursion proved utterly useless. After more than $30,000 in tuition and fees a year, these students are forced to park on the streets, while parking enforcement officers hover over their cars, waiting for the minutes to pass before the weekly street-cleaning yields them hundreds of dollars of parking ticket profits.

USC needs to provide adequate parking for its residents and provide a better system for obtaining it. Students shouldn't be forced to leave their cars off in the Parking Center for lack of better, closer options.

For a university that has seen its endowment grow more than 4,000 percent in the last 30 years and has pledged more than $200 million in improvements to residential life, the results have been paltry at best and pathetic at worst.

Editorial published in Vol. 142, No. 13 (Monday, January 29, 2001), on page 4.

End of Editorial: Action Requested---->>
Write a Letter to the Editor (see above for details)

Daily Trojan:
Published: Tuesday, January 30, 2001
Article:
Commuters, residents suffer parking shortages Transportation: Students, faculty and staff must all contend with first-come-first-serve system
(136 words)
Copyright 2001 by the Daily Trojan. All rights reserved.
.

By SOPHIA KAZMI, Staff Writer

Got parking?
It seems a question more and more students are asking every year. With the USC community consistently growing, getting a place to park is becoming more of a problem. About five years ago, Transportation Services introduced the "first come, first serve" method of distributing parking spots for the entire USC community, meaning professors, students and staff members in all departments are equal when it comes to getting a spot.

But each year, more people apply for parking than there are spaceswhich brings some to the bitter reality that they will have to find somewhere else to park, perhaps a lot farther than they would like. The Shrine lot is the closest non-university parking available for students, but while cheaper than USC structures, it closes at 11 p.m. each night, creating problems for students with late-night obligations and plans.

Student parking is also unavailable at the Shrine during the many events it hosts each year, from the American Music Awards in January to the Emmys in September. Brian d'Autremont, director of Transportation Services, said he is aware of the parking shortage, and plans are in the works for a new parking structure near campus to accommodate the increase of cars.

An independent parking firm did a 200-page study during the 1999-2000 school year that included a five-year projection of the current parking situation. They recommended that USC pursue the building of another parking structure, d'Autremont said. Currently, the university is looking at possible sites for a new structure, but rumors that University Village will become one within the next 10 years are untrue, said d'Autremont and Sean Callahan, executive assistant of Transportation Services.

Last year, Parking Lot C was opened, creating about 200 new parking spaces for faculty members. In order to alleviate the parking crunch near Troy Hall, two new lots will open as early as the fall semester.Transportation Services is also adding an additional 400 parking spaces to the roof of the parking center, d'Autremont said.

Competing interests? Electric Vehicle parking also poses many questions. By making space for the special spots, USC promotes environmental cleanliness and receives a discount on installation. But does anyone use the spots?

D'Autremont said that one in 1,000 of the university's parking spaces is reserved for EV parking. He said the spaces are sometimes used, but not heavily. As for the rationale behind the spots, d'Autremont said that "the university feels the need to support a better ecosystem."

Additionally, the university received a 75 percent discount on installation of those spots, d'Autremont said. If a further demand arises for EV parking, then USC would look at expanding the current facilities, but as of right now no plans are being made to expand the amount of EV parking, he said.

While USC ponders the benefits of EV parking, Transportation Services is trying to promote commuters' use of mass transit to ease the parking crunch. Currently,Transportation Services is trying to convince more commuter students to use public transportationsuch as vanpools, MTA, and Metrolinkrather than cars. Vanpools, which are run by Transportation Services, canvass the entire greater Los Angeles area, Callahan said.

The vanpools have routes from as far away as Palmdale to cities in Orange County and the Valley. The use of vanpools allows commuters to cut down on the amount that they have to drive, d'Autremont said. Users can buy monthly or daily passes, which are relatively inexpensive, but students have to arrange their schedules accordingly because vanpools arrive and depart at fixed times.

The university also provides a supplement for commuters who use the MTA or Metrolink as an alternate way to get to campus, Callahan said. If purchased on campus, commuters can save $25 on monthly passes for both the MTA and Metrolink. Callahan was not sure how the University financially benefits from supporting public transit, although the fewer cars on campus, the less troubles with parking, of course.

Safety concerns: Even if people can get parking, the safety of their vehicles is another worry for those who park in university parking structures. DPS Deputy Chief Bob Taylor said DPS patrols the parking structures by foot and vehicle.

However, students have problems with the safety of their vehicles, especially for those who park their cars on campus.
"There are no mirrors in parking structure A," said Eilrama Betkolia, a sophomore majoring in computer engineering/ computer science, and a commuter.

"I have seen one accident, and at least three or four close calls, because the lack of those mirrors." Betkolia also said that the structures on campus don't appear to be as safe as the parking structure. When asked if any improvements will be made to the safety measures of on campus parking structures, Taylor said, "not at this time."

Taylor said that about 3,000 citations for illegally parked cars are issued every month, and students and faculty can appeal and re-appeal if the person is not satisfied with the outcome of the first appeal. Appeal forms are available on-line, at the DPS office or at Transportation Services.

However, d'Autremont said that DPS's crackdown on illegal parking has made more parking spaces available for those who have parking permits. "Five hundred people used to park illegally a day, now it's 50," d'Autremont said.

Campus Cruiser: In this year's parking survey, Campus Cruiser had a 94 percent approval rating, but at the same time, students complain that the service is slow and does not take students where they want to go.

"Some of the problems students complain about are the unavailability of the campus buses and Campus Cruiser. Students have to wait for a least 12-20 minutes for a Cruiser to come and sometimes they don't even take them to their desired location," said Commuter Senator Sarah Talei, a junior majoring in business administration.

The primary goal of Campus Cruiser is to promote studious and academic pursuits, not to be an auxiliary service to campus parking, Callahan said. "Campus Cruiser is for campus life," Callahan said.

"Transportation Services has no budget to support personal use. Campus Cruiser might take a person to a friend's house, because you might be studying, but a person might be doing something else as well. Retail seems like a good line in the sand to draw."

D'Autremont explained that Campus Cruiser policy does not allow for Cruiser drivers to take students to places of business.
"People were using Campus Cruiser to do their grocery shopping or when they felt like getting a snack at night," he said.

Policy no longer allows Cruiser service to go to restaurants, bars, any place of business or areas of recreation. Cruiser services do not, for most people, go to the Sports Arena or the Coliseum.

Exceptions are made for students who are employed by sports teams and who need to get to the Sports Arena as a part of their job, reiterating the academic purpose of the service.

This article was published in Vol. 142, No. 14 (Tuesday, January 30, 2001), beginning on page 1 and ending on page 17.

End of Article: Action Requested---->>
Write a Letter to the Editor (see above for details)