transportation

As previous entries on this blog have noted, the practice of “apron” parking around UCLA is now banned. Prof. Donald Shoup of Urban Planning – a national expert in parking issues – long campaigned for enforcement of the ban. Apron parking – parking in the driveway of a building so as to block the sidewalk – has always been illegal but cars so-parked were not ticketed in the past. A lawsuit noting that access for disabled persons to the sidewalks was obstructed was part of the reason for the new enforcement policy. It appears that the Westwood-area ban on apron…

The 1960 freeway planning map shown below on the left depicts the section of the 405 currently closed and just north of UCLA as still under construction then. (If you click on the map, you will see a clearer image.) The two men shown in the other picture – taken in 1964 on campus – are screenwriter David Rayfiel (l) and director Sidney Pollack (r). The photo appeared in connection with the former’s obituary last month. However, of interest is the background showing a substantial open parking area behind Royce Hall. I believe there was by then a modest charge…

For those who feel deprived of easy passage to UCLA this weekend due to the closure of the 405 in the Sepulveda Pass area, here is some historical background. On the new Westwood campus, if you got there by car in 1929, parking was free and easy. There was no freeway on the Sepulveda Pass. But the road there, as shown in the 1930 photo was not very crowded. There were some public transit alternatives as this 1937 video suggests: By the way, the cheerful mayor of LA (Frank Shaw), who appears on the video, was recalled by voters the…

Westwood FlyAway bus to LAX extended for 6 months Art Marroquin, 7/11/11, Daily Breeze The Westwood FlyAway bus will continue to shuttle passengers to Los Angeles International Airport for at least six more months, but one-way fares will be doubled to $10 and hours could be reduced to keep the route alive, officials said Monday. The FlyAway system’s Westwood route was on the chopping block earlier this year, but the service was granted a reprieve after airport and UCLA officials hammered out a series of revamped guidelines. Despite the changes, the route will continue to operate at a $74,000 annual…

Readers of this blog – or of newspapers – or of just about anything will know that the 405 freeway will be closed this coming weekend for construction, something billed as Carmageddon. However, for those who feel they must have some kind of presence on campus, even if vicarious, it might be noted that there are various webcams running 24/7 at UCLA, three of which were working as of today: Royce Hall: http://www.admissions.ucla.edu/bruincam/default.htm Construction in DeNeve area: http://www.housing.ucla.edu/videos/DeNeve-1-Live.htm Construction in Sproul area: http://www.housing.ucla.edu/videos/Sproul-West-1-Live.htm Despite the webcam options, not everyone is happy about the closure:

From the LA Times today: After years of warnings, debate and delays, Los Angeles officials this week began ticketing the cars of drivers who “apron park” on the streets of Westwood, a move critics say will create a parking crisis around the UCLA campus. For decades, Westwood residents — many of them UCLA students — have packed their cars into driveways in such a way that they block sidewalks and spill out into the street. They argue that the makeshift, but illegal, practice is the only way to deal with a critical lack of parking around the campus and in…

From the LA Times: The Los Angeles Board of Airport Commissioners has recommended discontinuation of the $5-per-trip Westwood FlyAway bus service to Los Angeles International Airport because it is operating at a loss, but UCLA and its students are trying to negotiate a way to save it. “The FlyAway bus provides an absolutely critical service to UCLA students,” student body President Emily Resnick said in a statement. “Without this service, thousands of students will no longer be able to go home for holidays or other important events.” … Renée Fortier, director of UCLA transportation, said Friday that the campus had…

LAObserved has a nice rundown on the I-405 traffic disaster that is likely to occur July 16-17 around UCLA when the freeway is entirely shut down for reconstruction: http://www.laobserved.com/archive/2011/05/details_of_the_405s_weeke.php That is a weekend. But folks who work at odd times in their UCLA offices should stay home and watch videos: