Pour the Damn Concrete
Pour the Damn Concrete
Bike lanes head to Hollywood, congestion pricing gouged, Zoox nears launch
Protected bike lanes are coming to Hollywood Boulevard, as LADOT looks to improve bicycle accessibility on a prime east-west route. This is a great project in so much as it both fills a nice hole in the grid of safe bike routes and also should help spruce up the look and feel of a key tourism and office neighborhood that often seems a bit dowdy (although that's only been the case for the last oh 60 years or so…)
While usually only a cranky minority oppose bike lanes, in this case the community really seems behind the project, with a whopping 70% of stakeholders strongly supporting it. The neighborhood has also rallied LADOT to extend the project further east, so that it connects with existing protected lanes, an all too common oversight. Part of the reason for the broad support may be the fact that Hollywood Blvd is already a lousy street to drive on: it’s frequently closed for special events, it’s rich with pedestrians at all hours of day and night, it’s got a heavy rail subway underneath it, and it actually only runs for about 4 miles (so for a long haul you’re better off on Sunset.)
The one issue with this project is that the city looks to be cheaping out with the materials, opting for rubber curbs and soft plastic bollards. For projects like this, we need to implore cities to pour the damn concrete! We saw nearby Santa Monica win the world’s accolades for using a concrete extruding machine on its own bike lane buildout. Heck, even other parts of LA proper are getting real, hardened infrastructure, including a slow-moving project on 7th St. in Downtown.
LADOT’s done a great job quietly building out bike lanes and traffic calming diversions on big thoroughfares and neighborhood streets alike, but the plasticky ones unfortunately have a habit of getting slowly run down by errant motorists, and follow up maintenance seems to be basically nonexistent. So for the sake of longevity, here’s hoping more cities can build things right the first time…
HOT INDUSTRY NEWS & GOSSIP
Zoox nears launch: Amazon-owned Zoox is inching towards finally launching its public robotaxi service in the outskirts of Las Vegas. Bloomberg’s Ed Ludlow was recently taken for a test drive in its purpose-built vehicles, and he found the ride to be both smooth and technically impressive. Meanwhile, Cruise is cruising the roads once more, with the GM subsidiary live in Dallas. And Phoenix is hoping that its status as AV mecca will help its overall economic development. But what do all these regions have in common? Wide roads and low pedestrian counts…
Rocky Mountain high-er wages… The gig economy’s getting shaken up in Colorado, with Gov. Polis signing into effect a “TNC Transparency Bill” that mandates ride-hail companies show how a ride’s costs are split between the drivers and the apps. The bill also ensures drivers know the destination and pay for a ride before they accept it. A second bill, “Protections for Delivery Network Company Drivers,” does the same for food delivery workers, while also ensuring 100% of any tips go towards drivers.
Slow down! As California continues to fall woefully short of its Vision Zero goals, State Senator Scott Wiener has a new proposal to combat pedestrian fatalities: a requirement that vehicles emit visual and audio signals (aka beeps and flashes) that notify motorists when they exceed the speed limit by 10 MPH or more.
High speed rail, quickly visualized: California’s High Speed Rail authority recently issued the final environmental impact report for its Palmdale to Burbank section, a major milestone as the entirety of phase 1 has now been EIR-ed. Curious what that route will actually look like from a traveler’s perspective? Tune in to this handy new video.
CA parking laws: H/T to CMPA, a few interesting new bills are in the works… SB-1487 extends parking fine delinquines from 21 to 30 days, while capping late fees at no more than 30% of the original ticket. AB-1818 speaks to the bleak state of housing in California, it would require some of the state colleges to allow students to sleep overnight in their vehicles until adequate housing assistance is provided.
Curb news: San Jose picks Umojo to undertake a curb inventory digitization and management pilot. SMART Grants stage three is now open for cities seeking that sweet federal moolah, running until 7/12.
Albany comes for congestion pricing: At this point you’ve surely already seen the news, with less than a month before implementation, and hundreds of millions already spent on it, NY Governor Hochul is attempting to kill off NYC’s congestion pricing program. It’s a mind-boggling move, especially this far along in the process, setting back mobility, planning, regulatory certainty, business conditions predictability, planning capacity, accessibility and so much more. And even just from a craven political polling position, it hardly makes sense. There’s still a slight chance the Governor will be overpowered if enough constituents voice their support, so here’s hoping all New Yorkers call their local officials.
A few good links: Air taxis inch closer to reality, as Archer Aviation receives Part 135 cert. The most interesting robots at this year’s National Restaurant Association Show. The economics of billboard trucks. Reduced air pollution may paradoxically increase global temperatures (see: albedo effect.) Boston looks to crack down on scofflaw delivery drivers. D & R Senators allege Amazon lied about delivery driver work rules.
- Jonah Bliss & The Curbivore Crew