Post by bennyp81 on Jun 21, 2005 10:26:13 GMT -8
PForce
User ID: 0596854 Aug 31st 12:48 AM
Los Angeles Times
August 30, 2002
LOS ANGELES
FILMING LEAVES VALLEY BUS RIDERS STRANDED
Transit: Commercial closes part of Van Nuys Boulevard, prompting MTA officials at meeting to offer to chauffeur.
By CAITLIN LIU, TIMES STAFF WRITER
Rerouting buses to accommodate film production crews may be Routine for the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, but transit officials found the timing especially bad Wednesday night in Van Nuys.
As people were leaving an MTA-sponsored community meeting on bus service, many in the crowd of several dozen found that their buses were unavailable because Los Angeles police had closed a nearly one-mile stretch of Van Nuys Boulevard for the filming of a soft-drink commercial.
MTA buses, along with other traffic, were redirected away from the site.
"We're stranded!" several bus riders cried.
The startled--and no doubt embarrassed--MTA officials quickly offered to chauffeur some of the residents to the nearest bus stop outside the closed area.
Others who found themselves looking for buses along Van Nuys Boulevard were angry and confused. Some fell asleep on benches, unaware that buses would not pass through the area for several hours.
"I have things to do," said Debra Giron, 16, who needed to go to Studio City.
She sought information on a cardboard hand-written sign posted at the bus stop announcing a "temporary stop change" at Vose or Hatteras streets. "Where's Vose Street? Where's Hatteras?" asked Giron, who was new to the area. The sign and a route map underneath offered no clues.
Trudging past with hunched shoulders, construction worker Juan Meneces said he had to walk 15 blocks to get home.
"These are the things bus riders face," said BART REED, executive director of the Transit Coalition, a Sylmar-based rider advocacy group, just before he was offered a car ride home from the meeting. "It's so Kafka-esque. Here we are working on bus improvements, and the city of L.A. and their filming is thwarting us trying to get home."
Street closures result in the detouring, on average, of one bus line daily among the MTA's 185 lines, agency spokesman Ed Scannell said. The Van Nuys Boulevard closure, which required rerouting buses on at least three lines for three nights, was scheduled to end today.
City officials estimate that other special events, ranging from parades to the Academy Awards, result in more than 1,000 street
closures annually. City and entertainment industry officials said diverting traffic for rolling cameras is a fact of life in Los
Angeles.
"The city and the county understand what this industry means to the economy," said Morrie Goldman, spokesman for the Entertainment Industry Development Corp., which helps production companies obtain filming permits that result in street closures.
"Unfortunately, sometimes it can be an inconvenience."
@@@@
This reminds me of many exciting episodes I have had riding buses. Last spring, on a Sunday I convinced my wife that we should take the bus to see a concert that we were planning to see downtown at the Coburn Theater.
We drove to Bundy and Pico to catch the no. 10 Santa Monica Bus Which immediately gets on the Santa Monica freeway to downtown, 20 minutes.
We got off by the Music Center and walked a block to the Coburn. The concert was great, and when we got out it was dark. There wasn’t a soul on the street. To save time, we walked down from the hill to Figueroa and Fifth. At the bus stop there was a sign saying that the street was closed because of filming.
We hiked back up the hill to the Music Center(about 4 blocks). There was construction going on, so we had to walk in the street. Fortunately there was no traffic. We got to the bus stop, and waited for at least an hour in the chilly breeze.
No buses came.
However, we could see that buses were coming into town and passing by us going towards Union Station.
Finally I ran through traffic across the street to stop one of them to ask why buses weren’t passing by our stop. He told us that buses were taking a different route because of filming. He said he would make it a point to come back and get us, which he did about one-half hour later.
I will have a hard time convincing my wife to ever take the bus downtown in the evening again.
Roberto V.
User ID: 8374593 Aug 31st 2:10 AM
Well if the Red Line is ever extended to Santa Monica ...
:-)
PForce
User ID: 0596854 Aug 31st 11:31 AM
If wishes were horses...
James Fujita
User ID: 1049474 Aug 31st 5:28 PM
... the BRU would complain of pro-horse transit racism?
Ken Alpern
User ID: 0923684 Sep 1st 8:59 PM
...to which I say, "Neigh!"
PForce
User ID: 0596854 Sep 1st 11:51 PM
This thread is degenerating to a new low. Hi Ho Silver! The masked man is coming to save us all from CalTrans and the MTA board!
User ID: 0596854 Aug 31st 12:48 AM
Los Angeles Times
August 30, 2002
LOS ANGELES
FILMING LEAVES VALLEY BUS RIDERS STRANDED
Transit: Commercial closes part of Van Nuys Boulevard, prompting MTA officials at meeting to offer to chauffeur.
By CAITLIN LIU, TIMES STAFF WRITER
Rerouting buses to accommodate film production crews may be Routine for the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, but transit officials found the timing especially bad Wednesday night in Van Nuys.
As people were leaving an MTA-sponsored community meeting on bus service, many in the crowd of several dozen found that their buses were unavailable because Los Angeles police had closed a nearly one-mile stretch of Van Nuys Boulevard for the filming of a soft-drink commercial.
MTA buses, along with other traffic, were redirected away from the site.
"We're stranded!" several bus riders cried.
The startled--and no doubt embarrassed--MTA officials quickly offered to chauffeur some of the residents to the nearest bus stop outside the closed area.
Others who found themselves looking for buses along Van Nuys Boulevard were angry and confused. Some fell asleep on benches, unaware that buses would not pass through the area for several hours.
"I have things to do," said Debra Giron, 16, who needed to go to Studio City.
She sought information on a cardboard hand-written sign posted at the bus stop announcing a "temporary stop change" at Vose or Hatteras streets. "Where's Vose Street? Where's Hatteras?" asked Giron, who was new to the area. The sign and a route map underneath offered no clues.
Trudging past with hunched shoulders, construction worker Juan Meneces said he had to walk 15 blocks to get home.
"These are the things bus riders face," said BART REED, executive director of the Transit Coalition, a Sylmar-based rider advocacy group, just before he was offered a car ride home from the meeting. "It's so Kafka-esque. Here we are working on bus improvements, and the city of L.A. and their filming is thwarting us trying to get home."
Street closures result in the detouring, on average, of one bus line daily among the MTA's 185 lines, agency spokesman Ed Scannell said. The Van Nuys Boulevard closure, which required rerouting buses on at least three lines for three nights, was scheduled to end today.
City officials estimate that other special events, ranging from parades to the Academy Awards, result in more than 1,000 street
closures annually. City and entertainment industry officials said diverting traffic for rolling cameras is a fact of life in Los
Angeles.
"The city and the county understand what this industry means to the economy," said Morrie Goldman, spokesman for the Entertainment Industry Development Corp., which helps production companies obtain filming permits that result in street closures.
"Unfortunately, sometimes it can be an inconvenience."
@@@@
This reminds me of many exciting episodes I have had riding buses. Last spring, on a Sunday I convinced my wife that we should take the bus to see a concert that we were planning to see downtown at the Coburn Theater.
We drove to Bundy and Pico to catch the no. 10 Santa Monica Bus Which immediately gets on the Santa Monica freeway to downtown, 20 minutes.
We got off by the Music Center and walked a block to the Coburn. The concert was great, and when we got out it was dark. There wasn’t a soul on the street. To save time, we walked down from the hill to Figueroa and Fifth. At the bus stop there was a sign saying that the street was closed because of filming.
We hiked back up the hill to the Music Center(about 4 blocks). There was construction going on, so we had to walk in the street. Fortunately there was no traffic. We got to the bus stop, and waited for at least an hour in the chilly breeze.
No buses came.
However, we could see that buses were coming into town and passing by us going towards Union Station.
Finally I ran through traffic across the street to stop one of them to ask why buses weren’t passing by our stop. He told us that buses were taking a different route because of filming. He said he would make it a point to come back and get us, which he did about one-half hour later.
I will have a hard time convincing my wife to ever take the bus downtown in the evening again.
Roberto V.
User ID: 8374593 Aug 31st 2:10 AM
Well if the Red Line is ever extended to Santa Monica ...
:-)
PForce
User ID: 0596854 Aug 31st 11:31 AM
If wishes were horses...
James Fujita
User ID: 1049474 Aug 31st 5:28 PM
... the BRU would complain of pro-horse transit racism?
Ken Alpern
User ID: 0923684 Sep 1st 8:59 PM
...to which I say, "Neigh!"
PForce
User ID: 0596854 Sep 1st 11:51 PM
This thread is degenerating to a new low. Hi Ho Silver! The masked man is coming to save us all from CalTrans and the MTA board!