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Post by bluelineshawn on Mar 16, 2007 21:49:33 GMT -8
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Post by Elson on Mar 16, 2007 22:31:03 GMT -8
Metro Air Line, anyone?  This line will be a failure unless the vehicles are modified to have luggage racks. I'd like to see this line as the rail replacement for the LAX Union Station Flyaway. I would very much like Metro to use the Hong Kong Airport Express as a model for this line. |
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Post by bluelineshawn on Mar 17, 2007 9:56:39 GMT -8
Hong Kong!?!? Aren't you the same guy that takes offense whenever anyone uses NYCT as a model?  My preference is for light rail (with or without luggage racks) running every 15 minutes or greater. It's double to triple the cost of the other options, but is estimated to have 8 times the ridership. Plus is has the advantage better integration with the rest of the system. I don't know how feasible any of this really is though. From the map the Harbor ROW looks like the freight tracks that are pretty close to me south of Sepulveda Blvd. Those tracks are used regularly throughout the day. I don't see how they could limit freight use to nights only. At least not for the parts down here near the harbor. |
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Post by Elson on Mar 17, 2007 12:36:26 GMT -8
Hong Kong!?!? Aren't you the same guy that takes offense whenever anyone uses NYCT as a model? You've obviously never ridden on it... |
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Post by bluelineshawn on Mar 17, 2007 16:21:25 GMT -8
No I haven't. There are likely very few here that have ridden it. Can you provide more detail?
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Post by Elson on Mar 17, 2007 18:07:40 GMT -8
No I haven't. There are likely very few here that have ridden it. Can you provide more detail? The line starts in downtown HK (HK Island) and has another station in Kowloon, across the water. What's amazing is that the stations are in themselves extensions of the airport -- you do your check-in at the station and don't have to worry about your luggage until afte you arrive at your destination -- your airplane destination that is. The trains are smooth, sleek, fast and comfortable. Each seat has a video monitor. You arrive at the airport (as in right at the terminal, no transferring to anything) in a guaranteed 20 minutes. All one has to do is obtain their boarding pass and then board their plane. |
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Post by bluelineshawn on Mar 17, 2007 19:37:06 GMT -8
Thanks.
I don't see that working for LA, but that definitely sounds very cool!
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Post by James Fujita on Mar 18, 2007 20:17:49 GMT -8
heh. well, for very selfish reasons, I wouldn't mind seeing Harbor Sub airport rail or light rail be extended all the way to Torrance or Harbor City or even Wilmington. for that to happen, you would probably need a Metrolink or Metrolink express-type operation, not a light rail line.
but the reason why the Harbor Sub is on the table at all, and the thing that will attract the politicians' attention is that it has the potential to serve LAX. from a political standpoint, "LAX Express train to serve the airport and its passengers" is a much more viable slogan than "a diagonal Blue Line"
a very strong argument has been made on this board and other places for light rail, but I think an equally strong argument could be made for commuter rail, instead.
personally, I'd be curious to know if a compromise were possible. that is, you build stations in Inglewood and up and down the corridor, but with the understanding that at least some of the trains would be "LAX Express" trains that could bypass the intermediate stations. whether this is light rail, metrolink or some other sort of commuter train is a side issue.
one other point:
remote check-in is one of those "outside the box" ideas that you really have to experience to appreciate because it flies in the face of conventional wisdom about how airports work, but there's no real reason why it couldn't work here.
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Post by Elson on Mar 18, 2007 22:28:45 GMT -8
one other point: remote check-in is one of those "outside the box" ideas that you really have to experience to appreciate because it flies in the face of conventional wisdom about how airports work, but there's no real reason why it couldn't work here. Actually the existing LAX Flyaway from Union Station (maybe the Van Nuys too, I don't know) already has remote check-in. I've never tried it myself on the Flyaway though. The HK-style remote check-in really looks seamless; even the airport express station resembles an airport terminal. |
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Post by wad on Mar 18, 2007 23:19:02 GMT -8
James, the problem is, from a practical ridership standpoint, an express line from Union Station to LAX is a huge waste of money. If FlyAway were a regular Metro route, it would be in the agency's bottom 25. And it's a nice bus that gets you to the door at a quick speed.
Light rail makes a lot of sense because LAX is not the important destination. The stations in between LAX and downtown are. A line like this can easily get 35,000-40,000 boardings a day.
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