After what I saw yesterday and the rumors I heard, I am now worried that Phase 1 will ever open. Perhaps we'll have the segment between Culver City and Santa Monica open in 2014 and the segment between Metro Center and La Cienega open in 2020. LOL
This contractor is as bad as it could be. They had no technical merit and they robbed Los Angeles hundreds of millions of dollars in overages. This is what happens if you choose the contractor solely based on lowest bid instead of best value (low bid and good technical merit) and, even worse, if you don't cancel the contract when they prove to be flaky.
This contractor is Los Angeles' Leonard Nimoy.
I did see heavy work happening at Crenshaw/Expo over the weekend and thought that was quite odd. Oh well....
Again, we cannot speculate on major delays until an announcement is made by Expo. It will just create anger on the Internet.......and you can tell by the comments section, people just love getting angry at Metro. (i.e. #occupywallstreet and #teaparty are just prime examples of people getting upset)
Remember when the tracks for the Gold Line Eastside had to be ripped out and replaced in certains areas where the tracks crossed? There was some magnetic problem. Well, it took a few months, but they fixed it alright.
Patience is a virtue my friends. Patience is a virtue. We're getting there!
Post by metrocenter on Oct 11, 2011 10:37:18 GMT -8
At this point, we'll be riding trains back and forth between Culver City and Santa Monica before Phase 1 opens. LOL
I find it hard to believe rumors that "all crossing gates were shorted out after Wednesday's first rain of the season". Every single crossing gate on the line have failed? Or are these crossing gates near Crenshaw only?
Also, it would be interesting to get details about exactly what failed. Was it communications/logic hardware, actuators/motors, or both? Was this a failure of water insulation (boxes that were supposed to be sealed not being sealed)? Or is it a design problem (putting boxes into the ground in an area that floods)?
Any way you look at it, the delays and issues are approaching the level of slapstick comedy. We would've been better off with The Three Stooges as the general contractors.
Now is the time to open the line to Vermont to connect USC / Exposition Park and Downtown as soon as possible. For those who say the critics will deride the line as a 'line to nowhere,' that is patently false since USC / Exposition Park is the main trip generator of Phase 1A. Moreover, further delays will only hurt the image of Metro and the Expo Line Authority.
Last Edit: Oct 11, 2011 12:41:03 GMT -8 by John Ryan
Now is the time to open the line to Vermont to connect USC / Exposition Park and Downtown as soon as possible. For those who say the critics will deride the line as a 'line to nowhere' that is patently false since USC / Exposition Park is the main trip generator of Phase 1A. Moreover, Further delays will only hurt the image of Metro and the Expo Line Authority.
Let's let the professionals handle this (Metro). We're getting worked up about something that is unconfirmed by Metro. Maybe it'll be resolved in a day, week, month, etc... But until we know, getting angry is not going to resolve anything. Just let Metro and the contractors figure out what's happening before speculating. We're not the one's operating the Line, Metro will have to assume all responsibility.
Well, I guess when this train heads 70 MPH toward the unfinished 30-ft-high Venice Boulevard bridge on its maiden voyage with no way to stop it, we'll pray that our conductor is as good as Homer Simpson (and he finds an anchor). LOL
Today it looked like they completed repairing the communication ducts west of Crenshaw. They were pulling cables east of Crenshaw, replacing the cables that got shorted in the communication ducts during the rain.
I also saw that they were working on the wires of the crossing gates at 7th Avenue. I don't know if this is also rain-related.
I don't know if there are other locations where rain shorted or corroded the cables.
It looks like they've almost finished the OCS in Culver City. They are still working on the new TPSS at Washington and National though. Hooking it up to the OCS and the power grid will take a few weeks. Once it's done, test trains will go all the way to the Culver City Station.
I noticed one safety hazard. So far at least twice I saw vans or trucks partially blocking the crossing at Hauser Blvd, when they are trying to turn to the driveway there. They stand there for several minutes trying to maneuver, while partially blocking the tracks. Considering that the trains will be travelling there 55 MPH, it's a big concern, with accidents waiting to happen.
Rail obstructionists should accept the fact that at-grade rail deserves as much chance as the at-grade automobile.
Post by jamesinclair on Oct 11, 2011 12:52:54 GMT -8
Can't blame metro, an act of God like rain happens very rarely, like, what, once a month? If you design projects to survive these rare disasters, nothing would ever get done. You fix the damage and hope that the next time a month rolls around, the gods spare us their wet wrath.
Last Edit: Oct 11, 2011 12:53:11 GMT -8 by jamesinclair
Sounds like their project plan lacked rain testing?! That isn't even a risk! It's a fundamental element of testing ...like testing the switches. The contractor's project manager sure loses points for this one.
One Though is could they Be Holding Off Test Trains till the Farmdale Canopies are done on the East Side Platform for Worker Safety ??
That's not the reason. They are still replacing the communication cables damaged during the rain in the conduit east of Crenshaw. No train testing can be done as the train-control systems are down. Once they finish the work and the train-control systems are back up again, they will restart the testing.
Imagine they had rushed and opened the line before the first rain. What a fiasco it would be when it rained with the line not operating for several weeks after it just opened.
But it would also make sence to hold off till the Hevey steel work is done at Farmdale just to be on the safe side was my point and what is one more week of delays at this point
Because of the Farmdale Station work, testing would be done during 3 pm - 12 am, when the crews aren't working on the station. But, as a result of the rain damage, no testing could be performed this week.
Rail obstructionists should accept the fact that at-grade rail deserves as much chance as the at-grade automobile.
Today they had moved to southeast of the Crenshaw crossing and they were replacing the damaged communication-cables (used for train signals etc.) there.
They were also replacing the damaged cables at the Western Station.
I also saw that they were replacing some cables at Halldale but I don't know whether this one was rain-related too.
Farmdale Station decorative canopies are now up and they are currently installing the rain/sun shields under them.
There is too much damage after only a mild rain. I wonder how they failed to rain-proof this equipment. I guess people were right in pointing out that they must have been thinking that it never rained in LA when they built the decorative canopies with no protection from the rain. Perhaps, the transit riders haven't had their voices heard about rain protection, but the equipment has.
Rail obstructionists should accept the fact that at-grade rail deserves as much chance as the at-grade automobile.
Post by Alexis Kasperavičius on Oct 17, 2011 11:11:34 GMT -8
I was in LA this weekend and drove the line. It looks good, but I noticed a couple of things with the planting - has anyone else noticed?
Most of the Palm trees still have their shipping collars on (around the palm fronds), which means the trees not only look weird, but the leaves can't spread and will eventually die. Some look like they're already turning brown.
Many sections of the newly planted green areas are dying from what looks like lack of water. It seems like the sprinklers don't work in some sections.
Will Metro's staff eventually get on this? It had better be quick, because once this stuff dies it has to be replaced. Watering won't bring it back after a point.
The palm collar is by design. Palm trees have relatively shallow root system for such a tall top heavy tree so a newly replanted palm with open fronds will attract too much wind and end up topple over or snap in half. The palm trees themselves will force open the collar when they are done taking root (usually takes about 16-20 weeks before they will force open the fronds themselves). If the trees are turning brown, it is probably because the trees are not adapting to the soil and/or the tree is diseased - nothing to do with the fronds being closed.
The lack of irrigation doesn't surprise me though...
Yes, palm collars are standard. They remove them after a while when the trees can stand on their own.
They were testing the repair work on the rain-damaged cables with a single test car today at Crenshaw. The repair work on the rain-damaged cables is still going on at Western but it looks like it's wrapping up.
Rumors are that if everything goes well, they can start the prerevenue operation as early as this Sunday and then open the line as early as November 20, November 27, or December 4. So, the late-November - early-December target is apparently still on.
Rail obstructionists should accept the fact that at-grade rail deserves as much chance as the at-grade automobile.
Gokhan: I thought pre-revenue was a mandatory six weeks? Wouldn't that put it at mid-December--right in the middle of holidays?
I think the FTA requirement is four weeks. I believe they need to go through a punch list during the initial weeks. The Eastside Gold Line prerevenue operation lasted for exactly six weeks. So, let's say it can be anywhere between four to six weeks.
It's not clear if it can start this Sunday, as they are still working on some repairs and there is a little bit more testing to be done.
Also, even if they finish the prerevenue operation, the line can't open until the construction is completed and the clean-up is performed. It looks like there is still about a month of construction work left.
Rail obstructionists should accept the fact that at-grade rail deserves as much chance as the at-grade automobile.
Post by bluelineshawn on Oct 17, 2011 18:20:41 GMT -8
I would think that there would need to be quite a bit more testing of the junction with the blue line before they even considered starting prerevenue simulated service. There's been very little to this point. None really that I'm aware of other than the mechanical testing that they did a few months ago.
I would think that there would need to be quite a bit more testing of the junction with the blue line before they even considered starting prerevenue simulated service. There's been very little to this point. None really that I'm aware of other than the mechanical testing that they did a few months ago.
Actually they were supposed to be testing the junction this past weekend.
Rail obstructionists should accept the fact that at-grade rail deserves as much chance as the at-grade automobile.
I would think that there would need to be quite a bit more testing of the junction with the blue line before they even considered starting prerevenue simulated service. There's been very little to this point. None really that I'm aware of other than the mechanical testing that they did a few months ago.
Actually they were supposed to be testing the junction this past weekend.
I doubt that they did though. The only day that had been scheduled for the Washington-7th/Metro bus bridge was Saturday and they cancelled it. And I rode the blue line on Saturday and didn't see any signs of activity at the junction. But it was later in the afternoon. Perhaps something had been going on earlier in the day.
Actually they were supposed to be testing the junction this past weekend.
I doubt that they did though. The only day that had been scheduled for the Washington-7th/Metro bus bridge was Saturday and they cancelled it. And I rode the blue line on Saturday and didn't see any signs of activity at the junction. But it was later in the afternoon. Perhaps something had been going on earlier in the day.
It could be that the testing of the junction no longer requires the closure of the Blue Line. I think they had pretty much figured out the junction when they last closed the Blue Line and tested it a few weeks ago. I don't know if this is actually the case, but there would be no reason not to test it last weekend -- other than that they are already done testing it -- unless something went wrong again.
Rail obstructionists should accept the fact that at-grade rail deserves as much chance as the at-grade automobile.
Post by LAofAnaheim on Oct 21, 2011 9:21:20 GMT -8
Last night between 9 - 10 pm, I saw single car test trains rolling between Rodeo and Crenshaw on the Expo Line with flagsmen. I didn't stay that long to see if the gates were working, but there was testing happening late last night.
This is all hearsay, so maybe it should be taken with a grain of salt, but I overheard disparaging conversation going home the other night on the Gold Line.
Two consultant or engineer-type men were talking about the troubles they were experiencing in the course of their work on the Expo line. One guy said that there were fatal software flaws throughout the entire system. He basically said something to the effect of "don't expect any ROD anytime soon - this is gonna take a while". They also complained about the Expo Authority's "incompetence" and made comments that Metro will not be keen on any JPA authority governance setup in the future.
Last night between 9 - 10 pm, I saw single car test trains rolling between Rodeo and Crenshaw on the Expo Line with flagsmen. I didn't stay that long to see if the gates were working, but there was testing happening late last night.
This is all hearsay, so maybe it should be taken with a grain of salt, but I overheard disparaging conversation going home the other night on the Gold Line.
Two consultant or engineer-type men were talking about the troubles they were experiencing in the course of their work on the Expo line. One guy said that there were fatal software flaws throughout the entire system. He basically said something to the effect of "don't expect any ROD anytime soon - this is gonna take a while". They also complained about the Expo Authority's "incompetence" and made comments that Metro will not be keen on any JPA authority governance setup in the future.
None of this is encouraging. Flagsmen means the signals and/or gates are not working or, at least, not certified as being working. Since they were all working fine before the rain, it shows the extent of the damage.
Metro staff seems highly ambitious in claiming imminent prerevenue-operation start but there is nothing that can be done if things are not operational.
They would normally announce prerevenue on a Friday and start it on a Sunday and then open the line on a Sunday four to six weeks later. No announcement today of course.
My biggest worry is not that if the line will open before March or in March. My worry is that if it will open in March (not later) and, after it opens, if it will break down frequently or not.
It's probably an understatement to call Expo Authority incompetent with Phase 1. They should have canceled the construction contract as soon as the contractor asked for an additional $200 million early in the project. They should have considered the technical qualifications of the contractor, which they didn't but they went by a marginal low bid. The mess they created, with the contractor, power-line relocations, CPUC, overspending, delays, shoddy work, etc., etc. is unbelievable.
Let's just hope that Phase 2 goes well and sometime before early to mid-2015, we will start riding this line all the way and without problems. With Phase 1, there is nothing that can be done other than having unlimited patience.
Rail obstructionists should accept the fact that at-grade rail deserves as much chance as the at-grade automobile.
Two consultant or engineer-type men were talking about the troubles they were experiencing in the course of their work on the Expo line.
They also complained about the Expo Authority's "incompetence" and made comments that Metro will not be keen on any JPA authority governance setup in the future.