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Metro seeks motorists' input in online chats |
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AV Press |
| Date Posted: |
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Oct 16, 07 - 4:48 PM |
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asemchuck@avpress.com |
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Antelope Valley |
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Metro seeks motorists' input in online chats
This story appeared in the Antelope Valley Press on Tuesday, October 16, 2007.
By ALISHA SEMCHUCK
Valley Press Staff Writer
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LOS ANGELES - Tension mounts for motorists immobilized by traffic jams.
Gridlock on Los Angeles County freeways is a daily reality for commuters - especially the estimated 64,000 Antelope Valley residents who wake as early as 3 a.m. Monday through Friday to join the stop-and-go traffic that jams the Antelope Valley Freeway. That is the number of motorists who travel the freeway past the point where it connects with the Golden State Freeway on weekdays, according to statistics obtained in May from the California Economic Forecast.
In an effort to "stave off gridlock," Metro, the state-chartered regional transportation planning agency, is launching a monthly Internet chat to compile community input on potential traffic solutions, according to Metro spokesman Marc Littman.
The Antelope Valley Freeway serves as the main artery for commuters traveling outside the Valley. Most are headed either to the San Fernando Valley or the Los Angeles basin.
The first Metro Live Chat session begins at noon Wednesday. Participants can access the session by visiting metro.net/chat. Littman said participants can post questions and live comments in advance or during the hour-long session.
These monthly lunch hour chats will be run by Santa Monica City Councilwoman Pam O'Connor, who also is chairwoman of the Metro board of directors, and other Metro executives. Topics will vary and be posted in advance on the Web site.
Littman said O'Connor, who took the position of board chairwoman in July, wanted "to reach out to community (members) - get their ideas and comments."
"Traffic is everybody's problem. No one has a monopoly on creative traffic solutions," O'Connor said. "This is a way for Metro to reach out and talk directly to the public about new - and maybe tried and true - ideas on reducing congestion."
This first session will focus on efforts to improve mobility in the most heavily congested region of the nation. Los Angeles County is one of the country's largest and most populated counties, according to the Metro Web site. More than 9.6 million people - one-third of California residents - live, work or play within the 1,433 square miles that comprise Metro's service area.
O'Connor will touch on some of the various transportation programs that Metro has operational, or is in the process of implementing, such as expanding the freeway carpool lanes network, plans to buy bigger buses and increase rapid service by building new rail lines to the train route.
She also will discuss "joint development in transit corridors," constructing residential and business properties in close proximity to public transportation so commuters can leave their cars at home and travel instead by bus or train. That would reduce the amount of traffic on the freeways.
"There's no single answer to ending gridlock," O'Connor said. "And building more highways is not a solution - even if we had the money and the land, which we don't.
"Still, there is a lot that government and individuals can do that will make a difference, not only with traffic but the environment as well."
Use of the Internet as a communication tool seemed appropriate in today's technology-oriented society, Littman said, pointing out that Metro's Web site gets 40 million hits a month, "primarily people going to the trip planner for bus, train or ride-sharing (details) to get to their destinations.
"We want to take metro.net to another level and hopefully, in the next several months, make it more interactive," Littman said.
Some ideas include attaching videos to press releases - concepts like "Tales of the Fast Lane," which would involve videotaping testimonials to encourage more travelers to engage in ride-sharing, Littman said.
Metro wants folks to share their ideas and shortcuts - "the best ways to beat traffic on major highways," he said.
"We have a good (Web) site now. We're going to make it even better. The Live Chats is a part of that - a sample of what's to come. This is our debut. We've still got to tweak it a bit.
"We're not the first," Littman said. Washington Metro, in the nation's capital, has a similar program that has been operational for at least a year, he said. "I've talked to my counterpart there," he said, and people who run that operation consider it successful.
"We're going to archive the Live Chats," Littman said, "so visitors to the site can see what was discussed."
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