Boi From Troy

With the price of gasoline causing some commuters to consider public transit, they are more likely to switch to rail than to start taking the bus.

Ridership on Metro buses and trains has risen steadily since January, but has yet to surpass the ridership before a rate increase cut passenger numbers last July. Average weekday boardings on Metro buses were 1.12 million in January, and 1.26 million in May, when the last available statistics were taken. But May 2006 saw 1.31 million average weekday boardings.

Light-rail ridership has seen roughly the same trend, albeit on a much smaller scale. The Blue Line has gone from 69,731 average weekday riders in January to 79,291 in May, the Red Line from 124,358 to 141,659, the Gold Line from 19,001 to 23,141.

For some perspective, that means that so far this year, bus boardings have increased 12.5%, while ridership on the Blue and Red Lines have increased nearly 14% and Gold Line boardings are up by 21%.

Overall, whereas rail riders account for 16% of total boardings at Metro, they account for about 17.6% of the increase in ridership, meaning that the proportional growth of rail riders is 10% greater than people taking the bus–which is not an insignificant number.

So when considering where to invest in the Long Range Transportation Plan, Metro should focus on the means of transit which will create the largest gains in ridership–and that is subway and light rail.

Originally Published by the Rail Riders Union

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If you think California’s hand-to-mouth budgeting system has created a mell of a hess, just imagine how things might be in Washignton under a President Barack Obama.  His plans for paying for more than $130 billion in new spending rely on one-time revenue gains.

“You cannot justify a longer-term commitment to a program based on a one-time saving on the war in Iraq,” said Stuart Butler, who studies domestic policy at the Heritage Foundation, a conservative-leaning think tank.

In addition, replenishing the military and rebuilding Iraq and Afghanistan are certain to become expensive priorities once the fighting stops, said Alice Rivlin, who directed the Office of Management and Budget for several years under Clinton.

“Savings from the Iraq war will not be all that great,” she said…

Unlike McCain, Obama says he could recoup about $100 billion a year by rolling back the Bush tax cuts for families earning more than $250,000 annually — but some analysts question that too.

Those tax cuts are set to expire at the end of 2010, so repealing them a couple of years earlier would hardly result in a windfall that could be used as a continuing funding source, they say.

This kind of accounting has been used for years in Sacramento–we’re only going to borrow from transportation funding this year…promise!–with disastrous results.  After four or five years the house of cards collapses, as we are witnessing today.  But by then, President Obama could have tricked us into a second term, papering over his budget mess, just like Gray Davis did, but without the ability for a recall.

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Am I getting a not-so-subtle message from the travel gods?

This morning, my email inbox included special offers from the Mandarin Oriental Hotel in New York–a suite for just $1250!–the Alex Hotel in New York, and the Soho and Tribeca Grand Hotels.

Over my birthday weekend, the latter is offering me a two-night package complete with champagne, breakfast and more for less than the amount I spent to stay their sister property for one night last time I was in the City.

Would any of my New York friends be around?  Would they want to do anything special?  I am starting to think maybe I should go, even though I promised myself London would be the non-work-related trip until after the election. Darned marketing!

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After a year of hearings and discussions at the Transportation Commission on the issue of whether bicycles should be allowed to safely operate on West Hollywood’s sidewalks, the Los Angeles Times demonstrates willful and wanton disregard for the Commission and goes straight to the City Council for their position on the issue.

Others suggested that crashes involving bicyclists and pedestrians go unreported. Councilman Sal Guarriello revealed that he was a victim of sidewalk collisions with bicyclists.

“Twice I was knocked over by a bicyclist, and he was as nasty as hell,” Guarriello said. “We have places here you have to walk single file to walk on the sidewalk. And now we want to put bikes on the sidewalks? I can’t buy this no way, no how.”

Councilman John Duran questioned how enforcement of risky sidewalk riding could be done. But he said there has been a push to turn West Hollywood into a green city.

“If I was on a bike, I’d much rather collide with a pedestrian than a truck or a car,” Duran said.

Several important facts are missing from the discussion here.  For starters, there is no mention that the judges at the Beverly Hills Municipal Court refuse to prosecute cases against bicyclists under the current sidewalk ban, because they are misdemeanors, not infractions, so without a policy, the bike ban is one step above bike anarchy.

Secondly, the permission of bicycles on sidewalks comes with stern warnings that not only bicycles, but any human-powered wheeled vehicles such as rollerblades, skateboards or strollers, must yield the right of way to pedestrians, and may not operate in a manner which demonstrates willful or wanton disregard for the public safety.

I’ve been hit by a bicycle and a stroller myself, so I know how it feels, but the thought of requiring a 12-year old to ride his skateboard with car traffic along Santa Monica Boulevard–as is required under the current law–seems a tad irresponsible.

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Frankly, I am not much a fan of you either, my friend, even if I may have to suck it up and vote for you for the good of the country.

And, pray tell, how do you feel about the gays?

(Via Wonkette)

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Don’t laugh at Charlie Weis’ prediction that the Notre Dame Fighting Irish could win more than 9 games in 2008.

Powerhouses like Air Force, UCLA and Duke have been replaced by San Diego State, Syracuse and North Carolina.  The Irish also get Michigan and Stanford at home.

So it would not be unthinkable for the Fighting Irish to pull a South Florida and be undefeated well into the season–perhaps even up to their Thanksgiving Weekend trip to the Coliseum!

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Could scientists finally have found the key to happiness?

Who knew? The legalization of gay marriage might make Californians happier. At least that’s what a new study based on surveys of 350,000 people in nearly 100 countries suggests.

No, the authors aren’t gay activists, nor do they seem to be peddling any particular political agenda. But in their search to discover which countries are happier than others and why, these scholars — led by University of Michigan political scientist Ronald Inglehart — have stumbled on one pretty fundamental conclusion about what people want out of life: freedom.

Yes, that’s right, more or less the same thing you were celebrating Friday by scarfing down hamburgers next to the pool in your brother-in-law’s backyard. How exactly, you ask, is gay marriage connected with “life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness”?

It’s simple. According to surveys, in developed countries discrimination against women and minorities is actually waning and gays remain the least tolerated “outgroup” in society. They are the proverbial canaries in the coal mine. In most developed countries, the relative level of their acceptance or rejection is a sensitive indicator of that society’s overall tolerance toward minorities. And — here’s the takeaway — social tolerance “broadens the range of choices available to people,” thereby enhancing happiness for both the tolerant and the intolerant alike.

It makes perfect sense to me, which is why I am a believer in all kinds of freedom–social and economic.  Unfortunately, in America’s political system today, there are no true champions of freedom out there.

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While California failed to pass budget reforms in 2005, leaving the State in its current mess, one State seems to have an idea on how to get things right: Virginia.

An outdated tax code, voter-approved initiatives that lock in billions of dollars for programs, inadequate oversight of spending and the lack of a substantial rainy-day fund all add to California’s financial ills. Other states have addressed such issues with impressive results. But attempts at similar changes here routinely fall flat.

Virginia has achieved a balanced budget and a stellar credit rating by constantly updating its spending priorities, improving its tax system and setting funds aside to be tapped during hard economic times. The state is zealous about oversight, embedding independent investigators in state agencies to monitor how they are spending taxpayers’ money.

Iowa, Maryland and Utah employ some of the same techniques, and there is momentum for such reforms in Ohio, Louisiana and Kentucky.

It is not just small states with limited government services that have a firm grasp on their finances, officials at the Pew Center point out. Places that have large, diverse populations and spend generously have also figured it out.

It really isn’t the size of the budget that matters, but our elected officials’ attitude towards it. To many, the goal has been to shift the burden off to future legislatures–or even just to the next year–in order to paper over the problems faced today.  That’s no solution.

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Citizen Chris notices a disconnect between what poll respondents are saying their hope for the first act of a potential President Obama and what the leading national gay rights group has on its agenda.

Granting federal benefits to gay couples wins in a landslide. It is what the community wants most, yet it is not on the HRC agenda at all.

I realize this is not a scientific poll, but I do believe it reflects sentiments in the community that HRC is missing. As I said in a prior post, HRC is like George Bush, it makes its plan and just stays the course regardless of changing circumstances.

A more realistic list of what Barack Obama would do as President–and what many gay “political leaders” hope he would do–may not include a single issue benefiting the LGBT community.  Instead, it should say, “Raise Taxes, Pull Out of Iraq, Re-Write Free Trade Agreements, Increase Regulations on Free Markets,” because all of those things will be done before a finger is lifted to help the Gays.

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Starting on July 20th, USC single game tickets will be on sale for five of the six home games! Ohio State, Oregon, Arizona State, Washington and California are still available. Tickets for the away game at Stanford go on sale August 1st.

In the meantime, you can now purchase #4 and #6 jerseys in Cardinal and Gold…in case you know anyone with a birthday coming up, for example…

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I am going to go out on a limb here and say that I agree with Arianna Huffington with her political advice for Barack Obama’s campaign.

Every day that Obama sounds like a typical politician–moving more towards the positions of George Bush–the more stale his message becomes.

On the other hand, I have to say that his “newness” will only last so long, so he must keep trying to reinvent himself throughout the campaign…  But I also think that he can take alot from the concession speeches of Al Gore and Hillary Clinton.  After those speeches, many people were thinking that had they only been so eloquent and uplifting during the campaign, they may have been giving victory speeches instead.

But who’d listening to little old me?

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Gay Diver Matthew Mitcham slammed Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd for backtracking on Gay Marriage the other day.

“Kevin Rudd’s opinion of marriage as something that’s only between a man and a woman is quite narrow-minded. During the election campaign he was all about appearing young and cool, but his views on gay marriage make him look quite old-fashioned.”

Sounds like a lesson we American gays should take to heart. Although Barack Obama has come out against Prop 8–thank you, Barack!–he still opposes equal marriage rights for all Americans.

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Think again if one of your goals in life right now is to “become a journalist”…it is a bloodbath in the mainstream media.

The Los Angeles Times has announced 250 job cuts, including 150 positions from its news staff, determining that if people don’t have enough time to read newspapers, maybe they would if there were less news.

If you want job security, it seems the better line of work is becoming a civil servant.  Despite hundreds of threatened job cuts across the street, only four will be collecting unemployment.

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Following his comments to the Metro Board last week, Los Angeles City Councilman Bill Rosendahl has introduced a resolution to the Council to back a full cent sales tax to fully fund transportation in the region, according to the print edition of today’s Daily News.

A full cent would mean that there’d be enough money to support not only bus operations and street improvements, but it would satisfy the San Gabriel Valley, South Bay and Westside’s desire to get funding for subway and light rail construction as soon as possible.  And maybe even the San Fernando Valley’s business community could come along!

It’s a bold idea that the Rail Riders’ support, but will require amendments to Assemblyman Mike Feuer’s enabling legislation and some strong political will by the Metro Board to make it happen!

(Link)

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So apparently my prediction for light blogging over the long weekend was a tad optimistic. Then when I got home, this site started having issues, returning a “404 Not Found” error until just now, so sorry for the lack of updates.

People have lots of questions, some of them appropriate, and here are the answers you are likely to get: Yes, No, Stonkingly Good, and a furtive look in the eyes and collective shrug of the shoulders.

I also realised that I speak English about as well as I speak French–meaning, I understand about 95% of the time and the rest can be a bit confused. Among the new words I picked up is, “stonkingly,” a word I intend to embrace.

Officially, “stonkingly,” is an adverb that means, “very,” but comes closest to meaning, “hella,” in the Northern California vernacular. It is derived from the word, “stonking,” an adjective meaning, “excellent,” and the noun, “stonker,” which means erection. Apparently, the Economist caused a row in 1991, when they used the word, because it was one of their first uses of slang in the magazine.

I have since started using the word and noticed that people either inquire as to what the stonk I just said, or let it slip as if they understood. It tells you alot about people.

So my goal: get Americans to adopt the word, “stonkingly.” Use it in a sentence. Include it in your Facebook update. Twitter to your friends that the weather is “stonkingly nice.” Include it in a blog post. But join me and you’ll have a stonkingly good time.

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