Another Light Rail Subway

LA is getting a light rail subway. Under construction, right now. Operating in 2022. [1]

Currently, the Gold Line and Blue Line light rail don't actually connect. The Blue Line ends at Metro Center station, and the Gold line goes through Union station. So getting between the two requires a trip on the Red Line Metro. Two transfers.

Seattle has downtown light rail runnel, and Portland has mooted one, downtown. (Portland as the one through the mountain for the Zoo station, but that's not the same thing as a downtown tunnel. Wonder who else has one?

[1] Supposed to be 2020, but guess what? Digging underground is difficult and expensive, especially in a built up urban area full of old foundations, utility conduits, historical resources (1781 founding)....

Finally, LAX gets fixed guideway transit

LAX Breaks Ground on Automated People Mover

The 2.25-mile system will link the central terminal area with ground transportation facilities - including Metro Rail.

Bit of a shame that the US's two biggest airports can't get it together when it comes to transit to the airport. LaGuardia doesn't have rail access, JFK relies on the AirTrain. Looks like Newark has transit access, but I'm uncertain of the quality. You'd think, when you have high-speed infrastructure people play hundreds of dollars per hour (and thousands per trip) that that the access to said infrastructure might get beefed up a bit. A minute on the plane is the same as a minute on train. Which perfectly explains why no one takes the train to/from: You take a taxi, a limo, an, uber, a lyft.

Reading Aerotropolis, really drove home the importance of aerolanes and aerotrains to me. But if you want people to use it, it has to be superior to the alternative. And that means faster. If you've got separated guideway, free from congestion, that shouldn't be hard. But it seems to happen, which seems to suggest that the people building these rail lines are squandering that competitive advantage--giving in and accepting minutes of delay, rather than taking the fight to desperation levels, to achieve what matters---speed.

In a way, the aeroplane is like a streetcar. Or rather, like an old-school commuter railroad. Providing CBD access to the affluent 'executive class' of managers and professionals.