January 21st marks the anniversary of groundbreaking for the 11-mile long El Monte Busway and planning for what was billed as the “world’s first bus rapid transit station.” U.S. Transportation Secretary John A. Volpe officiated at ceremonies marking commencement of construction…
Category: Primary Resources
Primary Resources
100 Years Ago Today: The California State Highway Commission, Caltrans Predecessor, Is Launched
The year starts off with a look back one full century to the birth of highway planning in the state. On January 2, 1912, the seven division engineers of the California State Highway Commission met for the first time. The Commission…
Regional Planning For A Sustainable America: How Creative Programs Are Promoting Prosperity And Saving The Environment
Carleton K. Montgomery’s Regional Planning for a Sustainable America is the first book to represent the great variety of today’s effective regional planning programs, analyzing dozens of regional initiatives across North America. The American landscape is being transformed by poorly…
100 Years Ago Today: Pacific Electric Railway Reaches Van Nuys, Launching “Wonderful Growth” In The San Fernando Valley
Today marks another auspicious local transportation anniversary – a century ago, the first streetcars rolled into the small outlying town of Van Nuys. On December 16, 1911, Pacific Electric Railway Company launched its service to the San Fernando Valley. Van…
New And Powerful Transportation Research Tool: Metro Library Launches Robust Catalog Portal
Just in time for the holidays, we are pleased to make this major announcement: This afternoon, we rolled out our new online public access catalog. Times change — and so does technology. After 11 years with our previous system, it…
Policy In Motion: Transportation Planning In California After AB 32
While state and federal actions have been taken to set new requirements for vehicle efficiency and fuels, tackling travel behavior policies that reduce vehicle-miles-traveled and improve transportation network management is needed if California is to reduce its transportation sector’s 38%…
90 Years Ago Today: Los Angeles Railway Rolls Out “Information Men” Public Service
The December 5, 1921 issue of the Los Angeles Railway employee newsmagazine posed the question: “How would you like to be an information man?” An article titled “Information Men Help L.A., They’ll Tell The World!” appeared in Two Bells. Ninety…
High Line: The Inside Story Of New York City’s Park In The Sky
The High Line, a new park atop an elevated rail structure on Manhattan’s West Side, is among the most innovative urban reclamation projects in memory. The story of how it came to be is a remarkable one: two young citizens…
Urban Transformation Through Transit-Oriented Development And the Sustainable City: Hollywood & Highland And Pico / San Vicente
In the gorgeous new book titled Urban Transformation: Transit Oriented Development And The Sustainable City, authors Ronald A. Altoon and James C. Auld address the intersections of values, issues and priorities of public and private sector partners in creating positive civic…
Our “Grand Concourse”: Historic Images Of Wilshire Boulevard’s Double-Decker Buses & Other Forgotten History
We periodically highlight “Resources To Know” which lead you to important information sources for research, as well as the core collection of classic titles in the study of Los Angeles transit and transportation history. One indisputable work is Kevin Roderick’s Wilshire…