Comments on: Zócalo – from the sublime to the ridiculous! http://la.streetsblog.org/2009/10/06/zocalo-from-the-sublime-to-the-ridiculous/ Covering Los Angeles's livable streets movement Tue, 07 Feb 2012 14:06:00 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: Gary Kavanagh http://la.streetsblog.org/2009/10/06/zocalo-from-the-sublime-to-the-ridiculous/comment-page-1/#comment-37661 Gary Kavanagh Thu, 08 Oct 2009 20:38:48 +0000 http://la.streetsblog.org/?p=14081#comment-37661 It's not that bad a of a bike ride if you A) Are in great shape, I love riding up that hill or B) Have low gearing and fine with slow forward progress and C) Don't mind people buzzing you within inches at high speeds occasionally until you make it to where the bike lane starts briefly, oh wait that starts just past the Skirball Center. Which come to think of it is kind of ridicules since I thought bike lanes helped cyclists afraid of riding with cars, and where the northbound bike lane starts you would have had to ride for miles uphill in lanes with fast moving traffic just to get where the bike lane starts. Any cyclist who can comfortably get to the start of that bike lane doesn't really need it. If you come from the valley side it's a little better, but that doesn't help any one South of the mountain. It’s not that bad a of a bike ride if you A) Are in great shape, I love riding up that hill or B) Have low gearing and fine with slow forward progress and C) Don’t mind people buzzing you within inches at high speeds occasionally until you make it to where the bike lane starts briefly, oh wait that starts just past the Skirball Center. Which come to think of it is kind of ridicules since I thought bike lanes helped cyclists afraid of riding with cars, and where the northbound bike lane starts you would have had to ride for miles uphill in lanes with fast moving traffic just to get where the bike lane starts. Any cyclist who can comfortably get to the start of that bike lane doesn’t really need it. If you come from the valley side it’s a little better, but that doesn’t help any one South of the mountain.

]]> By: Joe Linton http://la.streetsblog.org/2009/10/06/zocalo-from-the-sublime-to-the-ridiculous/comment-page-1/#comment-37651 Joe Linton Thu, 08 Oct 2009 20:29:23 +0000 http://la.streetsblog.org/?p=14081#comment-37651 Hmmmm... I wrote a little too soon... Though the link on the CHC website says "Click here for driving directions and a map to the Center." and the maps doesn't show Union Station... the text does include walking directions from Union Station. Not obvious... but some of the transit is there. Hmmmm… I wrote a little too soon… Though the link on the CHC website says “Click here for driving directions and a map to the Center.” and the maps doesn’t show Union Station… the text does include walking directions from Union Station. Not obvious… but some of the transit is there.

]]> By: Joe Linton http://la.streetsblog.org/2009/10/06/zocalo-from-the-sublime-to-the-ridiculous/comment-page-1/#comment-37641 Joe Linton Thu, 08 Oct 2009 20:19:08 +0000 http://la.streetsblog.org/?p=14081#comment-37641 I biked up there and enjoyed the talk... which wasn't radical, but worthwhile. Peter Maass talks about the invisibility of oil - most Americans use it every day, but don't actually ever see the substance itself, even at a gas station, and are, of course largely oblivious to its impacts locally and globally. Maass was pretty casual and inoffensive, even when alluding to oil "addiction" and the coming "emergency" of global warming. On a similar note: This week I was forwarded this link for directions to an event at the California Endowment's Center for Healthy Communities: http://www.calendow.org/chc/center_directions.html Sadly, this center promoting physical health, located one block north of Union Station, includes only driving directions on their website. The California Endowment is a great group that's done a lot of good. They've even pledged funding for a Ciclovia in Los Angeles becasue they make they connection between physical activity and health. They located themselves in a transit-rich, very accessible location... I hope that when they get word of the deficiency of directions on their website, they will update it to include transit directions, too. I biked up there and enjoyed the talk… which wasn’t radical, but worthwhile. Peter Maass talks about the invisibility of oil – most Americans use it every day, but don’t actually ever see the substance itself, even at a gas station, and are, of course largely oblivious to its impacts locally and globally. Maass was pretty casual and inoffensive, even when alluding to oil “addiction” and the coming “emergency” of global warming.

On a similar note: This week I was forwarded this link for directions to an event at the California Endowment’s Center for Healthy Communities:
http://www.calendow.org/chc/center_directions.html

Sadly, this center promoting physical health, located one block north of Union Station, includes only driving directions on their website. The California Endowment is a great group that’s done a lot of good. They’ve even pledged funding for a Ciclovia in Los Angeles becasue they make they connection between physical activity and health. They located themselves in a transit-rich, very accessible location… I hope that when they get word of the deficiency of directions on their website, they will update it to include transit directions, too.

]]> By: Randall BusTard http://la.streetsblog.org/2009/10/06/zocalo-from-the-sublime-to-the-ridiculous/comment-page-1/#comment-37321 Randall BusTard Thu, 08 Oct 2009 00:38:20 +0000 http://la.streetsblog.org/?p=14081#comment-37321 The Skirball is a wonderful place to host the event—providing one has all day to get there via Metro, walking and/or bicycling. The event to be held there is one that should be seriously reconsidered owing to the difficulty of getting there. (I have taken the long trip from downtown Los Angeles to the Skirball, and for the hour or so I was there it took most of the daylight hours in travel.) Seriously, it is an astounding flaw in the programme that, owing to the inaccessibility via public/mass transit such a discussion will be attended almost exclusively by people who may not be the converted (and preaching to the converted does little, but this is far too convenient for assuaging liberal guilt) and who most likely will not consider rectifying their behaviour should they attend. The Skirball is a wonderful place to host the event—providing one has all day to get there via Metro, walking and/or bicycling. The event to be held there is one that should be seriously reconsidered owing to the difficulty of getting there. (I have taken the long trip from downtown Los Angeles to the Skirball, and for the hour or so I was there it took most of the daylight hours in travel.)

Seriously, it is an astounding flaw in the programme that, owing to the inaccessibility via public/mass transit such a discussion will be attended almost exclusively by people who may not be the converted (and preaching to the converted does little, but this is far too convenient for assuaging liberal guilt) and who most likely will not consider rectifying their behaviour should they attend.

]]> By: Enci http://la.streetsblog.org/2009/10/06/zocalo-from-the-sublime-to-the-ridiculous/comment-page-1/#comment-36801 Enci Wed, 07 Oct 2009 00:58:18 +0000 http://la.streetsblog.org/?p=14081#comment-36801 Thanks for the link Stephen. I sent them an email. :-) Thanks for the link Stephen. I sent them an email. :-)

]]> By: SoapBoxLA http://la.streetsblog.org/2009/10/06/zocalo-from-the-sublime-to-the-ridiculous/comment-page-1/#comment-36721 SoapBoxLA Tue, 06 Oct 2009 20:54:29 +0000 http://la.streetsblog.org/?p=14081#comment-36721 The Skirball's website indicates that the location is serviced by the 761, a rapid bus, but the 761 has a half-hour headway and last run is a little before 9pm for the SB run and a little after 9pm for the NB run. There is also local service with a one hour headway but even the Skirball seems unaware of the 233 line. Perhaps because it's not really a sincere gesture? To offer feedback to Zócalo Public Square on access to this event: Dulce Vasquez 213-381-2541 dulce@zocalopublicsquare.org Good people do Great work if we help them raise the standard. The Skirball’s website indicates that the location is serviced by the 761, a rapid bus, but the 761 has a half-hour headway and last run is a little before 9pm for the SB run and a little after 9pm for the NB run. There is also local service with a one hour headway but even the Skirball seems unaware of the 233 line. Perhaps because it’s not really a sincere gesture?

To offer feedback to Zócalo Public Square on access to this event:
Dulce Vasquez
213-381-2541
dulce@zocalopublicsquare.org

Good people do Great work if we help them raise the standard.

]]> By: Joe Linton http://la.streetsblog.org/2009/10/06/zocalo-from-the-sublime-to-the-ridiculous/comment-page-1/#comment-36691 Joe Linton Tue, 06 Oct 2009 20:23:01 +0000 http://la.streetsblog.org/?p=14081#comment-36691 Verrrry true... I was disappointed to see such a difficult to access venue for such a good subject. I reserved two tickets to this event because I was excited to hear about oil issues. Anyone wanna bike pool up to the Skirball? Say depart from the Westwood Federal Building (Wilshire and Veteran) at 6:30pm? Verrrry true… I was disappointed to see such a difficult to access venue for such a good subject. I reserved two tickets to this event because I was excited to hear about oil issues. Anyone wanna bike pool up to the Skirball? Say depart from the Westwood Federal Building (Wilshire and Veteran) at 6:30pm?

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