Sherman Oaks Nimbys Bash Sepulveda Rail Plans, Push Unrealistic Freeway Monorail

The Sherman Oaks Homeowners Association is disparaging Metro's planned Sepulveda Transit proejct. SOHA's website graphics urge "no elevated trains above Sepulveda [Boulevard.]" SOHA is pushing an unrealistic freeway monorail alternative.

Metro is currently hosting a series of community input meetings (tonight and Saturday - details at bottom of post) on the planned Sepulveda Transit Corridor Project. Voters approved nearly $6 billion for the planned Valley-Westside line, though the latest cost estimates have risen to upwards of $10 billion. While the escalating costs are a bad sign, a regionally-significant high-ridership project such as this will likely be able to make up the shortfall with some combination of federal and state monies, and perhaps some internal cost-cutting measures.

Metro is currently considering four alternatives. Three are heavy rail; one is monorail. While much of the project is anticipated to run in tunnels underground (hence the relatively high cost estimates), two concepts (HRT 3 and MRT 1) include aerial and at-grade portions - in order to reduce costs.

The Sherman Oaks Homeowners Association asserts that elevated transit "will RUIN" Valley neighborhoods.

Like other Nimbys, the SOHA's criticisms of the project are inconsistent. They slam the project coming and going. Trains are both too expensive - they "COST WAY OVER BUDGET" - and the less-expensive aerial alternatives are straight up "UNACCEPTABLE" and (according to a SOHA presentation) will "destroy" the community's "light, air, and privacy." Aerial rail is somehow "NOISY" though it could well be less noisy than car traffic on the street below and the freeway nearby.

SOHA's presentation shows some before/after renderings of the apparently treasured Sherman Oaks landscapes that SOHA anticipates elevated rail will intrude upon.

Other SOHA presentation renderings show a misleadingly giant multi-story sized train.

What does SOHA want? They are pushing a "futuristic look" monorail that would run in the middle of the 405 Freeway.

Folks who actually currently ride L.A. transit know that Metro’s existing freeway stations are hellishly loud for riders. In addition, some existing Metro freeway rail has been plagued by vehicles crashing into rail infrastructure. Freeway stations also subject riders to a heavy dose of pollution. Freeway-adjacent areas are inhospitable and dangerous for walking - and marginal for transit-oriented development. Siting rail in the middle of freeways, and improving freeway stations, has been very difficult due to having to work with Caltrans.

SOHA's solution to mid-freeway stations is to add multiple doglegs - at least at Sherman Way, the Orange Line, Ventura Boulevard, UCLA, and the Expo Line. The UCLA dogleg even includes a people mover.

All of these doglegs appear to include hairpin turns that would dramatically slow monorail speeds, increasing travel time and decreasing utility and ridership. The doglegs and people movers would all run on expensive aerial structures - the kind that SOHA calls "intrusive" and says would "ruin" communities.

If that is not enough, SOHA incorrectly asserts that a mid-freeway monorail (plus its doglegs and people-mover) would have "almost zero impacts... during construction" though, more likely, it would result in major construction closures, including on the 405 Freeway.

Lastly, SOHA is pushing for the monorail to be built by BYD Skyway - part of the scandal-plagued consistently under-delivering electric bus manufacturer BYD.

The SOHA monorail concept is so sadly misguided that it probably is not worth the attention that Streetsblog L.A. has devoted to debunking it.

If readers want to learn more about, and give input on, the Sepulveda Transit Corridor Project (including perhaps showing support for sane alternatives) please plan to attend this week's meetings:

• Tuesday 7/30 - Tonight 6-8 p.m. at St. Paul the Apostle Church at 10750 Ohio Avenue in Westwood. Presentation at 6:30 p.m. (Facebook event)
• Saturday 8/3 - 10 a.m.-1 p.m. at Marvin Braude Constituent Service Center at 6262 Van Nuys Boulevard in Van Nuys. Bilingual meeting with English presentation at 10:30 a.m. and  Spanish presentation at 11:45 a.m. (Facebook events: Spanish, English)

Additional project and meeting details at Metro’s The Source.