Metrolink
Los Angeles Metrolink to Relieve Caltrain on the Crowded San Francisco Peninsula
The San Francisco to San Jose Caltrain commuter rail line continues to set ridership records, but capacity has not increased, much to riders' chagrin. Starting today, four train sets will add a sixth car, courtesy of Metrolink commuter rail.
Metro's Latest Light Rail Crash Sparks Rail Safety Debate
The March 28 crash on Metro's extensive light rail system shouldn't have happened. All the safety measures acted as they should have. Could more have been done to prevent the motorist's fateful turn across the tracks as a train approached?
If Rail Crossings Can't Be Grade Separated, Can They At Least Be Safer?
That's the question asked by legislation introduced after a Metro-North commuter train slammed into an SUV at a crossing in Valhalla, N.Y., killing six people. More than 200 people die annually in over 2,000 grade crossing crashes.
Metrolink Crash Would Have Been Much Worse If Not for New Rail Cars
While all four passenger cars derailed in Tuesday morning's crash with a pickup truck, three on their sides, experts indicate that the new cars likely prevented far greater damage. Also covered is the locomotive push-pull issue and grade separations.
Truck Causes Fiery Metrolink Crash in Southern California
All four cars* of a Metrolink train derailed sending 28 people to the hospital, four with critical injuries. The southbound Ventura line train was headed to Union Station Los Angeles when it hit the produce truck at 5:45 AM.
$188 Million ARTIC Transit Hub Opens in Anaheim
The Anaheim Regional Transportation Intermodal Center opened earlier in December. Although planners expect 10,000 daily boardings at the hub, the big payoff will come if a high speed rail and a streetcar find their way to the station.
Fighting Homelessness by Closing a Commuter Rail Station
The high desert city of Lancaster in northern Los Angeles County has an innovative plan to reduce its homeless population: Close its Metrolink station, the last stop on the Antelope Valley line, that serves 400 commuters daily.
L.A. Union Station's Pilot Program Discriminates Against Subway Passengers
Los Angeles’s Union Station is trying something new to keep the homeless at bay: restricting waiting room seating to ticketed passengers.
Would Advanced Technology Have Prevented the Metro-North Derailment?
As federal investigators focus on the likelihood of human error being the cause of the Dec. 1 derailment that killed four passengers, attention has been placed on the federal requirement for all railroads to install positive train control systems.
More Hype on Hyperloop
LA Times' technology blogger Jon Healy takes a look at Elon Musk's Hyperloop, and after careful analysis, decides he'd bet on a proven, high-speed technology - the same one that inspired Musk to do an all-nighter to draft plans for an alternative.
Commuter Rail May Tap CA High-Speed Rail Funds
The CA High Speed Rail Authority hopes to work with Caltrain in the Bay Area and Metrolink in the South Coast by allowing them to use state HSR Bond funds provided they match the amount. Electrification and grade crossing separations are eligible.
Positive Train Control Set to Revolutionize Railroad Safety
A cutting-edge railroad collision avoidance system is being installed in Los Angeles. Dan Weikel and Richard Simon examine the system, and the reasons why the federal government is backing down from requirements to install the system nationwide.
Train Times to Accompany Motorists Stuck in Traffic
To encourage train ridership, Caltrans and Metrolink have teamed up to display train times on electronic signs along two oft-congested Southern California freeways.
Transit Can Drive Growth
Yonah Freemark dives into the 2010 Census, and finds clear evidence that focusing dense development around transit works to focus development.
Running Transit Like A Business
Southern California's Metrolink has a new CEO, and he's implementing smart cost-cutting right off the bat, like policies that get drivers to stop idling their buses.
Mass Transit Wins Big in St. Louis County
A half-cent sales tax increase to fund transit passed handily yesterday in St. Louis County, Missouri.
All Eggs in the HSR Basket
California Governor Schwarzenegger has ordered state officials to seek federal funding only for the state's high-speed rail project--at the expense of efforts to make Metrolink trains safer, some say.
Engineers Sue Metrolink Over Surveillance
The Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen have filed a lawsuit against Metrolink, saying surveillance cameras, which were installed after a deadly crash, are an "invasion of privacy."
Metrolink Deaths Could Be Avoided, Says LA Times
244 people have died in Metrolink accidents over the last 15 years. A study by the Los Angeles Times says that that number could be greatly diminished by improving a handful of dangerous intersections.
Board Members Need to Get on Board
Not one board member of the Metrolink in Southern California is an everyday rider. But is it so bad that these members, usually politicians, are calling the shots?
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
EMC Planning Group, Inc.
Planetizen
Planetizen
Mpact (formerly Rail~Volution)
Great Falls Development Authority, Inc.
HUDs Office of Policy Development and Research
NYU Wagner Graduate School of Public Service
