Last night I rode down with my co-worker Carly in her tiny Dodge Neon to Fountain Valley (Orange County), where we had an early call the next morning for a video shoot. We stayed in a hotel and got up early the next morning. After putting in a 12-hour day on set, I had to get back up to LA somehow, since the rest of the crew was staying in the OC for another few days. After a bit of searching around for rental car locations and cheap taxi fares, I decided to try taking Amtrak from Santa Ana to Union Station in downtown LA, and then riding the trusty 33 Metro bus back home. I got a ride from a freelance grip on our shoot heading in the same direction, who took me to the Santa Ana Transit Center—a beautiful old train depot in downtown Santa Ana. I walked up to the ticket counter and bought a ticket to Union Station for $12, half of what the mileage costs are to drive to LA, according to AAA. If I had a Metro rail pass, the cost would have been only $6.
I had half an hour to kill so I got some crappy nachos and a cup of soup in the depot’s café, and went out to wait on the tracks. It’s a beautiful station, with wrought-iron fences lining the tracks. There were about 5 people waiting for the train with me, and I wondered why the station wasn’t full of commuters heading back to LA. I was looking forward to sitting on the train in comfort, watching all of the traffic jams as we zoomed through the southland.
The train came right on time at 8 PM, and left minutes after I boarded. I sit here now, typing happily away with the sound of the train’s whistle and creaking wheels beneath me. It’s proving to be a treat to ride the train from city to city in Southern CA. A guy with a motorcycle helmet just walked past me, getting off in Fullerton. I imagine he works in San Diego or South Orange County, commutes by train and rides a bike up to a house in the hills.
Just announced, the trip to LA from Fullerton will be another 30 minutes. The gruff female conductor walks past and yanks my destination slip from the holder above my seat, cleaning up as she knows I’ll be off at the next stop.
The train is, by far, the best experience on public transit I’ve had in LA. A bit costly up front, but when you look at it, it’s cheaper than any other means when you factor in gas, mileage, wear and tear, and all those other expenses that the poor saps on the streets next to me are incurring as we zip by, sitting high and mighty in our amazing iron horse.
I realize that I may eat my words when I de-board the train and hop aboard the 33 back to West LA, but for now, I’ll revel in all my glory.
Tuesday, January 29, 2008
Monday, January 28, 2008
Renting a Car
So I needed a car. Not to get around LA (that's what the bus is for), but to get to The Sundance Film Festival in Park City Utah, where I'd be schmoozing with other filmmakers, watching films, and getting some snowboarding in. I went with the cheapest I could find, which happened to be Dollar Rent-a-Car at the airport. Now I'd just have to get there.
After work on the day before my trip, I hopped aboard the Santa Monica Big Blue Bus #3 Rapid to the LAX transit center. This line shoots up and down Lincoln Blvd and is VERY fast and efficient. The Big Blue Buses and the Green Culver City Buses are only $0.75. Score! The trip to LAX was quick, and I hopped off and walked to Dollar Rent-a-Car, where I rented a brand-new Dodge Caliber for my trip. The Caliber, rated as a "compact" car, was really the size of some of the first SUVs. Driving felt a bit weird after a few weeks without getting behind the wheel, but I soon reacquainted myself with the ways of the road and was on my way.
After the trip to the snow, I returned the car, and tried a different route back. From the LAX Transit Center I got on the Culver CityBus 6. It takes a pretty useful route for Westsiders. The 6 goes from the Green Line to LAX, all along Sepulveda to the Promenade at the Howard Hughes Center, The Fox Hills mall, and straight up Sepulveda to UCLA. I got off at Venice blvd. and hopped aboard my beloved Metro 33 bus two lights west to my apartment.
Each new bus line I ride brings with it discovery of where I can go on which buses, and eases the uneasiness that first accompanied my exploration of mass transit in Los Angeles. Stay tuned for "the Train."
After work on the day before my trip, I hopped aboard the Santa Monica Big Blue Bus #3 Rapid to the LAX transit center. This line shoots up and down Lincoln Blvd and is VERY fast and efficient. The Big Blue Buses and the Green Culver City Buses are only $0.75. Score! The trip to LAX was quick, and I hopped off and walked to Dollar Rent-a-Car, where I rented a brand-new Dodge Caliber for my trip. The Caliber, rated as a "compact" car, was really the size of some of the first SUVs. Driving felt a bit weird after a few weeks without getting behind the wheel, but I soon reacquainted myself with the ways of the road and was on my way.
After the trip to the snow, I returned the car, and tried a different route back. From the LAX Transit Center I got on the Culver CityBus 6. It takes a pretty useful route for Westsiders. The 6 goes from the Green Line to LAX, all along Sepulveda to the Promenade at the Howard Hughes Center, The Fox Hills mall, and straight up Sepulveda to UCLA. I got off at Venice blvd. and hopped aboard my beloved Metro 33 bus two lights west to my apartment.
Each new bus line I ride brings with it discovery of where I can go on which buses, and eases the uneasiness that first accompanied my exploration of mass transit in Los Angeles. Stay tuned for "the Train."
Monday, January 21, 2008
Trip to Silverlake
An old buddy from high school that I used to play in a band with sent a myspace bulletin out that he'd be in LA, playing at 12 miles away at Club Spaceland in Silverlake with his band The Shaky Hands. I decided that I couldn't miss the show, and would ride my bike after work to see them play.
Once the work day was over, much as the idea of riding 12 miles and blowing off some steam sounded like fun, arriving sweaty and tired to a club didn't. The only problem...finding a bus route that would get me door to door in time for the show would be quite a job, and possibly quite IMpossible.
So what to do? It came to me in a flash. I'd seen people utilizing the bike racks on the fronts of buses, taking the bus for the long haul on the main streets, then mounting their bikes for the short, but too-long-to-walk jaunts from the bus stop to their destinations. It always seemed funny, and a bit of a hassle, but I decided to try it out this time, and joined the "bus-with-your-bike"ers.
I wheeled my beautifully clunky mountain bike freshly outfitted with road tires out to the stop at Venice and McLaughlin, and caught the 33 at 7:12 (I looked at the schedule this time...I'm a smarty now). 40 minutes later I got off the bus at Venice and Vermont, grabbed my bike, strapped on my helmet and turned on my flashy bike lights, and went zipping up Vermont towards Silverlake.
I must've missed my turn. Suddenly I'd gone much further than I thought (due to some bad directions from a passerby). However, I righted my directionally-challenged self, and arrived at the club at 8:33, a little early to the show. I locked the bike (I have to name this thing) to a lightpole, shouldered my helmet and jacket in my commuter bag, and headed in for a Red Stripe Jamaican Lager. Delicious.
After a great show and some reunion time with some home-town friends, I mounted the bike at 10:55 and headed back down to Venice and Vermont with the hopes of catching the 11:27 33 bus back to the Westside. I got there at 11:20 with a few minutes to spare, promptly boarded the bus once again as the first drops of rain started to fall, which turned into a torrential downpour once the bus got going. My poor bike was getting wet on the front of the bus. This reminded me that I should pop a small umbrella or rain slicker into my commuter bag. Didn't want to get caught in something like that ever..
I got home 23 minutes later...an extremely successful cross-town trip that involved some bus, some bike, some music, some beer and some good times. I must be nearing a transit disaster with all the success I've been having, but for now, I'm content!
Once the work day was over, much as the idea of riding 12 miles and blowing off some steam sounded like fun, arriving sweaty and tired to a club didn't. The only problem...finding a bus route that would get me door to door in time for the show would be quite a job, and possibly quite IMpossible.
So what to do? It came to me in a flash. I'd seen people utilizing the bike racks on the fronts of buses, taking the bus for the long haul on the main streets, then mounting their bikes for the short, but too-long-to-walk jaunts from the bus stop to their destinations. It always seemed funny, and a bit of a hassle, but I decided to try it out this time, and joined the "bus-with-your-bike"ers.
I wheeled my beautifully clunky mountain bike freshly outfitted with road tires out to the stop at Venice and McLaughlin, and caught the 33 at 7:12 (I looked at the schedule this time...I'm a smarty now). 40 minutes later I got off the bus at Venice and Vermont, grabbed my bike, strapped on my helmet and turned on my flashy bike lights, and went zipping up Vermont towards Silverlake.
I must've missed my turn. Suddenly I'd gone much further than I thought (due to some bad directions from a passerby). However, I righted my directionally-challenged self, and arrived at the club at 8:33, a little early to the show. I locked the bike (I have to name this thing) to a lightpole, shouldered my helmet and jacket in my commuter bag, and headed in for a Red Stripe Jamaican Lager. Delicious.
After a great show and some reunion time with some home-town friends, I mounted the bike at 10:55 and headed back down to Venice and Vermont with the hopes of catching the 11:27 33 bus back to the Westside. I got there at 11:20 with a few minutes to spare, promptly boarded the bus once again as the first drops of rain started to fall, which turned into a torrential downpour once the bus got going. My poor bike was getting wet on the front of the bus. This reminded me that I should pop a small umbrella or rain slicker into my commuter bag. Didn't want to get caught in something like that ever..
I got home 23 minutes later...an extremely successful cross-town trip that involved some bus, some bike, some music, some beer and some good times. I must be nearing a transit disaster with all the success I've been having, but for now, I'm content!
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