My Missed Connection Riding the L.A. Metro

A Passenger and Train Conductor Lock Eyes—But Poor Urban Planning and Four Lanes of Traffic Conspire to Keep Them Apart

Our eyes met on a Saturday evening in Los Angeles. I wanted to go home. He wanted to take me there.

Could we find our way to each other in this lonely city?

Sure, we were only 30 yards apart. But we were separated by Crenshaw Boulevard—and by the folly of transportation planning in 21st century Southern California.

The object of my gaze was the driver of a Metro train on the Expo Line, which runs from Santa Monica to downtown L.A., and is also known as the E Line. The driver’s features, …

How to Imagine a Los Angeles Without Traffic | Zocalo Public Square • Arizona State University • Smithsonian

How to Imagine a Los Angeles Without Traffic

The City Has the Solutions to Congestion, Pollution, and Accidents—We Just Need to Use Them

For the last century, Los Angeles has been expanding its road space far beyond almost any major metropolitan area in history. We have built freeways and roads and parking lots …