Remembering Interurban Railroads, and how L.A. struggles to build a light rail system again

Above: Main Interurban Depot in Indianapolis, in days of Olde

Interburban routes were part of the great American rail network that was bumped off in the 1950's by a consortium of interests including Oil companies, Truckers, concrete and asphalt manufacturers and of course the Big Three Auto companies of the time ( Ford, GM and Chrysler).


There are a few surviving pieces of the old network around the country, notably around Chicago, which was the nation's biggest rail hub. Train lines radiated out of Chicago like spokes from a half wheel-- ( one half blocked off by Lake Michigan).

The Indiana network was well developed, too.

Notice again how the trains radiate out of Indianapolis the way superhighways and Freeways do now out of our urban centers.


Finally, here is some real nostalgia from North Chicago-- the old Milwaukee and Northwestern line in its final days

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MhUZUOE75tw

This last photo is from Dallas, where, needless to say, the kind of interests that destroyed the interurban railroads were REALLY in full sway.

Lastly, Los Angeles had a great public transportation system, the loss of which is implied in such historic films as Roman Polanski's "Chinatown" --below, an old Expo line map

The rebirth of Public Transportation in smog-choked Los Angeles is really quite remarkable.

I remember seeing a documentary shown on TV by Walt Disney in the late 1950's on how wonderful the new Freeway system was going to be. All these commuters living in little detached houses ( " made of ticky-tacky and looking all the same" as poet Marianne Moore complained--or, as Gertrude Stein said about L.A." There is no THERE there.")

Below, L.A.'s new system as a more environmentally conscious California tries to provide alternatives to the old 1950's ideal

Below, one of the new L.A. public transportation routes with commuters...

How is L.A.'s Metro Line faring? Not all that well, really, say some people...

 
 

 
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OPINION

Despite Its Current Benefits, The L.A. Metro Needs Improvement

Comments (3)

| adolescents, Beach, bus, Buses, californians, campus, car, fare, l.a., LA Bus Riders Union, la metro, light rail, Los Angeles, metro, neighborhoods, Opinion, parking, parking in l.a., public transportation, ride, security, signage, student, students, train, transfer, young people

Hallie Roth |

April 1, 2013 | 3:17 p.m. PDT

Contributor

• 

An Expo Line light rail on Flower Street. (JulieAndSteve, Creative Commons)

I dare you to confront any student on a college campus in Los Angeles and ask if he or she uses the Metro. You may get that “you must be kidding me” eyebrow raise, or possibly that “what’s the Metro?” blank stare. Either way, it is safe to say that the majority of college students in L.A. use the Metro about as often as they do their laundry – not very often.

Whether it is the idea that the car is king in Los Angeles, or that most people do not find the Metro to be very efficient, there are solutions to these problems. The Metro needs some enhancement. However, it deserves accolades for its substantial benefits for young people living in L.A.

To read the rest of this article, go to:

http://www.neontommy.com/news/2013/04/despite-current-benefits-la-metro-needs-improvement

And, to see how to ride the LA Metro Line:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AM3P4qQ3L5M