The Next L.A. / Reinventing Our Future : TRANSPORTATION : Unlocking the Grid

Doomsday prognosticators tell us that if we don’t change our woeful one-car, one-driver ways, we will be spending more time on the road than anywhere else. Here is the world that transit planners now offer you, a tapestry of options replete with miles of rail lines and bus and car-pool lanes. But let’s remember: the same folks who brought us a rail system that doesn’t go to the airport, Dodger Stadium or, say, the Hollywood Bowl. Could we do better?

Outside the Envelope

Not everyone believes trains and trolleys will bust Los Angeles’ gridlock. Less traditional alternatives abound, though some might have trouble getting off the ground.

PACK POWER: Forget your Lexus. Strap on one of these backpack-like units and say goodby to traffic. One problem: it costs more than $30 million to purchase and another $30 million annually to maintain.

LEVITATION: It could happen to you. Picture Disneyland, only much faster. Magnetic levitation trains zip along cushions of air, propelled by electromagnetic force.

OLD RELIABLE: Bicycles are still the most politically correct, least polluting, healthiest way to go. What’s next? Diamond lanes for tandem.

ROLL OVER, RALPH KRAMDEN: Buses will get a technological facelift. No more wheezing, diesel-spewing behemoths. These are streamlined, sleek, fuel efficient wheeled wonders.

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METROLINK: After the quake, beleaguered commuters swarmed the trains. But in recent weeks, ridership dropped, confirming what officials feared: Angelenos love their autos.

PLANNED CAR-POOL LANES: If we won’t get out of our cars, why not get more Angelenos in our cars?

EXISTING CAR-POOL LANES: Eleven-mile lane on San Bernardino Freeway opened in 1973 and serves 12,600 motorists in peak hours.

RED LINE: At a whopping $230 million per mile, L.A.’s first modern subway won its reputation as the nation’s most expensive public works project.

BLUE LINE: Why did one of the county’s least-congested corridors, between Long Beach and Los Angeles end up with the first train line?

GREEN LINE: Going to the airport? Hop on this trolly--scheduled to open this year--a mere mile from the airport. Tote your bag to the bus, which brings you to the airport shuttle.

Sources: Caltrans, Los Angeles County Transportation Commission, Southern California Rapid Transit District, Los Angeles Dept. of Transportation, Amtrak, Metropolitan Transit Development Board.