Mapping the Screens at 7th Street / Metro Center

April 24, 2013 11 Comments

Over the past few months, a number of screens have been added to the upper level of the 7th Street / Metro Center station. Since the Expo Line opened a year ago, there are now four lines sharing this station, and the screens show departure information for the Blue and Expo Lines (which are on the upper level), and the Red and Purple Lines (on the lower level).

Unfortunately, many of these screens have been added in less-than-useful places or show less-than-useful information.

Take, for example, these two screens that show you departure times on your way out of the station (presumably, after you’ve gotten off of the train), rather than on your way in.

On the left is the view as you exit the station toward Figueroa. There's two screens telling you train departure times. Meanwhile, those entering the station (view on the right) see a blank space with no information.

On the left is the view as you exit the station toward Figueroa. There are two screens showing you train departure times. Meanwhile, those entering the station (view on the right) see a blank space with no information.

Every day, when I get off the Expo Line and prepare to transfer to the Red Line, I (and a mad rush of commuters) practically run over to the stairs to peer down at the lower level in hopes that my train is not already sitting there, ready to close its doors as I’m stuck in a crowd trying to make my way downstairs. Every day, hanging from the ceiling just above me are two screens, both of which show departure times for Expo Line, which I just got off.

I’ve always thought to myself, “Wouldn’t it be nice if that screen showed the Red Line times instead?” Then, I could simply look up and know that my train wouldn’t be leaving for another 4 minutes and I’d have no reason to rush, letting those who did need to hurry tap their cards and get down the stairs before me. I started looking around the station and I realized there are a ton of screens, but they often show riders info for the lines they just got off, rather than the lines they might be going to.

So I decided to map out the screens and try to determine a more useful way to display the same information, just by changing what is on each screen.

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So How Much Does the Expo Line Actually Stop?

September 27, 2012 5 Comments

The Expo Line has gotten a lot of bad press for being slow. For stopping at lights. For stopping in between lights. Metro says they’re working on it, and having ridden nearly every day since it opened, I believe it’s gotten better. Or I’ve gotten used to it. Really, I think a little bit of both. I’ve accepted that random stops are going to be normal for a while, but I’ve also noticed they’ve become shorter and fewer as time has gone on.

In order to see how much time the train could save if Metro was able to completely eliminate stops (other than those at stations, of course), I did a little non-scientific research. For two weeks, I timed the amount of time the train spent stopped while not at a station. Here’s what I found:

Total Time Stopped

Mon 9/10 Tues 9/11 Wed 9/12 Thurs 9/13 Fri 9/14
OUT to Culver 5:16 3:55 4:22 2:38 2:37
IN to DTLA – – 2:35 2:21 –
Mon 9/17 Tues 9/18 Wed 9/19 Thurs 9/20 Fri 9/21
OUT to Culver 3:19 3:58 3:25 4:32 2:28
IN to DTLA 3:33 3:12 4:06* (2:26) 6:59 –

There are some holes in my data, as I didn’t ride Expo home every day (I told you this was non-scientific), but the surprising thing to me came in comparing the outbound and inbound trips. The Expo Line has mainly gotten bad press for it’s stops while heading inbound, or towards Downtown, but on many days, it stopped just as much or more on the outbound trip.

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Who Says LA’s Not a Football/Transit Town?

September 6, 2012 Leave a comment

When I think of the great things that have happened in my world so far this year, there are a few that immediately come to mind… Aside from getting engaged (which obviously tops the list), it’s hard not to recognize the greatness of the Metro Expo Line opening and the USC football season starting.

When the Expo Line opened in April, it dramatically changed the way I commute to work from Downtown LA to Culver City. It gave me time to read every day, something I had seriously been missing, and put me on my bike at the end of the ride, getting me out in the beautiful Los Angeles weather, if only for a few minutes each day. It also saved me a ton of gas money, stress, and wear & tear on my car. And it wasn’t just for work, I’ve written before about some of the great adventures I’ve had on the Expo Line. Ridership is already above predictions for this point in time, and on it’s way to meeting projections far into the future. It’s crowded even late into the night… And yet people say LA isn’t a transit town.

An Expo Line train with a USC Football ad waits at 7th Street / Metro Center Station.

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Metro Adds Dash Signs to Expo and Blue Lines

August 16, 2012 3 Comments

As I reported a few weeks ago after the Transit Coalition meeting, Metro this week rolled out their new dash signs to help clear up confusion between Expo and Blue Line trains.

The signs are a cheap, easy way to make things a little clearer for passengers trying to get on the right train.

The new Blue Line dash sign in the front window of the train, in addition to the destination sign on top, helps passengers identify it as the train approaches.

They are, however, limited to help only passengers who see the front of the train as it approaches. They’re nice and clear when outside in the sun and should be great for the Pico stop, though they’re a bit harder to see on the dark platform at 7th Street / Metro Center. Also, trains are often already sitting at the platform at 7th Street, so you won’t see it approach before getting on.

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