More Commuter Amenities Coming To Union Station!

For all you commuters riding into and out of Union Station every morning, here's some exciting news: According to operative reports obtained on Friday, additional food amenities will be coming to the transportation terminal in late June.

Peet's Coffee and Tea, Wetzel's Pretzels and Subway
(the latter further confirms the Militant's observation that one can order a footlong within a 2-block radius of a (M) Red Line station) will be joining Union Bagel, Traxx Restaurant and Bar and Relay Newsstand to serve commuters at the 71-year old train depot.

Come August, the Japanese-owned Famima!! (can't forget the double exclamation marks) convenience store will arrive, to be located next to the Amtrak ticketing office. To make room for it, the Amtrak ticket machines have been relocated next to the Metrolink ticket kiosks, and the Hertz and Budget car rental desks have been moved to a different location near the Amtrak ticket booth.

These new additions won't quite make Los Angeles Union Station into its counterpart in the Nation's Capital, but it brings new life into a station that was once a bustling transportation hub in the 1940s-50s, which was revived some 20 years ago (after a near-vacant period in the 1970s-80s) with the arrival of the (M) Red Line and Metrolink commuter rail.

Even though these are chain establishments, the Militant nonetheless welcomes these additions to Union Station, which despite its rail renaissance is still a sorely underused facility. It would certainly prep the terminal for its inevitable role in the long-anticipated California High Speed Rail network. The Militant would love to see, at least in the near future, a weekly farmer's market in the station property's open space and the re-opening of the former Harvey House restaurant space on the southern end of the station - maybe a new location for the local Du-par's coffee shop chain?

The Missing Link

Saturday was National Train Day again, which the Militant covered last year during its Union Station festivities.

This year, the Union Station goings-on was nearly identical, so the Militant decided to take it a step further and visit the National Train Day events in San Bernardino. And not only that, but to take in the full meaning of the day and travel strictly by train the entire day - steel wheels for real - making a 120-mile round trip journey entirely rail.

He started, of course with a quick dash on the (M) Red Line to Union Station, sampling the festivities there and hopping on the (very crowded) 11:50 a.m. train to San Berdoo via Metrolink. It was then when the Militant realized this was his first Metrolink journey in a loooong-ass time; the last he remembered riding it was sometime in 2003.

The ride to San Berdoo was mush as he remembered it, yet it had been so long that it almost seemed entirely new to him: zipping past cars on the 10 east; flying through El Monte, wondering why the El Monte Busway station and the El Monte Metrolink station are not one in the same; rolling past single-story suburban backyards, rugged industrial areas and being dwarfed by the peaks of the San Gabriels; and passing by exotically unfamiliar sights like the ginormous Auto Club (California) Speedway in Fontana.

After an hour and a half, the Militant finally arrived in San Bernardino's depot, itself a historic train station even outdating Union Station by 21 years (built 1918). There he saw a historic Santa Fe steam locomotive (which the Militant got to climb into), with several restored passenger cars coupled behind it. The San Bernardino Station even has its own transportation museum, and for the day there was also a rail/transportation-related outdoor bazaar, selling model trains, railroad souvenirs, model trucks and t-shirts. And unlike Los Angeles Union Station, there was an active freight transfer facility on the other side of the tracks, with freight trains making an occasional show for the NTD crowd.

Also, one of the newly-unveiled Metrolink crash-resistant railcars was on display here, along with a modern BNSF locomotive.

The Militant returned back to Union Station on the 4:10 p.m. train, looked around for a bit, and then hopped back on the Red Line to return to his compound.

For the thousands of Metrolink riders who take the train to or from work, it's just another way of commuting to take for granted. But not having the opportunity to ride the 'Link as often put things into a different perspective for him: The Militant took to the rails on Saturday, not just because he wanted to, but because he could.

Don't Crash This Party: Metrolink Introduces New Railcars

While folks are celebrating Mexican St. Patrick's Day today, Metrolink is doing a little celebrating of its own, unveiling the first two of their cab control cars built in response to the September 12, 2008 tragic collision between a Metrolink train and a Union Pacific freight train in Chatsworth. Twenty-five people lost their lives and 135 were injured in the worst commuter rail accident in American history.

So today in Colton, Metrolink officials revealed their new cars, meant to ride on the opposite end of the train as the locomotive, to provide a means to control the train when it's traveling with the locomotive on the tail end. In other words, while the train appears like it's going "backwards," there is an engineer on the last car of the train controlling it, which is what happened on that tragic day on 9/12/08. The new cars, built by Hyundai Rotem of South Korea, are engineered with a "crumple zone" that maximizes structural integrity in the event of a collision while minimizing casualties. And on top of that they come with a new teal-and-silver look for the commuter rail agency, which replaces the now-unfortunate-looking logo introduced nearly 20 years ago, a brand that was designed by an Art Center College of Design student.

Check out the video above, produced by the Orange Country Transportation Authority.

KNBC Shows A Little Censor-tivity

The Militant doesn't talk about television all that much, as he doesn't really watch that much television. In fact, this bike-riding Militant spends more time driving a car than watching TV (and that's really saying a lot). He would much rather write about real-life Angeleno adventures than stuff on the boob tube.

But check this out: While the Militant watched NBC's Late Night With Conan O'Brien on Monday night, at about 12:45 a.m., the host sets up a comedic bit about the recently-activated (and more recently-shelved) particle-smashing Large Hadron Collider in Switzerland. O'Brien then exclaims, "Let's see what other things we can collide..."

Just then, the screen instantly cuts to the KNBC4 Los Angeles "Special Report" graphics, with viewers no doubt watching with a confused, "WTF is going on here?" sentiment and anchorwoman Colleen Williams greeting the viewers with this:

"We are live here at the news desk and we will return to Late Night shortly. Right now, Conan is showing a comedy sketch about trains crashing, and in light of recent events, we feel it's inappropriate to show it to you..."

Then she proceeds with a quick update story on the presidential race, a quick weather segment and a couple minor local stories before returning to Conan.

The Militant was like, "Whoa!" that's kind of different. For people watching in the Southern California area, memories of the September 12 Metrolink accident still linger.

Admittedly, it seemed a little bit of an overreaction; the Militant is probably sure the comedy skit might have lasted all but a few seconds, and that the offending trains resembling nothing like the rolling stock that 48,000 Southern Californians commute on daily.

But still, 26 people no longer have their lives, and over a hundred more are lying in hospital beds either recuperating or fighting for their life.

Of course, appropriateness rules supreme in these crisis-filled times. No doubt the Scorpions' '80s hit "Rock You Like A Hurricane" isn't getting any airplay right now in the Gulf Coast of Texas.

So did KNBC overreact? Or was it a justified show of sensitivity for the victims of Metrolink 111 and their families?

Three Recommendations For A Militant Weekend!

It's Friday. What to do? The Militant will show you! And in true Militant fashion, he'll show you how to get there without all that gas/parking hassle!

The 2008 Lotus Festival, Echo Park: So there may or may not be any flowering lotuses (loti?) on the lake this year, but don't let that stop you from enjoying one of the City's best cultural festivals, with Angelenos from all over just enjoying themselves. The real reason for the festival is to celebrate Los Angeles' Asian and Pacific Islander cultures, and Echo Park's proximity to the City's Little Tokyo, Chinatown, Historic Filipinotown, Koreatown and Thai Town neighborhoods made it a prime location for this festival, which has been a local institution for over 30 years. Last year, the Militant covered all three days of the festival, which includes food, entertainment and a Saturday night fireworks show that will make Echo Park live up to its name.

Where: Echo Park (as in the park), Glendale Blvd. and Park Ave., Echo Park (duh).

When: Friday, July 11, 5-9 p.m. (evening jazz concert); Saturday, July 12, 12-9 p.m.; Sunday, July 13, 12-8:30 p.m.

Get There: Ride your bike on the Sunset Blvd. bike lane to Echo Park or ride Metro Bus lines 2/302, 4 and 704 (Echo Park Ave stop); 92 (Park Ave stop). Or ride the (M) Red Line (Westlake/MacArthur Park station), transfer to Metro Local line 200 northbound (Sunset Blvd. stop) and walk three blocks to the park.

Grand Opening of the San Bernardino History and Railroad Museum, San Bernardino: You all know by now that the Militant digs history and thinks trains are cool, so he may or may not check out this event out in San Berdoo to soak in some more SoCal history. The event takes place at that city's historic, Moorish-style Santa Fe station - once the largest train station west of the Mississippi River - which also celebrates its 90th anniversary. And what better way to get there than to ditch the car (or at the very least park it at a station) and take da Link!

Where: 1170 W. Third Street, San Bernardino.

When: Saturday, July 12, 9 a.m. - 1 p.m.

Get There: Metrolink's San Bernardino Line to the San Bernardino station takes you, like, RIGHT THERE!


BBQ Adventures In Thai Town, Thai Town: The organization LA Commons have been doing some great events called Trekking LA, teaching people how to explore the real Los Angeles through its ethnic and arts communities. This year they explore the various communities' approaches to barbecue. On Saturday, Thai-American Chef (and native Angeleno) Jet Tila (pictured right) will explore the cuisine of his northern Thai heritage, and provide some culinary demonstrations as well. It costs $20 per person, but the Militant has been on one of their food tours before and trust him, the price is more than worth it.

Where: Various restaurants in Thai Town in East Hollywood. Meet at Thailand Plaza Restaurant, 5321 Hollywood Blvd., at 4 p.m.

When: Saturday 4-8 p.m.

Get There: (M) Red Line (Hollywood/Western station).