Santa Monica in 1928

Check out this highly detailed scan of a map of Los Angeles from 1928.

Depicted in the above section are the Pickering and Crystal piers in Ocean Park. Cloverfield Boulevard gets is named for the original title of Santa Monica airport, “Clover Aviation Field.” I took the map section above and superimposed it over Google Maps. It doesn’t line up perfectly (the map was created for marketing more than for official survey), but it lends some interesting insight – I’d forgotten that Ocean Park Boulevard was formerly named Central Avenue (Ocean Park was once distinct from the city of Santa Monica).

If you live in the Ocean Park neighborhood of Santa Monica, you might find it interesting to see how, before the mid-sixties, when “The Shores” apartment complex was constructed, Raymond, Ashland, Kinney and Pier Avenues continued to the waterfront. Streets that no longer exist, like Grand Avenue and Surf Street, can be seen just south of Ocean Park Boulevard.

The construction of the Santa Monica freeway seems to have had a devastating and irreversible effect on the neighborhoods through which it passed. I’ve been told that the path of the freeway was designated in large part by the racial makeup of the neighborhoods in the area; that . I don’t know how much truth there is to that. I’m not sure if I’d rather be forced to sell my home and move or get stuck with a ten lane highway next door.

Transit 2000 Video!!!1111

This is a great video from 1992 illustrating what traffic management might look like in the year 2000. Highlights include:

A navigation system that can fit in the trunk of the car.
The heads up display from a fighter jet (still waiting on that one)
It’s narrated by Nichelle Nichols (she played “Uhura” on Star Trek)
There is a video of undercover transit cops taking out a guy tagging the back of an old school RTD (pre-MTA) bus

Recovery Act Word Cloud

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I find it illuminating to see how prominently the word “Health” appears.

Four Car Collision This Morning

I drove by this accident around 7:35 AM this morning. If I’d been a minute earlier I might have gotten caught up in this. The backup from this was very light and slightly chaotic.

The I-10 westbound is certainly an exciting way to get to work!

To make matters worse some of the people had exited their vehicles and were attempting to exchange insurance information – with their fists.

On the freeway. In L.A. rush hour.

What a mess. It’s hard to see, but there are two more cars behind the SUV. One of them was visibly dinged up. I got to do my monster car thing and drive over a piece of burgundy bodywork still in the number two lane.