Photo: Diane Edwardson, January 12, 2009. On clear mornings, the rising sun lights up the particulate matter created by exhaust from traffic on the 5 Freeway, in the valley between Elysian Park and Glassell Park. (Click on photo to enlarge.)CalTrans and MTA are holding a public hearing tonight for the 2 Terminus Redesign. The Environmental Impact Report (EIR) was supposed to evaluate environmental effects of the design options all the way to the 5 Freeway. The contractor failed to evaluate anything north of Oak Glen and the 2 Freeway. Yet, all design options, including the "Do Nothing " option, will put more traffic idling on the 2 Freeway adjacent to Corralitas Drive.
This EIR is so half-assed, they used data from an air quality monitoring station over a mile and a half away, but not the monitoring station that sits at the corner of Duane St. and Glendale Blvd., at the end of the fly-over ramp of the Terminus.
Several Corralitas neighbors spoke to the contractor who did the sound monitoring survey for 2 Terminus EIR when they installed the equipment on Corralitas Drive. Yet that was not included in the EIR.
The EIR fails to evaluate traffic impacts the to 5 Freeway, Riverside Drive and particularly to Allesandro, as more traffic will cut through from the Riverside Drive exit (at Allesandro).
The EIR failed to evaluate a potential bike path from the Terminus to the Los Angeles River, as required under the scope of the project.
The EIR failed to even identify that ADA accessible sidewalks are necessary on either side of the 2 Freeway, even though there are bus stops along Allesandro. Sidewalks were never installed on the freeway side of streets because they assumed no one would walk there. Tell that to people who take the bus - especially once construction starts and we have increased traffic on Allesandro.
I am supporting design option D, along with Echo Park Community Action Committee. If we're going to have more traffic, then we may as well get the most park space out of it. Option D keeps the flyover ramp and the overpass and turns them into functional park space.
Make your concerns known at tonight's public hearing for the SR2 Terminus Redesign:
Tuesday, June 16, 2009
6:30 - 8:30 PM
Mayberry Elementary School
2414 Mayberry St.
Los Angeles, CA 90026
More information call the MTA project helpline: (213) 922-3010.
