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Re: The same thing as the San Fernado Valley Double Track on LOSSAN and
Author: BOB2
Date: 12-04-2023 - 07:15
Mike Davis Wrote:
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> The only reason the tank cars were controversial
> in the first was because (now former) SMART board
> member Susan Gorin made a huge stink about them,
> and IMHO I don't think she ever gave a damn about
> the tank cars, she just wanted to create a
> problem, appear to solve it, then look like a hero
> in order to get reelected
The double tracking extension between Van Nuys and Chatsworth was a victim of a similar "organized" campaign to stop the double tracking on LOSSAN for Amtrak and LOSSAN reliability and capacity, because the second track "might" be used for the "evil" oil train. The "opponents" went door to door through several wealthier neighborhoods to tell folks that if we double tracked the "dangerous" oil trains would use it, crash, and burn their houses down. It was complete bullshit, that was organized and orcestrated by a candidate running for (IIRC???) a City Council office... And, it worked...
When I was working on getting the first phase of the Goldline, then still the Blueline extension to Pasadena built, at the "last minute" a group called "NOBLAG" (NO Blueline at Grade) was formed and financed by the wife of a trucking company executive, who was opposed to money being spent on transit. The "evil" light rail was going to massacre thousands of innoncent victims, and she was hear to save us all from the "evil killer trollies"... There was a blitz of bullshit to spread fear and ignorance...
The other "evil" thing "NOBLAG" opposed was the noise that would affect the "sleeping princesses" of wealthier West Pasadena neighborhoods (nearly a mile away), because it would "blow da whistles...", and the noise would destoy all of civilization as we know it...
So we scheduled three horn tests, to see if folks heard it... Test one, notification in the press and media... Virtually no one reported hearing it... NOBLAG complained that we had not properly informed the public...
So on the next horn test, we did notifications to residents and busineses within 1/2 mile radious of each crossing, and the media... A few folks reported hearing it, but had no problems with it... NOBLAG complained that we had not properly informed the "real" victims, the wealthier neighborhoods (where the wealthy princesses funding NOBLAG slept) miles away...
So on the third test, we sent mailers to every address from Lake Avenue to the City line in Eagle Rock... And, low and behold, at the last minute, the horn test equipment was not available... And, without time to send notices, we had to cancel the horn noise test... And, after NOBLAG had gone house to house to encourage everyone to "report" the "evil" noisy train on the day of the third test, which never happened, we recieved nearly 200, some from over four miles away, reports on the "noisy" whistles, which had never uttered a sound...
The third horn trial we cancelled, turned out to be a blessing, in refuting the nimby nonsense that was being spewed...
When we plotted the responses, those furthest away, had reported the most non existent horn noise... The news is that we had just done a survey on support for the Goldline and it showed over 80% public support, and with the "data" we had from the "test that never happened" which gave our elected officials the reassurance that this nimby/anti trains "manufactured" political opposition campaign was not credible, and would not get them voted out...
Politicians and Nimby's have learned to use these "disinformation" tactics to manipulate the public by spreading fear and ignorance, and then can take credit for "saving us" from it....
Welcome to this modern day political/nimby/new urbanist (name your opportunistic political player) "bull$hit" machine (now worse with social media spreading the bull$hit so much more efficiently) we deal with in trying to build so many needed and useful transportation projects today....
-------------------------------------------------------
> The only reason the tank cars were controversial
> in the first was because (now former) SMART board
> member Susan Gorin made a huge stink about them,
> and IMHO I don't think she ever gave a damn about
> the tank cars, she just wanted to create a
> problem, appear to solve it, then look like a hero
> in order to get reelected
The double tracking extension between Van Nuys and Chatsworth was a victim of a similar "organized" campaign to stop the double tracking on LOSSAN for Amtrak and LOSSAN reliability and capacity, because the second track "might" be used for the "evil" oil train. The "opponents" went door to door through several wealthier neighborhoods to tell folks that if we double tracked the "dangerous" oil trains would use it, crash, and burn their houses down. It was complete bullshit, that was organized and orcestrated by a candidate running for (IIRC???) a City Council office... And, it worked...
When I was working on getting the first phase of the Goldline, then still the Blueline extension to Pasadena built, at the "last minute" a group called "NOBLAG" (NO Blueline at Grade) was formed and financed by the wife of a trucking company executive, who was opposed to money being spent on transit. The "evil" light rail was going to massacre thousands of innoncent victims, and she was hear to save us all from the "evil killer trollies"... There was a blitz of bullshit to spread fear and ignorance...
The other "evil" thing "NOBLAG" opposed was the noise that would affect the "sleeping princesses" of wealthier West Pasadena neighborhoods (nearly a mile away), because it would "blow da whistles...", and the noise would destoy all of civilization as we know it...
So we scheduled three horn tests, to see if folks heard it... Test one, notification in the press and media... Virtually no one reported hearing it... NOBLAG complained that we had not properly informed the public...
So on the next horn test, we did notifications to residents and busineses within 1/2 mile radious of each crossing, and the media... A few folks reported hearing it, but had no problems with it... NOBLAG complained that we had not properly informed the "real" victims, the wealthier neighborhoods (where the wealthy princesses funding NOBLAG slept) miles away...
So on the third test, we sent mailers to every address from Lake Avenue to the City line in Eagle Rock... And, low and behold, at the last minute, the horn test equipment was not available... And, without time to send notices, we had to cancel the horn noise test... And, after NOBLAG had gone house to house to encourage everyone to "report" the "evil" noisy train on the day of the third test, which never happened, we recieved nearly 200, some from over four miles away, reports on the "noisy" whistles, which had never uttered a sound...
The third horn trial we cancelled, turned out to be a blessing, in refuting the nimby nonsense that was being spewed...
When we plotted the responses, those furthest away, had reported the most non existent horn noise... The news is that we had just done a survey on support for the Goldline and it showed over 80% public support, and with the "data" we had from the "test that never happened" which gave our elected officials the reassurance that this nimby/anti trains "manufactured" political opposition campaign was not credible, and would not get them voted out...
Politicians and Nimby's have learned to use these "disinformation" tactics to manipulate the public by spreading fear and ignorance, and then can take credit for "saving us" from it....
Welcome to this modern day political/nimby/new urbanist (name your opportunistic political player) "bull$hit" machine (now worse with social media spreading the bull$hit so much more efficiently) we deal with in trying to build so many needed and useful transportation projects today....
