 |
Re: I Took A Tour Of The Abandoned Subway Tunnel Beneath Los Angeles
Author: OPRRMS
Date: 03-19-2013 - 09:33
But why? And more... Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
>snip<
> Why would such a system be abandoned? It's not
> like someone laid tracks across a farm!
> I can not imagine a such a vast system of
> underground tunnels that were once heavily used
> suddenly become of no value - did everyone in LA
> buy a car on the same day?
Well, this really wasn't a vast system of underground tunnels. It was just one, and only served two routes - the Glendale/Burbank line and the Hollywood line. They were just a small part of PE's system.
As for why, there are lots of valid reasons. PE's passenger operation was hard hit by postwar suburban expansion and the resulting construction of freeways. Riders of the subway lines had to first get to wherever the line ran, then get from the terminal to wherever they worked. With the expanding freeway system and the increase in automobiles, it was easy to simply drive to work. What passenger traffic remained was replaced by busses, which were much cheaper to operate and had a wider ridership potential since routes weren't restricted by a fixed guideway. And with urban sprawl allowing employment to expand away from the downtown LA area, the streetcars simply didn't go where a lot of people needed to go anymore.
-------------------------------------------------------
>snip<
> Why would such a system be abandoned? It's not
> like someone laid tracks across a farm!
> I can not imagine a such a vast system of
> underground tunnels that were once heavily used
> suddenly become of no value - did everyone in LA
> buy a car on the same day?
Well, this really wasn't a vast system of underground tunnels. It was just one, and only served two routes - the Glendale/Burbank line and the Hollywood line. They were just a small part of PE's system.
As for why, there are lots of valid reasons. PE's passenger operation was hard hit by postwar suburban expansion and the resulting construction of freeways. Riders of the subway lines had to first get to wherever the line ran, then get from the terminal to wherever they worked. With the expanding freeway system and the increase in automobiles, it was easy to simply drive to work. What passenger traffic remained was replaced by busses, which were much cheaper to operate and had a wider ridership potential since routes weren't restricted by a fixed guideway. And with urban sprawl allowing employment to expand away from the downtown LA area, the streetcars simply didn't go where a lot of people needed to go anymore.
