Flatcar
A flatcar is a piece of railroad or railway rolling stock that consists of an open, flat deck mounted on a pair of trucks or bogies, one at each end containing four or six wheels. Flat cars designed to carry extra heavy or extra large loads are mounted on a pair of bogies under each end; the deck of the car can be wood or steel, the sides of the deck can include pockets for stakes or tie-down points to secure loads. Flatcars designed for carrying machinery have sliding chain assemblies recessed in the deck. Flatcars are used for loads that are too large or cumbersome to load in enclosed cars such as boxcars, they are often used to transport intermodal containers or trailers as part of intermodal freight transport shipping. Aircraft parts were hauled via conventional freight cars beginning in World War II. However, given the ever-increasing size of aircraft assemblies, the "Sky Box" method of shipping parts was developed in the late 1960s to transport parts for the Boeing 747 and other "jumbo" jets of the time.
The "Sky Box" consists of a two-piece metal shell, placed atop a standard flatcar to support and protect wing and tail assemblies and fuselage sections in transit. Boeing 737 aircraft have been shipped throughout the United States on special trains, including the fuselage. Bulkhead flatcars are designed with sturdy end-walls to prevent loads from shifting past the ends of the car. Loads carried are pipe, steel slabs, utility poles and lumber, though lumber and utility poles are being hauled by skeleton cars. Bulkheads are lightweight when empty. An empty bulkhead on a train puts it at a speed restriction to go no more than 50 MPH. Since bulkheads are lightweight when empty, hunting can occur when the car is above 50 MPH. Hunting is the wobbling movement of the trucks on a locomotive. If the wheels hunt against the rails for a period of time, there is a high risk of a derailment. Centerbeam flatcars, center partition railcars or referred to as lumber racks are specialty cars designed for carrying bundled building supplies such as dimensional lumber and fence posts.
They are bulkhead flatcars that have been reinforced by a longitudinal I-beam in the form of a Vierendeel truss, sometimes reinforced by diagonal members, but in the form of stressed panels perforated by panel-lightening "opera windows", either oval- or egg-shaped. They must be loaded symmetrically, with half of the payload on one side of the centerbeam and half on the other to avoid tipping over. Heavy capacity flatcars are cars designed to carry more than 100 short tons, they have more than the typical North American standard of four axles, may have a depressed center to handle excess-height loads as well as two trucks of three axles each or four trucks of two axles each, connected by span bolsters. Loads handled include electrical power equipment and large industrial production machinery. A circus train is a modern method of conveyance for circus troupes. One of the larger users of circus trains was the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus, a famous American circus formed when the Ringling Brothers Circus purchased the Barnum and Bailey Circus in 1907, closed permanently as a merged company in May 2017.
Some companies, such as CSX Transportation, have former wood-carrying flatcars rebuilt into platforms which mount remote control equipment for use in operating locomotives. Such platforms are fitted with appropriate headlights and air brake appliances to operate in the leading position on a cut of cars. COFC cars are 89 feet long and carry four 20-foot intermodal containers or two 40-foot /45-foot shipping containers. With the rise of intermodal-freight-transport–specific cars, given the age of most of these flats, numbers will decline over the next several years. Indeed, when the first well cars appeared, allowing double stacking, many container flats were re-built as autoracks; the few "new build" container flats are identifiable by their lack of decking, welded steel frame, standard 89-foot length. One variant is the 50-foot car. Common reporting marks are FEC, CP, SOO and KTTX; the ATTX cars, which feature non-sparking grips and sides, are built for hauling dangerous goods. A TOFC car, once again, is an 89 ft car.
In the past, these carried three 30 ft trailers which are, as of 2007 obsolete, or one large, 53 ft, two 40-foot or 45-foot trailers. As intermodal traffic grows, these dedicated. Most have been modified to carry containers. One notable type is Canadian Pacific Railway's XTRX service—dedicated five-unit flats that only carry trailers. A car with only center and side sills and lateral arms to support intermodal containers or semi-trailers. A spine car, trailer-on-flat car, or piggy-back car allows two 28.5-foot trailer pups or one semi-trailer up to 57 feet to be carried. These come in articulated sets of five or three. Similar to the spine car except that
1994 Northridge earthquake
The 1994 Northridge earthquake was a magnitude of 6.7, blind thrust earthquake that occurred on January 17 at 4:30:55 a.m. PST in the San Fernando Valley region of the County of Los Angeles, its epicenter was in a neighborhood in the north-central Valley. The quake had a duration of 10–20 seconds, its peak ground acceleration of 1.8g was the highest instrumentally recorded in an urban area in North America. Strong ground motion was felt as far away as Las Vegas, about 220 miles from the epicenter; the peak ground velocity at the Rinaldi Receiving Station was 183 cm/s, the fastest recorded. Two 6.0 Mw aftershocks followed, the first about one minute after the initial event and the second 11 hours the strongest of several thousand aftershocks in all. The death toll was 57, with more than 8,700 injured. In addition, property damage was estimated to be $13–50 billion, making it one of the costliest natural disasters in U. S. history. The earthquake struck in the San Fernando Valley about 20 miles northwest of downtown Los Angeles.
Although given the name "Northridge", where the quake was believed to have been centered and substantial damage occurred, the actual epicenter was pinpointed in the neighboring community of Reseda within several days. The National Geophysical Data Center placed the hypocenter's geographical coordinates at 34°12′47″N 118°32′13″W and at a depth of 11.4 miles. It occurred on a undiscovered fault, now named the Northridge blind thrust fault. Several other faults experienced minor rupture during the main shock and other ruptures occurred during large aftershocks, or triggered events. Damage occurred up to 85 miles away, with the most damage in the west San Fernando Valley, the cities of Santa Monica, Simi Valley and Santa Clarita; the exact number of fatalities is unknown, with sources estimating it at 60 or "over 60", to 72, where most estimates fall around 60. The "official" death toll was placed at 57; some counts factor in related events such as a man's suicide inspired by the loss of his business in the disaster.
More than 8,700 were injured including 1,600. The Northridge Meadows apartment complex was one of the well-known affected areas in which sixteen people were killed as a result of the building's collapse; the Northridge Fashion Center and California State University, Northridge sustained heavy damage—most notably the collapse of parking structures. The earthquake gained worldwide attention because of damage to the vast freeway network, which serves millions of commuters everyday; the most notable was to the Santa Monica Freeway, Interstate 10, known as the busiest freeway in the United States, congesting nearby surface roads for three months while the freeway was repaired. Farther north, the Newhall Pass interchange of Interstate 5 and State Route 14 collapsed as it had 23 years earlier in the 1971 Sylmar earthquake though it had been rebuilt with minor improvements to the structural components. One life was lost in the Newhall Pass interchange collapse: LAPD motorcycle officer Clarence Wayne Dean fell 40 feet from the damaged connector from southbound 14 to southbound I-5 along with his motorcycle.
Because of the early morning darkness, he did not realize that the elevated roadway below him had collapsed, was unable to stop in time to miss the fall and died instantly. When the interchange was rebuilt again one year it was renamed the Clarence Wayne Dean Memorial Interchange in his honor. Additional damage occurred about 50 miles southeast in Anaheim as the scoreboard at Anaheim Stadium collapsed onto several hundred seats; the stadium was vacant at the time. Although several commercial buildings collapsed, loss of life was minimized because of the early morning hour of the quake, because it occurred on a federal holiday; because of known seismic activity in California, area building codes dictate that buildings incorporate structural design intended to withstand earthquakes. However, the damage caused revealed; because of these revelations, building codes were revised. Some structures were not red-tagged until months because damage was not evident; the quake produced unusually strong ground accelerations in the range of 1.0 g.
Damage was caused by fire and landslides. The Northridge earthquake was notable for hitting the same exact area as the Mw 6.6 San Fernando earthquake. Estimates of total damage range between $13 and $40 billion. Most casualties and damage occurred in multi-story wood frame buildings. In particular, buildings with an unstable first floor performed poorly. Numerous fires were caused by broken gas lines from houses shifting off their foundations or unsecured water heaters tumbling. In the San Fernando Valley, several underground gas and water lines were severed, resulting in some streets experiencing simultaneous fires and floods. Damage to the system resulted in water pressure dropping to zero in some areas. Five days it was estimated that between 40,000 and 60,000 customers were still without public water service; as expected, unreinforced masonry buildings and houses on steep slopes suff
Metro Local
Metro Local is a bus service type in Los Angeles County operated by the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority. This retronym designation was placed to differentiate it from the Metro Rapid service. Metro Local buses cover both local, limited-stop, shuttle bus services. Metro Local buses are distinguished by their prominent orange color. Based on availability of equipment, units in non-Metro Local livery may be placed into service on lines that use Metro Local buses. There are bus lines that are operated under contract with MV Transportation, Southland Transit, Transdev. Metro Local buses can be found on 400-series and 500-series routes, which are Metro Express routes with different fare structures and routing. Metro buses are given line numbers; this method was devised by the SCRTD, Metro's predecessor. All service operated by Metro as of 28 June 2018. Local bus service to/from other areas; the line numbering begins at line 2 and proceeds counterclockwise around Downtown Los Angeles, ending at line 96 East/west service, not serving Downtown Los Angeles.
North/south service, not serving Downtown Los Angeles. Limited-stop versions of traditional local routes, which make fewer stops and operate during peak times. Most limited-stop routes are designated by placing a 3 before a main line number. Most limited-stop routes have been replaced by Metro Rapid routes. Shuttles, special routes and local service within one or two adjacent neighborhoods and/or jurisdictions. Former Metro Local Routes
Crank House
Crank House known as Fair Oaks Ranch, is an 1882 Victorian style residence in Altadena, Los Angeles County, California. The house was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1997 for its association with the early settlement of Altadena.. The house has notably featured in films such as Matilda, Hocus Pocus, Scream 2 and Catch Me If You Can; the Crank House sits on land, the Fair Oaks Ranch, once owned by Eliza Griffin Johnston, the widow of Confederate General Albert Sidney Johnston. Following the death of her husband at the Battle of Shiloh in April 1862, Eliza and her children came to Southern California at the urging of her brother, Dr. John S. Griffin. Griffin had large land holdings in the Los Angeles area and was a business partner of Benjamin D. Wilson in Rancho San Pascual. Wilson was a local land speculator and the maternal grandfather of General George S. Patton. Dr. Griffin sold Eliza Griffin Johnston the property for $1,000. Eliza Griffin Johnston named her ranch "Fair Oaks", after her native city in Virginia and for the stands of Coast live oaks—Quercus agrifloia in the area.
When Eliza's son, Albert II, was killed in a steamship boiler explosion at Wilmington, California in 1864, she left California and returned to Virginia. The ranch was taken over by father of Frederick Eaton. Benjamin Eaton subdivided the ranch; the southern portion was bought by the Ellises. The northern portion was bought by James F. Crank in 1876. Crank came from New York and was impressed with the land, soon planted citrus orchards and vineyards. Eliza Johnston's simple wood-frame house was moved to another location on the property, still stands at 2072 Oakwood Street, Altadena. Crank built a much larger, more palatial home in 1882; the house is a 2 1⁄2-story wood-frame Victorian mansion. In 1883, Crank invested in San Gabriel Valley Railroad, becoming its president; the rail line ran from Pasadena to downtown Los Angeles. Los Angeles and San Gabriel Valley Railroad was sold and consolidated on May 20, 1887 into the California Central Railway. In 1889 this was consolidated into Southern California Railway Company.
On Jan. 17, 1906 Southern California Railway was sold to the Atchison and Santa Fe Railway and called the Pasadena Subdivision. So, Crank suffered financially, sold the ranch, it was subdivided in 1910. He donated land for the Raymond Hotel in Pasadena; when the Mr. Crank and his family first came to Cal. they stand at the Sierra Madre Villa Hotel
Monrovia–Glendora (Pacific Electric)
Monrovia-Glendora was a route on the Pacific Electric Railway until 1951, serving the San Gabriel Valley. It ran from 1902 to 1951; the Monrovia-Glendora route ran from the 6th & Main Terminal in Downtown Los Angeles — through: San Marino, Monrovia Azusa to Glendora. A four-mile proposed extension of the line from Glendora to Lone Hill was denied by the Railroad Commission of the State of California in March 1918, citing wartime conditions. A long section of the route was along present-day Huntington Drive; the Arcadia train station was the route's San Gabriel Valley transfer point for Atchison and Santa Fe Railway passenger trains
Monrovia, California
Monrovia is a city located in the foothills of the San Gabriel Mountains in the San Gabriel Valley of Los Angeles County, United States. The population was 36,590 at the 2010 census, down from 36,929 in 2000. Monrovia has been used for filming TV shows and commercials. Monrovia is the fourth oldest general law city in Los Angeles County and the L. A. Basin. Incorporated in 1887, Monrovia has grown from a sparse community of orange ranches to a residential community of 37,000. Around 500 BC, a band of Shoshonean-speaking Indians named the Tongva established settlements in what is now the San Gabriel Valley, they were called the Gabrieliño Indians by a tribe of Mission Indians. The Tongva were not farmers. Abundant oaks in the Valley, such as Coast Live Oak and Interior Live Oak provided a staple of the Tongva diet: acorn mush made of boiled acorn flour. In 1769, the Portolà expedition was the first recorded Spanish land entry and exploration of present-day California the Spanish colonial Las Californias Province of the Viceroyalty of New Spain.
It had been claimed from sea by Juan Rodríguez Cabrillo in 1542 for the King of Spain, Europeans first visited the San Gabriel Valley, including Monrovia. The expedition, led by Gaspar de Portolà, proceeded north from San Diego, passing through the area en route to Monterey Bay. Accompanying Portolà was Franciscan padre Juan Crespí, famed diarist of the expedition. Much of what is known of early California is from Crespi's detailed descriptions. In 1771, the Franciscans established the Mission San Gabriel Arcangel in the San Gabriel Valley; the mission continued after Mexican independence in 1822. In 1833, the Mexican Congress initiated secularization of the missions in Alta California, to begin seizure of mission properties for sale to private rancho grantees. In 1841, Alta California Governor Juan Alvarado issued Mexican land grants for Rancho Azusa de Duarte to Andres Duarte, a Mexican soldier. Monrovia is made of parts of these two ranchos. In the mid-19th century, most of Rancho Azusa de Duarte was subdivided and sold by Duarte to settle his debts.
Some of those parcels became part of the ranch of Monrovia's namesake. Rancho Santa Anita changed hands several times before the multimillionaire, silver baron and rancher, E. J. "Lucky" Baldwin acquired it in 1875. That same year his Los Angeles Investment Company began subdividing and selling parcels from many of his ranchos. In 1883, 240 acres of Rancho Santa Anita were sold to Monroe for $30,000. Additional parcels of Rancho Santa Anita were sold to Edward F. Spence, John D. Bicknell, James F. Crank, J. F. Falvey; the completion of the Los Angeles and San Gabriel Valley Railroad in 1887 sold to the Santa Fe, Southern Pacific railroads to Southern California would bring new people looking for homes and investment opportunities. With this in mind, Spence, Bicknell and Falvey combined their land under the business name of the Monrovia Land and Water Company in 1886, centered at Orange and Myrtle Avenues; the subdivision was sold. The town was incorporated in 1887 under the leadership of prohibitionists who wished to control the arrival of an unwelcome saloon.
The first order of business for the newly formed government was to pass a tippler's law, prohibiting the sale of alcohol. In 1903 the Monrovia News was established. In the same year, the Pacific Electric was opened providing transportation to and from Los Angeles, making it possible for Monrovian homeowners to work in Los Angeles. In 1905 Carnegie funds became available and with the help of the Board of Trade, the Monrovia Women's Club, a bond issue was passed to purchase the Granite Bank Building to be used as a City Hall, to acquire property for a public park; the Granite Building serves as the city hall and police department facilities in 1961 and the fire department in 1974. In 1956, the old Carnegie library building was torn down and a new library was constructed. In March 2007, a new library was voted on by the people of Monrovia, it won with 70% yes votes. The library now has 190,000 books, a heritage room for historical documents, areas for children and adults. A city council-manager type government was instituted in 1923.
In 1930, the Monrovia Airport known as the Foothill Flying Club, was commercially established. The small airstrip claimed to have had 12,000 paying customers use the airfield in 1932 and on the 19th of May, 1938, the first airmail flight took off from the Monrovia Airport. Ownership of the airport changed hands several times during the time it was in operation but was remembered by pilots to be "the friendliest little airport in the country." Apart from usage by Riley Brothers, TWA Captain and former airshow pilot Kalman Irwin, Pancho Barnes, the airfield is well known for its use as a movie-filming location. The first movie to be filmed at the Monrovia Airport was "The Fighting Pilot." Other films shot at the airfield included 20,000 Men a Year," "The Great Plane Robbery," and most notably, "The Big Noise," featuring Laurel and Hardy. The 35-acre airfield, used as a runway as well as an airplane repair and storage service, was forc
Union Station (Los Angeles)
Los Angeles Union Station is the main railway station in Los Angeles and the largest railroad passenger terminal in the Western United States. It opened in May 1939 as the Los Angeles Union Passenger Terminal, replacing La Grande Station and Central Station. Approved in a controversial ballot measure in 1926 and built in the 1930s, it served to consolidate rail services from the Union Pacific, Santa Fe, Southern Pacific Railroads into one terminal station. Conceived on a grand scale, Union Station became known as the "Last of the Great Railway Stations" built in the United States; the structure combines Art Deco, Mission Revival, Streamline Moderne style. It was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1980. Today, the station is a major transportation hub for Southern California, serving 110,000 passengers a day, it is Amtrak's fifth-busiest station, by far the busiest in the Western United States and the tenth-busiest in the entire country. Four of Amtrak's long-distance trains originate and terminate here: the Coast Starlight to Seattle, the Southwest Chief and Texas Eagle to Chicago, the Sunset Limited to New Orleans.
The state-supported Amtrak California Pacific Surfliner regional trains run to San Diego and to Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo. The station is the hub of the Metrolink commuter trains, several Metro Rail subway and light rail lines serve it as well, with more in construction or planning; the Patsaouras Transit Plaza, on the east side of the station, serves dozens of bus lines operated by Metro and several other municipal carriers. In 1926, a measure was placed on the ballot giving Los Angeles voters the choice between the construction of a vast network of elevated railways or the construction of a much smaller Union Station to consolidate different railroad terminals; the election would take on racial connotations and become a defining moment in the development of Los Angeles. The proposed Union Station was located in the heart of. Reflecting the prejudice of the time, the anti-railroad Los Angeles Times, a lead opponent of elevated railways, argued in editorials that Union Station would not be built in the "midst of Chinatown" but rather would "forever do away with Chinatown and its environs."
The Times attacked the elevateds for blocking out the California sun and in general being antithetical to the ethos of Los Angeles. Two questions were put to vote in 1926. First, the voters approved Union Station instead of elevated railways by 61.3 to 38.7 percent margin. Second, the electorate voted in favor of the Los Angeles Plaza as the site of the new station but by a much smaller 51.1 to 48.9 percent margin. Due to the efforts of preservationist Christine Sterling and Los Angeles Times publisher Harry Chandler, Union Station would not replace the Plaza, but be built across the street in Chinatown, demolished for the project; the glamorous new $11 million station took over from La Grande Station which had suffered major damage in the 1933 Long Beach earthquake and Central Station, which had itself replaced the Arcade Depot in 1914. Passenger service was provided by the Atchison and Santa Fe Railway, Southern Pacific Railroad, Union Pacific Railroad, as well as the Pacific Electric Railway and Los Angeles Railway.
The famed Super Chief luxury train carried Hollywood stars and others to Chicago and thence the East Coast. Union Station saw heavy use during World War II, but saw declining patronage due to the growing popularity of air travel and automobiles. In 1948 the Santa Fe Railroad's Super Chief lost its brakes coming into the station, smashed through a steel bumper and concrete wall, stopped with one third of the front of the locomotive dangling over Aliso St. No one was killed or injured; the station was designated as a Los Angeles Historic–Cultural Monument No. 101 on August 2, 1972 and placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1980. The first commuter rail service to Union Station was the short-lived CalTrain that began operating on October 18, 1982 between Los Angeles and Oxnard; the service faced economic and political problems from the start and was suspended in March 1983. The next attempt at commuter rail came in 1990 with the launch of the Amtrak-operated Orange County Commuter.
The once-daily round-trip served stations between San Juan Capistrano. Metrolink commuter rail service began on October 26, 1992, with Union Station as the terminus for the San Bernardino Line, the Santa Clarita Line and the Ventura County Line. In January 1993, Metro's Red Line subway began service to the station, followed by Metrolink's Riverside Line in June; the Orange County Commuter train was discontinued on March 28, 1994 and replaced by Metrolink's Orange County Line. In May 2002, Metrolink added additional service to stations in Orange and Riverside counties with the opening of the Via Fullerton Line. Light Rail service arrived at Union Station on July 26, 2003 when Metro's Gold Line began operating to Pasadena from tracks 1 and 2; the line was expanded south over US 101 in November 2009 with the opening of the Gold Line Eastside Extension. In February 2011, the board of the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority approved the purchase of Union Station from Prologis and Catellus Development for $75 million.
The deal was closed on 14 April 2011. Since taking over ownership of the station, Metro has focused on increasing services for passengers at the station. One of the most noticeable changes is the addition of several retail and dining businesses to the concourse. Amtrak opened a
Metro (LACMTA). Retrieved 6 March 2016.
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