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Angels Flight Needs a Change in Course
OPINION: DOWNTOWN LOS ANGELES - Last week a discomforting anniversary arrived: Feb. 1 marked nine years since a deadly crash occurred at Angels Flight. The funicular has been closed to the public ever since.
For nine long years those wanting to go between Bunker Hill and the Historic Core have had to climb 153 steps. For nine long years, merchants at Grand Central Market have suffered, losing clients who would take a 25-cent ride but don’t want to mount those stairs, especially during the hot summer months. For nine long years, the public has awaited the return of the railway, only to be faced instead by fencing and teased by an endless stream of unfulfilled promises that a reopening of the once-treasured landmark is coming “soon.”
Downtown Los Angeles deserves a functioning Angels Flight. Unfortunately, the current operator has been unable to make this happen. It is time to go another route, whether that means bringing in a new operating partner with a track record of success, having another local agency assume control of or acquire the project, or some other route. A change is merited and is in the public’s interest: Angels Flight is on land owned by the Community Redevelopment Agency, a public entity.
We wish there were no need to call for the involvement of outsiders. We wish that the Angels Flight Railway Foundation, whose volunteer members have raised millions of dollars for the restoration of the funicular, could bring the project to fruition. Yet it seems the good work they have done has hit a wall — at some point the only thing that matters is results, and the result here is a closed railway. Current Angels Flight officials need to recognize that they need help — the time for excuses has long passed.
Angels Flight originally ran from 1901-1969. It reopened to much fanfare in 1996, then closed in 2001 after a crash — caused by a faulty drive system that resulted in one car sliding down the hill and slamming into the other — killed an 83-year-old man and injured seven others. This means the railway that was open for just five years has now been closed for nine years, or nearly twice as long as it was in operation. Clearly much is wrong with this situation.
One of the most troubling aspects of the current state of affairs is that it is difficult if not impossible for the public to know how close Angels Flight actually is to reopening, and what the Foundation needs to do to secure approval from the California Public Utilities Commission, which must green light the project before it resumes service. This uncertainty is the express fault of the operators — since the crash, railway officials at least 10 times over the years have told Los Angeles Downtown News that Angels Flight would either reopen “soon,” or gave a short-term schedule for a resumption of service. Now, it is impossible to believe what is stated. It is akin to the boy who cried wolf — here the operator has cried “opening soon” so often that one can no longer trust the proclamation. Even if fault lies beyond the operator, no one can rely on the message.
Declarations about a quick return were first made less than six months after the accident, and were repeated in following years. For a while legal settlements related to the crash delayed a reopening. Then, in January 2007, Angels Flight officials held a splashy press conference at the base of the railway, setting up microphones and even bringing in actor George Takei as they stated that a reopening would occur by the end of summer. It didn’t happen, and other dates have since been missed. In February 2009 an Angels Flight official told Downtown News an opening would occur “really quite soon.” Last week the same figure stated, “We in fact believe we are very, very close to opening.”
Frustration at the situation has spread across the community. Last April the Downtown Breakfast Club made Angels Flight the recipient of its Lemon award, dispensed annually to a project or entity that goes against the grain of progress in the Central City. Late last year, City Councilwoman Jan Perry (whose Ninth District includes Angels Flight) wrote a letter to the CPUC in which she stated, “For whatever reason, Angels Flight has been promised to return to operating mode for several years and never gets there. The operator has shown contempt of the public by failing to resume the operation in a timely manner.”
For several years Perry has offered an idea that, for whatever reason, never clicked: She suggested that Metro, which has extensive experience with trains and transit systems, acquire or oversee Angels Flight. She made the suggestion again last month in a letter to Metro CEO Art Leahy. Although that plan may not currently be possible because of Metro’s budget woes, Perry has pledged to look at other options.
She definitely should, and despite its fiscal issues, Metro should not dismiss the concept. The agency’s board of directors, which would have to approve any move, should at least discuss the topic of running Angels Flight. Plenty of the panel members have experience in Downtown, and they are aware of how the railway’s closure impacts the community.
It is also time for the Angels Flight board members to take a very serious look at the situation and at their role. Multiple board members last week told Downtown News that they think the railway should continue on its current course. They need to examine that course and ensure that they fully understand why the funicular has not reopened, whether the onus lies on Angels Flight officials or the CPUC or something else, and decide what can be done to remedy the situation. A board has the responsibility to be active and sometimes to take tough decisions — a little more than a year ago the board of MOCA did not do its job as the museum tumbled into a financial abyss (a situation now improving). People do watch boards.
More than anything else, the closure of the railway is frustrating. Angels Flight should be a gem of Downtown, something that both provides a service and excites the city. Instead problems clearly exist — that is the only way something so treasured remains closed for nine years. After a certain point excuses and explanations no longer matter.
Angels Flight needs to chart a new course. Perhaps some fresh blood with a new approach to the CPUC would be a good start.
page 4, 02/08/2010
©Los Angeles Downtown News. Reprinting items retrieved from the archives are for personal use only. They may not be reproduced or retransmitted without permission of the Los Angeles Downtown News. If you would like to re-distribute anything from the Los Angeles Downtown News Archives, please call our permissions department at (213) 481-1448.
For nine long years those wanting to go between Bunker Hill and the Historic Core have had to climb 153 steps. For nine long years, merchants at Grand Central Market have suffered, losing clients who would take a 25-cent ride but don’t want to mount those stairs, especially during the hot summer months. For nine long years, the public has awaited the return of the railway, only to be faced instead by fencing and teased by an endless stream of unfulfilled promises that a reopening of the once-treasured landmark is coming “soon.”
Downtown Los Angeles deserves a functioning Angels Flight. Unfortunately, the current operator has been unable to make this happen. It is time to go another route, whether that means bringing in a new operating partner with a track record of success, having another local agency assume control of or acquire the project, or some other route. A change is merited and is in the public’s interest: Angels Flight is on land owned by the Community Redevelopment Agency, a public entity.
We wish there were no need to call for the involvement of outsiders. We wish that the Angels Flight Railway Foundation, whose volunteer members have raised millions of dollars for the restoration of the funicular, could bring the project to fruition. Yet it seems the good work they have done has hit a wall — at some point the only thing that matters is results, and the result here is a closed railway. Current Angels Flight officials need to recognize that they need help — the time for excuses has long passed.
Angels Flight originally ran from 1901-1969. It reopened to much fanfare in 1996, then closed in 2001 after a crash — caused by a faulty drive system that resulted in one car sliding down the hill and slamming into the other — killed an 83-year-old man and injured seven others. This means the railway that was open for just five years has now been closed for nine years, or nearly twice as long as it was in operation. Clearly much is wrong with this situation.
One of the most troubling aspects of the current state of affairs is that it is difficult if not impossible for the public to know how close Angels Flight actually is to reopening, and what the Foundation needs to do to secure approval from the California Public Utilities Commission, which must green light the project before it resumes service. This uncertainty is the express fault of the operators — since the crash, railway officials at least 10 times over the years have told Los Angeles Downtown News that Angels Flight would either reopen “soon,” or gave a short-term schedule for a resumption of service. Now, it is impossible to believe what is stated. It is akin to the boy who cried wolf — here the operator has cried “opening soon” so often that one can no longer trust the proclamation. Even if fault lies beyond the operator, no one can rely on the message.
Declarations about a quick return were first made less than six months after the accident, and were repeated in following years. For a while legal settlements related to the crash delayed a reopening. Then, in January 2007, Angels Flight officials held a splashy press conference at the base of the railway, setting up microphones and even bringing in actor George Takei as they stated that a reopening would occur by the end of summer. It didn’t happen, and other dates have since been missed. In February 2009 an Angels Flight official told Downtown News an opening would occur “really quite soon.” Last week the same figure stated, “We in fact believe we are very, very close to opening.”
Frustration at the situation has spread across the community. Last April the Downtown Breakfast Club made Angels Flight the recipient of its Lemon award, dispensed annually to a project or entity that goes against the grain of progress in the Central City. Late last year, City Councilwoman Jan Perry (whose Ninth District includes Angels Flight) wrote a letter to the CPUC in which she stated, “For whatever reason, Angels Flight has been promised to return to operating mode for several years and never gets there. The operator has shown contempt of the public by failing to resume the operation in a timely manner.”
For several years Perry has offered an idea that, for whatever reason, never clicked: She suggested that Metro, which has extensive experience with trains and transit systems, acquire or oversee Angels Flight. She made the suggestion again last month in a letter to Metro CEO Art Leahy. Although that plan may not currently be possible because of Metro’s budget woes, Perry has pledged to look at other options.
She definitely should, and despite its fiscal issues, Metro should not dismiss the concept. The agency’s board of directors, which would have to approve any move, should at least discuss the topic of running Angels Flight. Plenty of the panel members have experience in Downtown, and they are aware of how the railway’s closure impacts the community.
It is also time for the Angels Flight board members to take a very serious look at the situation and at their role. Multiple board members last week told Downtown News that they think the railway should continue on its current course. They need to examine that course and ensure that they fully understand why the funicular has not reopened, whether the onus lies on Angels Flight officials or the CPUC or something else, and decide what can be done to remedy the situation. A board has the responsibility to be active and sometimes to take tough decisions — a little more than a year ago the board of MOCA did not do its job as the museum tumbled into a financial abyss (a situation now improving). People do watch boards.
More than anything else, the closure of the railway is frustrating. Angels Flight should be a gem of Downtown, something that both provides a service and excites the city. Instead problems clearly exist — that is the only way something so treasured remains closed for nine years. After a certain point excuses and explanations no longer matter.
Angels Flight needs to chart a new course. Perhaps some fresh blood with a new approach to the CPUC would be a good start.
page 4, 02/08/2010
©Los Angeles Downtown News. Reprinting items retrieved from the archives are for personal use only. They may not be reproduced or retransmitted without permission of the Los Angeles Downtown News. If you would like to re-distribute anything from the Los Angeles Downtown News Archives, please call our permissions department at (213) 481-1448.
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Reader Comments
The following are comments from the readers. In no way do they represent the view of ladowntownnews.com.
JM wrote on Feb 11, 2010 10:26 PM:
" With sadness, I completely agree with your assessment at this point. As much as the Angels Flight Railway Foundation deserves recognition and thanks from the community, I think the time has come to find a new way forward. Either we go with AI's solution and find a radical new approach to link the Historic Core with Bunker Hill, or the AFRF needs input and support from other sources. If the delays have indeed been caused by red tape, then they should have approached the community for help in pressing the issue. I think that good will has evaporated now. I'd love to see Angels Flight run again, but something has to give. "
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Al wrote on Feb 9, 2010 11:06 AM: