Tell us: When did you officially feel like a ‘local' in L.A.?
Seven years ago, after visiting Los Angeles nearly every summer to spend time with relatives and friends, I took the plunge and finally moved from Las Vegas to L.A. Two weeks later, I got into my first car accident. A driver slammed into the back of my car while I was at a stoplight during rush hour. When I told my co-workers, they made sure I was OK (I was, thankfully) and then said, nonchalantly, 'Welcome to L.A. You're a local now.'
Of course, I didn't feel like a true local until years later when I had solidified my L.A. community — my group of friends, my favorite neighborhoods and my beloved local spots.
But still I wonder: What makes someone a local in L.A.?
Is it when you can rattle off directions to a tourist without needing to check your GPS? Or when your favorite vendors at your local farmers market automatically know your name and order? Is it when a mild earthquake doesn't make you flinch? How about when you realize you've tried at least 75% of the tacos on The Times' 101 best tacos list? Is it when you strongly resonate with Kendrick Lamar's lyrics in his song 'Dodger Blue' ('Don't say you hate L.A. when you don't travel past the 10')?
Angelenos, we want to know: When did you officially feel like a local? Was there a moment? Tell us your thoughts in the form below. We may feature your comment in an upcoming story.
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Los Angeles Times
4 days ago
- Los Angeles Times
Metro scrambles to find funding for massive bus fleet that is the heart of its Olympics plans
In a sprawling county where transit lines are sometimes miles apart, transit leaders' plans for the 2028 Olympics and Paralympics rely on a robust fleet of buses to get people to and from venues and avoid a traffic meltdown. The plan hinges on a $2-billion ask of the Trump administration to lease 2,700 buses to join Metro's fleet of roughly 2,400, traveling on a network of designated lanes to get from venue to venue. But with roughly three years to go until opening day, the plan faces several challenges over funding and time. The federal government has yet to respond to the city's request. And Metro's commitment to lease clean energy buses could pose supply problems and challenges around charging infrastructure. Operators would also need to be trained under state regulations and provided housing through the Games. 'Three years might seem like a lot of time to many of us, but in municipal time, three years is like the blink of an eye. That's our greatest challenge.' said Daniel Rodman, a member of the city of L.A.'s office of major events, at a recent UCLA transit forum. 'Father Time is coming.' The Games will be scattered in places across the region including Alamitos Beach in Long Beach, the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, Santa Anita Park in Arcadia, the L.A. Coliseum and Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles and outside the county in Anaheim and all the way to northern San Diego County. Official watch parties and fan gatherings will also occur throughout the metropolis. Since these and many of the venues aren't directly accessible by rail, the bus system will be key to the city's push for 'transit first' — a motto that city leaders have adopted since Mayor Karen Bass' previous messaging around a 'car-free Olympics.' Outside the bus system, several transit projects in the works are expected to ease some of the traffic burden, including the extension for the Metro D Line, also known as the Purple Line, which Metro has slated for completion before the Olympics, and the opening of the automated people mover train at Los Angeles International Airport, which will offer an alternative to driving to the airport. There are also proposals for water taxi use from San Pedro to Long Beach, where multiple events will be held, to offer an alternative to the Vincent Thomas and Long Beach International Gateway bridges. The big question is whether enough people in a famously auto-bound city will be willing to take public transit. Leaders believe that tourists are likely to take advantage of the system, and hope more Angelenos will too. 'All of our international visitors know how to ride public transportation — it's second nature for our people coming from other countries,' county Supervisor and Metro board Chair Janice Hahn said at a recent UCLA forum, pointing to the Paris Olympics and the city's long use of public transit. 'It's the Angelenos that we're still trying to attract. So I'm thinking the legacy will be a good experience on a bus or a train that could translate after the Olympics to people riding Metro.' Los Angeles leaders warned of major traffic jams ahead of the 1984 Olympics. Then-Councilmember Pat Russell advised residents to leave the city and take a vacation, and many Angelenos rented out their homes to visitors. Fears loomed that if the city couldn't nail down a transit plan, the experience would be a disaster and spectators would encounter a fate similar to the 1980 Winter Olympics in Lake Placid, N.Y., where thousands of people were stranded in below-freezing temperatures after the shuttle bus system became overloaded, according to Times archival reports. 'Of all the problems we're faced with these Olympics Games, transportation is the surest and most inevitable mess unless we get the cooperation and support of people to adjust their use of their personal vehicles,' Capt. Ken Rude, the head of California Highway Patrol's Olympic planning unit, told The Times a year before the 1984 Games. Months earlier, he warned that traffic jams could be so bad that people would be forced to abandon their cars on freeways. In the end, catastrophe was avoided. The plan 40 years ago was similar to today's — build a robust bus system to shuttle Olympics fans, athletes and leaders throughout the county. Traffic was manageable, whether due to transit plans that relied on an additional 550 buses to assist a fleet of 2,200, temporarily turned some streets one-way and limited deliveries to certain hours, or an exodus of residents as people left the area ahead of the Games, in part due to the dire predictions of complete gridlock. But fast-forward, Los Angeles' population has grown from nearly 8 million in 1984 to 9.7 million today, and the region is expecting millions more spectators than it did during the last Games. Estimates for the overall number of expected visitors are still vague, but planners have anticipated as many as 9 million more ticket holders than in the 1984 Olympics. 'There's a mountain to be moved and if you move it one year, it's a lot harder than in three years,' said Juane Matute, deputy director of UCLA Institute of Transportation Studies. 'The buses are hard enough to get, but all of these policy and regulatory changes may be hard as well.' Metro has received leasing commitments for roughly 650 buses so far. Vehicles aside, it will take time to get bus operators properly trained, tested and certified to operate public transit in the state, Matute said. An estimated 6,000 additional bus operators would be needed to drive people throughout the Games. Metro has said that those operators are expected to be provided through transit agencies loaning the buses. In the latest state budget proposal, $17.6 million from the state's highway fund would go toward Olympics and Paralympics planning, including Metro's Games Route Network, which would designate a series of roads for travel by athletes, media members, officials, the International Olympics Committee, spectators and workers. But city and Metro leaders have continued to raise concerns over the funding gap, especially since the additional buses and priority lanes network in 2028 won't be a permanent fixture to Los Angeles. Olympics planners, on the other hand, are confident that transportation will be successful. 'L.A. has invested unto itself a lot in infrastructure here and transportation infrastructure — far more than it did in '84,' LA28 Chair Casey Wasserman said after a three-day visit from the International Olympic Committee. 'We feel very confident that it'll be a different version of the success we had in '84 in terms of ingress and egress and access and experience when it comes to transportation.' Times staff writer Thuc Nhi Nguyen contributed to this report.
Yahoo
14-06-2025
- Yahoo
Prince Harry sparks outrage after lavish trip details go public: 'Hypocrisy'
Critics are lashing out at Prince Harry for his "hypocrisy" in traveling across the world, emitting tons of carbon in the process, all to promote sustainable travel. In late May, Harry made a surprise trip to Shanghai to speak at the Envision 2025 Global Partner Conference. The Royal Observer reported that he urged the travel industry to embrace eco-friendly travel and to reach previously set goals of halving carbon pollution by 2030. "Now is the moment for the industry to reaffirm its commitment to being a force for good," he said. "The true measure of our commitment is how we respond when the path becomes difficult." Harry spoke in his role as founder of Travalyst, a company that promotes sustainable travel by, among other things, helping to develop a tool that shows the carbon pollution of flights when people book travel online. Some have speculated that Harry took a private jet from Los Angeles to Shanghai for the conference, although many news sources couldn't confirm that. But The Times reported that, even if he flew first class on a commercial flight, Harry likely created the equivalent of 7 tons of carbon pollution. If he took a private jet — one of the most environmentally damaging methods of travel — the pollution likely was 10 to 100 times higher. But no matter what plane he took, many critics were aghast that he would cause so much pollution and travel more than 12,000 miles round-trip for a brief appearance to promote sustainability. "The irony of flying across the world to promote sustainable, environmentally friendly travel is hard to ignore," said royal correspondent Jennie Bond, per Sky News Australia. "Surely a video speech would have been more ethical?" Harry and his wife, Meghan Markle, have been outspoken climate activists and have pledged that their Archewell Foundation will reach net zero by 2030. Markle has also become known for her sustainable fashion choices. However, this isn't the first time Harry has come under fire for his travel habits. When Travalyst launched in 2019, he defended his use of private jets, saying, per Time: "I spend 99% of my life traveling the world by commercial; occasionally there needs to be an opportunity based on a unique circumstance to ensure that my family are safe." Which of these factors would most effectively motivate you to buy a heat pump? Lower energy bills Better temperature control Helping the planet I'd never buy a heat pump Click your choice to see results and speak your mind. But that justification doesn't hold up for everyone. "In Harry's case, 'for thee, not for me,'" one commenter on X wrote. Join our free newsletter for good news and useful tips, and don't miss this cool list of easy ways to help yourself while helping the planet.
Yahoo
13-06-2025
- Yahoo
‘Happily Calm' Couple Posts Heartbreaking Final Video Bemoaning 10-Hour Flight on Doomed Plane
A couple who died in the Air India crash recorded a video celebrating the end of their vacation just moments before boarding the doomed flight. Fiongal Greenlaw-Meek, 39 and his husband, Jamie Meek, 44, appeared in good spirits as they sat at the gate and reflected on their trip to India. 'We are at the airport, just boarding. Goodbye India,' Greenlaw-Meek said, while Meek noted the '10-hour flight' to London that was supposed to follow. 'My biggest takeaway is: don't lose your patience with your partner,' Greenlaw-Meek joked, prompting Meek to respond with mock annoyance, 'You already snapped at me while having chai at the airport! I see you've learned nothing.' Greenlaw-Meek broke into laughter before adding, 'Going back, happily, happily, happily calm.' The couple then boarded flight AI171. Upon takeoff, the Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner stayed airborne for only 30 seconds before going down in a residential area. The crash killed 241 out of the 242 people on board—including Greenlaw-Meek and Meek—and several more on the ground. Meek's brother, Nick Meek, told The Times that the devastating news had been 'a lot to take in' and said their mother was 'not in a good way.' 'It is all very raw for her at the moment,' said Nick, who lives in Birmingham, England. 'We were expecting [him] home tonight. He should have landed at 6.30pm and then driven up for about 11 to get his dog who is staying with our mum.' The couple, who ran The Wellness Foundry, a wellness brand offering psychic readings and spiritual workshops, posted their last video to their company's Instagram account, according to The Independent, but it appears to have been taken down. In another video posted the night before the flight, Greenlaw-Meek said they'd had a 'magical experience' in India and that 'some quite mind-blowing things' had happened, according to The Telegraph. Meek chimed in: 'We really have been on quite a journey and then just spending the last night here in this amazing hotel and we have just had the most delicious thali food. It was a perfect way to round up the trip. Excited to share it all with you.' Air India said 169 of the 230 passengers on the fateful plane were Indian nationals, 53 were British nationals, seven were Portuguese, and one was Canadian. It's the first fatal accident involving a Boeing 787 Dreamliner.
