Orange

EDIT June 24, 2010: I got this email from Tamara Warren, project manager for corridor studies at OCTA, to clarify some of my errors in my original post. I've asked her for permission to post:

I would like to correct two points in the note.  The note mentions that the SR-22 connectors are part of the City of Santa Ana’s Go Local project.  This is not true.  Although the ramps are of interest to the City of Santa Ana and they would like to pursue further study, they are not part of their Go Local project.  The concept of ramps from the SR-22 connecting motorists to downtown Santa Ana utilizing the PEROW is part of the City of Santa Ana’s long term vision for the area. 

The note also mentions that Santa Ana’s Go Local project would prevent SCAG’s Pacific Electric corridor project.  OCTA owns the PEROW and along with all of the cities on the PEROW we are working in partnership with SCAG on their corridor study.  SCAG is coordinating with the City of Santa Ana with the intent to ensure whatever proposals come out of the SCAG study, they will complement each other and work in tandem and not prevent either effort.  I would appreciate it if you would correct the wording below to ensure the information being shared is accurate.  

Again, I really appreciate your interest in our CCCMIS study and for helping us get the word out on our study effort. Please let me know if you have any questions. 

OCTA staff are finalizing a set of options to present to the OCTA board and local governments on how to relieve congestion in central Orange County, based on a projected 15%-20% increase in population and congestion.

OCTA's staff are proposing the following ideas and this week have been soliciting feedback in workshops in the community. I went to their Fountain Valley meeting and a handful of people showed up, but from what I heard from other community members, improving transit service was a concern. Below is a comprehensive map of their proposals. Note that right now the team's survey will very likely gauge public support for these proposals; my guess is that OCTA's Board will cherry-pick from this list based on what people in Orange County vote on.

In other words, take OCTA's survey now!!

read more→

Starting July 1, 2010, neighboring Riverside Transit Agency will re-number bus route 149 to 206 and begin using CommuterLink express buses with more comfortable seating and a higher fare of $3.00 — doubling the previous fare of $1.50 for riders within Riverside County, and adding $0.10 for riders traveling between Riverside County and Orange County. It will continue to run its existing route between Orange, Corona, and Riverside.

RTA's announcement included an interesting "system map" of its express CommuterLink buses, which attractively brings together Riverside County's far-flung suburbs (see below). It reminds me of the Transit Coalition's A Better Inland Empire campaign, which proposes bus rapid transit and rail improvements to sprawling San Bernardino and Riverside counties.

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Mmm...what better way to end a day of studying than a large sandwich stuffed with meat?

A friend and I trotted over to the southern central end of The Block At Orange after a long day of studying, and we decided to take advantage of these hot sandwiches. The restaurant itself was pretty empty that night for such a crowded Saturday, so we had quite a bit of breathing room and our food was ready fast. You can see the employees prepare your food on the grill as well:

It's definitely not as good as Blue Frog Bakery — the sandwich, as you can see, is a little sloppily put-together with cheap iceberg lettuce and mayonnaise, which I specifically didn't request but they put on anyways to spite me — but it's not as expensive either. For about $5.50, I got a good sandwich 2 cups' worth of 1cm-thick savory fries. The sandwich itself was about 600 calories; and a similar 600 calories with the fries.

The Block At Orange is well-served by transit with OCTA lines 47, 54, 57, and a bit of walk from line 147, although unfortunately surrounded by a sea of parking spaces that takes about 3 minutes to cross. The great thing about The Block At Orange is the wealth of fast-casual dining choices in the $5-$9 price range, making it easy for you and a group of friends to hop off OCTA and choose the foods that you like.

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Carolen and I found this restaurant on Yelp, and it was absolutely delicious! This gem of a restaurant sits in Old Towne Orange, a charming downtown area with a number of amazing bus and train connections.

At Blue Frog, we indulged in lunch. I had a turkey cranberry sandwich with a nice layer of cream cheese ('tis the season), while she enjoyed a sumptiously salty gooey philly cheesesteak. Our sandwiches came out piping hot and filled with flavor, and, unlike Subway or Quizno's, they didn't skimp on the fillings. Take this philly cheesesteak, for example. Yes, they did skimp a little on the fruit, but the additional cookie was hot and chewy and ....mmm...butterific:

What took my breath away was their bread. Most other independent sandwich shops and restaurants use pre-made bread with a chewy stale consistency, but at Blue Frog, the bread was soft, warm and fresh — or at least, they warmed it up so well that I couldn't tell if it were freshly-baked or not. I was disappointed, for example, when I walked over to N Glassell St and W Palm Ave, and tore into Rutabegorz Restaraunt's   tough-to-chew cranberry turkey sandwich. I much prefer Blue Frog's cranberry turkey sandwich (both restaurants sell theirs for ~$9): read more→

As a Trader Joe's fan, I love being able to buy high-quality groceries at pretty reasonable prices without the confusing variety in larger chain supermarkets, like Safeway or Ralphs. Ever since I moved to near UCI Medical Center, I kinda missed having a store like that.

Enter Fresh and Easy. This "neighborhood-sized" grocery store is conveniently located along some pretty heavily-used bus routes (OCTA line 53-Main and 54-Chapman), making it a cinch to shop there. Nearby, a Ralph's with a Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf, Starbucks, a Pho noodle restaurant, a Thai restaurant, a Mexican restaurant, Quizno's, and — oddly enough — T-Mobile, Sprint, and AT&T stores, all make Main/Chapman a very good bus stop to shop. You can also find plenty of other Fresh and Easy Neighborhood Market stores throughout Orange County.

The grocery store is very clean and well-lit, and food is packaged in clean Ikea-like packaging. Although I felt the store was sterile at first, I really warmed up to it — the clear labeling helps me figure out what's in a bag or a box — and, I'll admit, the $5 off $20 coupons they send to my place is a very good financial incentive. Even without said coupon, though, Fresh and Easy's prices are very easy on the wallet. Fresh and Easy has a very good variety of pre-packaged ready-to-go foods, including refrigerated burritos ($3-4 each), salads ($4 each), chicken marsala (also in the $4 per package ballpark), Indian curries, soups, and sandwiches. If you're short on cash, Fresh and Easy places discounted items of their dishes for up to 50% daily, popular with frugal shoppers.

Their baked pastries rival that of high-end Whole Foods-esque grocery stores. read more→

Roughly 30 riders attended OCTA's March 2010 bus cuts community meeting last Thursday, with quite a few speakers (at least 20) including seniors, working professionals, blue-collar workers, students, disabled persons, a homeless person and a former bus driver. Even a member of the Orange County Grand Jury attended. Mayor Pro Tem Cathy Green and Greg Winterbottom — both OCTA directors — chaired the session with Ellen Burton, External Affairs Director of OCTA staff.

The comments made by the public were extremely interesting and engaging. A lot of riders opposed route cuts that would diminish geographic service area, as this would then cannibalize ACCESS, Orange County's current paratransit network, which only services areas 3/4 of a mile from regular bus routes. One Night Owl rider said he, plus many others, use the 24-hour bus routes to get home from work; OCTA staff responded by saying cutting Night Owl would save 5% of the funds as Night Owl requires not just paying the bus driver, but also maintenance, central dispatch, and ACCESS drivers. And a new issue also emerged: a growing number of riders were worried about overcrowded standing-room only buses, particularly those buses that travel at high speeds on the freeway.

Community leaders from the Transit Advocates of Orange County also asked OCTA's board about funds OCTA already has and could use for saving bus service; Jane Reifer mentioned that not printing the quarterly system map would salvage $2 million that could preserve the 24-hour Night Owl routes. I myself asked why OCTA declared a financial crisis and are cannibalizing bus service when they're about to expand the 5, 91, and 405 freeways. OCTA director Greg Winterbottom replied that many of these funds — such as funds dedicated to the freeways — couldn't be switched over as the "color of money" is dedicated to specific purposes. But others argued why OCTA wouldn't be more aggressive with finding funding when OCTA used bus service funding for non-transit programs like the purchase the 91 Express Lanes, widening Bristol Street, and promoting non-public transit programs of Measure M and M2.

I followed the meeting throughout on my HTC Touch Pro2's with a live Twitter session @TransitRiderOC, posted below, from first tweet to last tweet: read more→

They're calling this the "Safely Crossing to a New Beginning," and throwing in a kitchen sink of prizes, food, and music. This Thursday, August 27, 2009 from 4pm-7pm, OCTA's holding a celebration at Orange Station (194 N Atchison St, Orange, CA), and they'll have "free snow cones, popcorn, smoothies, ice tea and other goodies, plus kiddie train rides, face painting, balloons and info on rail safety. ... [and the] chance to win an iPod, Flip video camera, gift cards and train tickets." Read more about the event at OCTA's Mile by Mile blog, and their follow-up Youtube video.

The ribbon cutting is at 5pm, but the raffle is on the whole time. And, even cooler, Ruby's Diner is giving away 1000 free kobe beef sliders to promote a soon-to-be-opened new Ruby's Diner  at the train depot next year. The diner will replace the shuttered Cask 'n Cleaver, and will serve breakfast in the mornings to commuters. Read more about the opening of Ruby's Diner at the Fast Food Maven blog here.

Mmmm... beef sliders.

I dub this post worthy of the Foodies tag. This event's accessible by OCTA lines 54, 56, 59, and 454. read more→