LA fuming over Obama traffic, demand for an investigation

[woolldog]

The massive traffic jam that resulted from President Obama's motorcade and speech Monday night in Hancock Park is prompting calls for an investigation from some residents, who say they were caught in traffic for hours.

Obama was only in L.A. for a few hours, but his presence caused numerous streets to be blocked off.

<...>

Another man trying to walk west on 6th Street to his office shouted at the officers blocking his way and told them he wished he had voted for Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), Obama's opponent in the 2008 presidential race.

Carlos Garcia, a 25-year-old waiter from Miracle Mile, had the misfortune of setting out on a run about the time the area went on lock-down. He had planned on a four-mile run, but it turned into 5.5 miles as he tried unsuccessfully to get back home, ultimately waiting 25 minutes at a yellow-police-tape barrier.

"They waved me through, but then they stopped me coming back," he said. "I can't believe they did it during rush hour on a Monday."

http://www.latimes.com/news/la-obamatraffic17-m,0,3742308.story?track=rss&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+latimes%2Fmostviewed+%28L.A.+Times+-+Most+Viewed+Stories%29

[Parche]

1. send in the wahmbulance

:hi:

[Enrique]

2. impeach!

:eyes:

[dionysus]

3. slow day for outrage?

:shrug:

[countingbluecars]

4. They need to get over it. n/t

[lillypaddle]

5. What a socialist!

[Kerrytravelers]

6. Oh, please. I've lived in LA since 1994. Traffic is always bad. And we're use to these kinds of

events causing traffic. This is, likely, a bunch of angry teabaggers looking for a reason to fuss and moan about Obama some more. :eyes:

[woolldog]

9. not many teabaggers in LA....

Read the comments and the article. It's mostly Obama voters pissed off that he swooped in and clogged up traffic during rush hour no less, costing residents millions of dollars. And this wasn't official Presidential business either. It was a fundraising junket

[Kerrytravelers]

16. I never take the comments seriously.

People lie all the time when they can be anonymous. However, it seemed full of the typical nonsensical comments as any typical LA Times comments board. And, since one not need be a resident of LA to comment, I don't consider these the views of LA residents.

And, even here in LA, we do have our teabaggers. They're outnumbered, but they are certainly here. I live in one of the most liberal areas of LA, and we have 'em. And this is just the sort of thing they'd fuss about... although, when their hero, W, would come to town, they would tell us to shut up and respect the President.

[kestrel91316]

14. LOL, exactly. This town needs little if any excuse to develop a gargantuan

traffic jam. Try getting anywhere the day they run the LA Marathon.........

[chowder66]

7. oh effing boo hoo

Jesus. Traffic jams and snarls are a constant here. Hollywood on premiere nights, stars getting walk of fame stars, L.A Marathon, parades, drizzle, crappy drivers....the list goes on. The President of the Unites States comes to town and they expect him to part the fricking traffic???? WTF? Give me a break.

[monmouth]

8. T. S.....n/t

[abelenkpe]

10. I was stuck on Crescent Heights for two hours

unable to see my little ones who were only a few blocks away undoubtedly giggling with excitement when the "good guy" president (as my son refers to him) drove by in his motorcade.
At first people were frustrated and angry, then they gave up turned off their engines, got out of cars and chatted amicably. It wasn't so bad...certainly better than having McCain/Palin in office. :p

[Lucky 13]

11. Jesus. Try living in DC for 10 minutes.

If I got that upset every time a motorcade impeded my commute, I'd have had a stroke by now.

[Kerrytravelers]

17. You get motorcades, we get movie stars.

Occasionally, we trade and you get the stars and we get the motorcades.

And I agree. If I get this upset every time I was rerouted for a movie filming, film premiere, awards show, etc., I'd have had a stroke by now. I live on a parade route, so my entire area of town is completely rebuilt for almost one month every year. If I got this upset, I'd be dead by now.

[CreekDog]

12. Reminds me of the Lakers Parade this year

But there was lots of parking! :rofl:

[FrenchieCat]

13. What a rag the LA Times has become over the years, since it's purchase!

[Cali_Democrat]

15. LOL.....LA traffic is shit anyways.

[Jennicut]

18. Apparently some of these people have never been stuck on I-95.

Traffic jams are a daily existence in CT. Small state, lots of congestion. And that is without a President visiting. Sometimes I wonder about us as Americans....

[Arkana]

21. Or on the Mass Pike during rush hour. Wall-to-wall traffic near Boston.

[Jennicut]

25. Yup. And you have tolls on top of it all, don't you?

Ugg.

[Arkana]

26. Yep. Tolls that were supposed to go away 15 years ago

but thanks to hilarious mismanagement of the goddamn Big Dig, they're still there.

[Jennicut]

27. CT used to have them when I was a kid, 30 years ago. But then

too many crashes happened because of them so CT took them away. Thankfully.

[Bluenorthwest]

19. Oh, my God. The motorcades I have waited for in LA!

Oh, so many. Bill Clinton, a couple of times. Bush 41, I had such complex doings with the wait for the motorcade to be formed, that I wound up face to face with HW, a story far too good to tell for free, but just let me say it took quiet a bit of time.
However the worst traffic traps I have been in involved the Hollywood Christmas Parade, and the Hollywood Bowl. Also when the Pope came to town, lots of traffic. Reagan, he clogged things up as well. But it is Christmas, and Santa Claus that forced me to park my car, walk miles, and cab back to my car the following day to make an appointment. Investigate Santa now!

[Bluenorthwest]

20. I forgot the LA Marathon, how could I?

Trapped in my house for the duration, in two separate homes, miles from each other, at different times in my life. Takes a long time for the slower runners to scamper past. Long time. The second place, I could go west, but not east, south or north for the bulk of the day.

[WI_DEM]

22. Boy when it rains it pours. Obama is getting it from everyone these days--but things will improve

and a year from now it will be a distant memory.

[activa8tr]

23. Sure it will get better when Fox news and the rest of the corporate press

gives him high marks for something.

I think snowballs' chances in Hell are better than THAT happening, tho.

[S_E_Fudd]

24. Republicans shred the consitution and you don't hear a peep...

But get tied up in traffic...well now you've crossed the line...

No wonder our country is headed down the shitter!!!

[Imajika]

28. Yup, which is why those stimulus roadsigns...

...seem like a stupid idea to me.

I have no problem with them if the administration thinks they are wise, it just seems to me that reminding people who are stuck in traffic due to roadwork that the stimulus program is the reason they are spending an extra half hour in their cars is just not a very clever move.

I really don't believe people say "awesome, this stimulus is putting people to work building this highway". I think instead they are either just cursing at the traffic, or seeing the "this project funded by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act" and blaming the stimulus for holding them up from wherever they needed to go.

[Pirate Smile]

29. When I see road work now I just think "jobs". But that's me. I doubt most people do. I'm not

really seeing a lot of wisdom or logic in the public lately.