This page contains a Flash digital edition of a book.
CALIFORNIA URBAN RAILROADING


Bridging Los Angeles


BY STEVE BARRY/PHOTOS BY THE AUTHOR T


HE LOS ANGELES AREA is sprawling and difficult to get through. Freeways are perpetual- ly clogged, and even getting ten miles can take an hour or more. The railroads seem to duck and dive through the con- crete canyons in confusing routes that overlap one another. What can a visit- ing photographer do to see a lot of trains in interesting locations? Well, you don’t have to go far from the very heart of the city to make the most of a


visit to L.A. You simply need to follow the concrete ravine of the Los Angeles River. Today’s Los Angeles River is a 51 mile channelized waterway construct- ed by the Army Corps of Engineers be- tween 1938 and 1960 as the city’s pri- mary protection against flooding. As a result, the river has dozens of bridges crossing it, and many provide great views of Union Pacific, Amtrak, and Metrolink commuter rail action. One bridge carries a Metro Rail light


rail line on it, and two span the only above-ground section of the Metro Rail subway. There is a lot of urban rail- roading action to be found in a concen- trated area around Los Angeles Union Station that the visiting railfan can take advantage of.


Starting from north to south, we be- gin our tour at Cesar Chavez Avenue. The west end of this bridge is right at Los Angeles Union Station (formerly Los Angeles Union Passenger Termi-


OPPOSITE: A Gold Line train heads out of downtown Los Angeles on the First Street Bridge. Frequent light rail trains on the bridge and plenty of Metrolink, Amtrak, and Union Pacific trains below make this bridge one of the best train watching spots in the City of Angels. ABOVE: The historic Sixth Street Bridge is an icon of the city. An Amtrak Surfliner passes beneath the bridge as seen from Seventh Street.


43


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40  |  Page 41  |  Page 42  |  Page 43  |  Page 44  |  Page 45  |  Page 46  |  Page 47  |  Page 48  |  Page 49  |  Page 50  |  Page 51  |  Page 52  |  Page 53  |  Page 54  |  Page 55  |  Page 56  |  Page 57  |  Page 58  |  Page 59  |  Page 60