TEN Ways to Get to CicLAvia

Here we are at number TEN on CicLAvia’s TEN top TEN lists for CicLAvia on TEN TEN TEN. Earlier top TEN listings were: churches, mysteries (contest!), public spaces, things to do, public art, neighborhoods, problems, historic buildings, reasons, and partridges in pear trees. Instead of focusing on what to do at CicLAvia, we’re going to suggest TEN ways of getting there and back!

TEN WAYS TO GET TO CICLAVIA:

1. Drive a Car

Contrary to some popular opinions, yes, Virginia, you can definitely drive to CicLAvia. Even though it’s a car-free celebration. Your car won’t explode. Unless it was going to do that already. When’s the last time you changed the oil? Some nearby streets may be a bit congested. It may not be easy to park. But those things aren’t uncommon. We don’t necessarily want to encourage driving… but it’s definitely an option, and probably the best choice for a lot of people.

2. Carpool

Walking and biking are mucho more fun in groups. So gather up your sister, your cousin, your mom (of course), your neighbor, the guy down the street on the left, and that cute waitress you’ve been trying to muster up the nerve to talk with… and pack them all in the van, and drive down together. Make an event of it! If you want to share a ride with a stranger, maybe post on MeetUp.com or Craigslist. Get your passengers to pay for gas, too!

3. Walk

If you live within a mile or two of the route, try walking! It’s actually easier and faster than you tend to think, and it’s pretty much the best exercise in the known universe, ’cause it’s not strenuous and our bodies were built for it. It’s also great in groups – so walk with a friend, relative, significant other, a cute waiter, a passing stranger, and the walking time will fly by.

4. Bike

Of course you might plan to bike at CicLAvia, but half the fun might also be biking to CicLAvia. If you don’t want to bike alone, plan to meet up with friends and bike in together. We’re expecting that there will be some feeder rides (ie: let’s all meet at the Natural History Museum and bike downtown together from there.)  If you’re thinking about helping organize a feeder ride from your neighborhood, post it in the comments below and we’ll help get the word out.

photo by laap mx via Flickr

5. Stroller (or Bike Trailer or Cargo Bike)

Stroller transportation to CicLAvia is mostly recommended for folks under the age of 6. Get your mom, dad, or a trusted uncle to push or pedal. Lean back and enjoy the ride.

6. Skate

CicLAvia’s not just about bicycling and walking… it will attract lots of skaters, too – from Derby Dolls (TM), to longboards, to rollerbladers, to those coool kids’ shoes that skate when they point their toes upward, to ice-skaters (if weather permits), to razor scooters… and more. Skate downhill to get to CicLAvia… then take the bus home! 

photo from DINF website

7. Wheelchair

CicLAvia is a great place for folks in wheelchairs. With no car traffic to contend with, wheelchair-istas can show us all their moves, and can help us walkers carry our stuff when we get tired, no? Wheel your chairs on down to CicLAvia on Ten-Ten-Ten.

8. Transit – Bus or Train

With the TEN-TEN-TEN CicLAvia route located in central Los Angeles, going by transit is remarkably easy. Downtown is a hub for hundreds of Metro bus lines. There’s also very easy access from many Metro rail lines – all these lines stop directly on the route!

• Metro Blue Line – ride from Long Beach, Carson, Compton, Willowbrook, or Watts – into Downtown L.A.
• Metro Gold Line – ride from East L.A., Pasadena, South Pasadena – into Little Tokyo
• Metro Red Line – ride from North Hollywood, Vanilla Hollywood, or East Hollywood into East Hollywood, Koreatown, Westlake or Downtown L.A.

You can take your bike on all Metro buses and trains, without any extra charge or permit… though only 2 bikes per bus, so maybe go early! Get routes, time-tables, trip-planning, fare information, etc. at Metro.net. If you’re unfamiliar with L.A. transit, try Metro’s Getting Started page – or just ask that helpful knowledgable old guy sitting near the back of the bus.

There’re also other rail alternatives: Amtrak or Metrolink. Both welcome bikes, and both let off at Union Station in downtown L.A. – just 5 blocks (or one Metro Gold Line stop) from the CicLAvia route. To bike from Union Station to CicLAvia: turn left/south on Alameda, then right on First Street, and you can’t miss it!

Image cropped from a really good photo by Thomas Hawk

9. Taxi

Never taken a taxi in Los Angeles?? Well, then, be adventurous and try it out on TEN-TEN-TEN! Taxis are an integral part of transportation systems in big cities all over the world, and the same is true for Los Angeles. Taxis support transit and walking, by providing that “last mile” connection. And if you walk to CicLAvia and at CicLAvia, and you’ve had enough walking, then how about taking a taxi home? (And while you’re thinking about taxis, get to know CicLAvia’s friends at the Los Angeles Taxi Workers Alliance… they’re doing great work to make L.A.’s taxi system better for everyone and for the environment!)

10. Go Multi-modal

Just like CicLAvia shows that L.A.’s streets don’t have to be one way all the time, your transportation doesn’t have to rely on just one mode for a single trip. Maybe you can bike to Pasadena, hop on the Metro Gold Line, disembark at Little Tokyo, and ride from there. Or else carpool to North Hollywood, then board the Metro Red Line, and disembark at Westlake MacArthur Park. How about getting a ride to CicLAvia (isn’t your aunt driving to church near there?), then walking around, and taking the bus home?

Not recommended: kayak

Despite the Los Angeles River recently being declared navigable by the Federal Environmental Protection Agency, there’s just not a lot of reliable kayak parking around the 4th Street Bridge.

Let us know how you plan to get to CicLAvia in the comments below!