TRANSPORTATION

MOTION

One of the most endearing Downtown landmarks is , the "Shortest Railway in the W orId," which opened in 190 i. This system of two passcnger cars moved people up and down between thc original Downtown shopping district and the fashionable residential district of Bunker HilL. Angels Flight was dismantled in 1969 when the area underwent redevelopment. Fortunately, when the Community Redevelopment Agency approved final plans for the California Plaza, restored Angels Flight was incorporatcd into the project and it was reopencd in 1996. The total cost ofrestoration for the new Angels Flight was $4.1 million, paid for by the Los Angeles Community Rcdevelopment Agency and the Los Angeles County Mctropolitan Transportation Authority (Metro).

Tragically, on February i, 2001, a midday accident killed one person and injured seven others and resulted in the closure of Angcls Flight. An investigation by thc National Transportation Safety Board

(NTSB) found that at a faulty cable gear mechanism brokc, causing one of the cars to crash into the other. The Angels Flight Railway Foundation, which owns the funicular, continues to address safety improvemcnt issues that are necessary to re-establish operation. After five years, however, it is unclear when and how Angels Flight will be reopened. As the operator of the Metro Red Line subway and region's light rail lines, Metro has conducted some analysis relative to improvements and future operations of Angels Flight.

I THEREFORE MOVE that the City Council request that the Los Angeles County Metropolitan

Transportation Authority (Metro) report to the Transportation Committee on the feasability of having Metro take over safety improvements needed and assess engineering issues needed to reopen Angels Flight, as well as its future operation. ,-" / J ;/'ì / i// i INTRODUCED BY: -/~/Y:j"1Q,. JAl'' PERRY Cqímcilme er, 9th District

SECONDED BY: D~-\~S7 C()Oi DL-\) c"F ~to.\o22.

~UG 0 9 2006 r¿C7