Month: July 2012

Clovis to get another year of abysmal bus service hours

Recently I noted how LA expanded the hours of their subway system to run past 2am on weekends. The city of LA already ran 24 hour bus service. I think it’s fair to say that LA is reasonably meeting the needs of its community.

Meanwhile in Clovis…..

Staff requested that the Route 9 proposal by FAX for FY 2012-201 3 contract be for the same service hours as FY 2011-2012, which includes weekend service from 8:15 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. and weekday service from 6:15 a.m. to 8:25 p.m.

Staff has analyzed the recommendation for the regional fixed-route transit services operated by FAX for FY 12-1 3 and have concluded that maintaining the same hours for service as FY 11-12 would reasonably meet the needs of the community. Click to read more!

Another weekend of music in Fresno – this time with attractions

Last weekend, the Catacomb Party was held downtown, with a whole bunch of bands. That was a big success, and being free may have helped.

This week there’s another music event, but this one requires buying a ticket. Truth be told, the way the price is set up, you can consider it a ticket for the attractions, with the music being free. It’s being held at Blackbeard’s, known for its minigolf, go-karts, batting cages, arcades and more. $25 gets you a day of music and also access to the attractions.

Where: BLACKBEARDS
When: SATURDAY JULY 28TH
Time: Gates open 1pm / Music 2pm
ALL AGES | 21+ to Drink
Entry: $20 Adv. $25 VIP (Unlimited Attractions!) Click to read more!

Review of The Catacomb Party on Fulton Mall

Saturday featured an entire afternoon of free music, plenty of food options and a good amount of beer on the Fulton Mall. While the Fulton Mall is home to annual events like the Cinco de Mayo festival and such, this one was a little different. It wasn’t centered around a holiday or festival, but just a local band releasing a CD and bringing along some of their friends.

I’ve been to various music-related events in Fresno, such as the Fuse Fest and really, as much free entertainment as I can find. The one theme I’ve found in common is that it doesn’t matter how free something is, there’s never a guarantee of a crowd. Click to read more!

Music and food on the Fulton Mall today

If you missed the article in yesterdays Fresno Bee, then here’s notice of a fun event going on later today.

From 4pm until 11pm, there will be a free music event on the Fulton Mall. Cheap beer is to be found before 5:30pm. There will be food trucks and other activities, but the main focus is the series of bands, which end with Fierce Creatures launching their new album.

LINEUP:

3:30 – 3:50 // DOORS

3:50 – 4:00 // BONEY BEEZLY

4:00 – 4:20 // FAST CAR

4:30 – 4:55 // BELL THIEVES

5:10 – 5:35 // ANIMAL EYES

5:50 – 6:15 // LIGHT THIEVES

6:30 – 6:55 // ACHIEVEMENT HOUSE

7:10 – 7:35 // STRANGE VINE Click to read more!

Expo line ridership increasing rapidly – 16,569 in June

A little less than three months ago, LA’s Expo Light Rail line finally opened after years of delay. The launch wasn’t perfect, as there were many kinks being worked out, and travel times were slower than expected (train times are now matching their schedules).

While many were happy to celebrate the launch of a new travel option, some were quick to proclaim doom. If you recall, I wrote a couple of posts about how the Reason Foundation decided that Expo was a failure based on some random counts they made within days of the line opening. They then took those random counts, and decided that they were an accurate reflection of lifetime ridership on Expo. Click to read more!

LA gets late night rail transit

This announcement surprised me, but it’s great to see. When I was in LA earlier this year for a concert, I was able to enjoy a new policy that had recently been implemented (trains every ten minutes until midnight) but had to worry about not missing the last train.

That’s no longer the case. LA obviously has a whole lot of nightlife, and while buses that run 24 hours have been available, there’s an extra comfort in knowing the subway is there for you too.

From the official Metro blog:

All Metro Rail lines will run until 2 a.m. on Friday and Saturday nights. That includes the Red/Purple Line subway, the Blue Line, Expo Line, Green Line and Gold Line. Click to read more!