MTA must have gotten a hold of some new crayons because they’re full of pastels, primaries, and secondaries these days. Though it doesn’t have any funding yet, the Wilishire corridor subway may be called the Purple Line. In anticipation of that far off day when a rider may travel by train from downtown to the beach, MTA is proposing renaming the current Wilshire Boulevard segment of the Red Line to the Purple Line. But the coloring book doesn’t stop there. MTA has a whole panoply of hues proposed for public transit.
Along with the Purple Line, MTA staff has proposed a Crayola box of others: The Aqua Line for the Exposition train, and the Bronze and Silver lines for the Harbor Transitway and El Monte Busway. While the image of riding a royal-colored line to Santa Monica conjures up images of a regal public transit experience, some find Purple to be a shiny object for MTA. "The what? Oh no, you've got to be kidding," said Dana Gabbard, executive secretary of the Southern California Transit Advocates. "We want good service. We don't want public relations things." All we know is that colorful maps are pretty.
· MTA Trying Purple Prose [Daily News]
· Stab/Counter Stab: Red Line to The Sea [Curbed LA]