Don’t Turn a Cold Shoulder to the ARTIC
Today I was down in Orange County, California (“The OC”) and was reminded of something I read a few months ago. Back in October, Strong Towns was in Southern California for a conference event. During that time, an article was published and aside from the title (“Anaheim Transit: Suck it Up”), there was a line in there about the Anaheim Regional Transportation Intermodal Center (ARTIC) that grabbed my attention. Coming from the source, I expected the article to highlight some of the benefits of an expanding public transportation system in Southern California. Rather, the article made a few points that I felt pretty strongly against, so I bookmarked the article for future discussion. Today’s the day, so here’s the first bit that got to me:
“ARTIC does nothing for [the poor bastard out there somewhere on an anonymous street in Orange County waiting (and waiting, and waiting) for a bus to arrive]. But that was never the point. ARTIC isn’t about transit.”
The author wrote about growing up in Anaheim, California, and upon returning in October, how nothing much had changed in terms of public transportation. He described a journey of six miles that took over an hour. And I can’t debate the observations and statements made — it is difficult to travel around Orange County by public transit, without relying on apps like transit or ride-hail services (which is how I typically navigate the OC).
There’s a lot that can be done to improve public transportation, as I have written here and here, and particularly in Orange County. Like many parts of America, Orange County is changing, though — specifically on the routes where service levels have been increased and demand is heavy.
And that’s why a few other particular statements in the article got to me.
The author points to the location of the site, writing that “the physical environment is brutal for anyone who isn’t in a car.”
“…the transit hub is in the middle of absolutely nothing. The site is bound by the Santa Ana River on one side, a giant freeway on the other, and massive parking lots for Angel’s Stadium and Honda Center. I dare anyone to walk from one of these buildings to another. Even if I had managed to take a bus or train to ARTIC, the destination wouldn’t have rewarded the effort.”
Let’s talk about the building, though. You might have seen it on season two of True Detective, or you might have driven by it on one of the freeways nearby. It is big. It glows at night. It doesn’t look like anything else around it. To build the ARTIC station, the original train station on the other side of the 57 freeway (in the parking lot of Angel’s Stadium) was vacated, and everything relocated to the new site.
After stating the opinion that ARTIC isn’t about transit, the author went a bit further about the building itself:
“You’ll notice that the elegant structure itself has no real function. It’s purely decorative and designed to make a statement on the skyline. It could be replaced by a few porta-potties, a ticket machine and a food truck, and the transit stuff would be totally unaffected.”
Whoa. Yes the “transit stuff” would be totally unaffected, and that is not necessarily a result of the building. I would argue that the use of the land the station occupies, and moreover the vibe of the place, is directly a function of the building.
When it opened, ARTIC was pretty empty. First, a small market opened up on the ground floor (with a Bitcoin “BTM” machine — Hello the future!?!). The market is still open, selling various snacks and sundries. Later a pretzel place and frozen yogurt stand opened up, offering quick food for travelers.
Then a few years ago, a very nice restaurant, The Oyster Bar, opened on the second level. From my perspective, this was the game changer (that and the readily available WiFi!). The place has good food — surprisingly good oysters — on par with the Oyster Bar in Grand Central Station in New York City. The restaurant is usually busy in the afternoons when I head back to Los Angeles on the train, and is particularly crowded on game or event nights.
Event nights are when the station comes alive — during games or events at either Angels Stadium of “The Duck Pond” (aka The Honda Center) across the street. Yes, those places require you to walk a bit, but it is not an unreasonable distance. Far better, the station provides an opportunity for people to NOT drive to these games and events. Trains run late into the night — I know because I’ve gone to and from a baseball game on the train, and the activity within the station is lively.
In the past year I’ve found that people don’t look as surprised when I tell them I take the train to and from Los Angeles to Orange County. They used to look really surprised, like “nobody takes the train, man!” Nowadays, I meet other business travellers grabbing a quick dinner at the station before heading back to LA. I see families and friends gathers to get back on the train to go to south Orange County or maybe even San Diego after a concert. When the Del Mar Race Track is in full effect, I see lots of well-dressed men and women laughing and chatting as they walk towards the train platforms.
So I applaud the ARTIC for what it does — it helps break down those mental barriers between people who do and do not regularly use transit. By providing a few key amenities — a market, a restaurant, and destinations — the station is now an enticing place to be. Could it be better? Of course, and it should get better. It will get better; because traffic will only get worse and more and more people will get to understand transit and rail travel are far better options.
