I think the most similar thing we are getting to this is the new currently being built pedestrian/bikepath that's fully separated from the road on slauson in south central LA. It passes throughout a bunch of important streets like Vermont, Western, Crenshaw Broadway, and Avalon and even connects to the A and K line. It's expected to be done december and open early january Im glad something like this is getting built in LA, especially on Slauson since its such a harsh street to walk and bike on
Hard to not say a 8 lane road would have been nice with optional buss lane for 2 lanes total. But I feel street racing would be a deterrent. Traffic is just bad out there
Ballona creek, LA River, san Gabriel River trail, rio hondo River trail. The LA River has a large gap that the city is planning to fill. As of now you can get from Elysian Park to the back of Griffith park or from the city of Vernon to Long Beach. The city has a plan to connect it from Elysian Park to the city of Vernon. Once complete you will be able to ride from essentially Burbank to Long Beach with no vehicles taking up your space.
I take this to work. Im confident its got a better throughput during rush hour than any other car highway in the area. A million people live within 10km of manhattan beach/redondo beach.
I appreciate that you made this video. The Strand is one of the top 5 coolest things in LA County. With that being said, there were a couple of comments you made that I disagree with. 1.) Those beach parking lots in Pacific Palisades absolutely get slammed during the peak beach months. People travel to the beach, with all their gear, from far and wide across the Southland. You have to provide ample parking space. 2.) Admittedly - Venice Boardwalk is an acquired taste. But I love it. Tired of all these souless, copy and paste commercial zones around the nation. That boardwalk maintains much of its original "come as you are" counterculture vibe. Far superior to the Walk of Fame. Spend a Saturday afternoon on the Boardwalk in summer and then get back to us.
We have a similar setup with lots of parking along the coastal greenways of Mission Bay in San Diego and personally don't mind the excess parking that absolutely gets used on the summer holidays. On random days, it is cool to see the various setups of van-lifers just chilling in the parking lot. The key is that they are narrow lots sandwiched between the road and beach pathway, which don't remind me of an awful strip mall parking lot.
The Venice art culture is no longer on the beach, but is still valued in the community, as is the flourishing musical culture , often on display at the community festivals.
The beach parking lots are some of the most valuable pieces of terrains in the USA. Having them be used exclusively for 4 months and empty the rest of the time is a disaster. Both ethically and financially. It could be restaurants, nice hotels, shops, etc... with parking lots behind, or just with good transit towards some parking lots or the rest of LA. But nop. It's just an expense for the city currently.
@marcbuisson2463 They aren't "empty" any where close to the amount of time you think. You have to remember that the beach is not a hyper local amenity only meant for nextdoor neighbors to use. It's considered a regional destination that people from as far as 100 miles away drive to, all year round. There has to be parking for those people.
@chebemchukwu4481 That's exactly why there should be no parking, but some hotel space, good transit, some place for restaurants, and a way for people living 100 miles away to come there without a car, because right now, the parking is both limiting the access, and limiting the services.
7:20 I think this is a super hot take on the Venice Beach boardwalk. I don't know anyone who doesn't like Venice. Small locally owned businesses along a walking path is actually incredibly good urbanism. Sure there are a lot of souvenir and T-shirt shops but that comes with being a highly-visited place. My critique of Venice is that those old brick 5 story buildings with retail below and housing above are illegal to build today. They shouldn't be. The whole neighborhood should be filled with 5-8 story mixed-use. But there are anti-housing NIMBYs holding us back, including West LA's city council member who has routinely opposed affordable housing construction there. I love the rest of the video though. It's such a shame there isn't a bridge over the marina canal. I would love to ride into the south bay cities but I don't want to risk my life on Washington Blvd which is a 7 lane stroad.
Very hot take indeed lol... this guy wouldn't like it in any European or Middle Eastern community center, marketplace, or farmer's market... the shouting, the local and mass-produced goods being peddled everywhere... the evident horrors of an active community and commerce. 😂
There’s a difference between shopkeepers and artisans interacting with passersby in a respectful manner (which may come across as shouting or coercion), and the kind of disrespectful peddling that comes across as groveling or desperate salesmen that are pushy and aggressive, which is more like what we have in touristed areas.
@@ttopero I've never encountered that type of salesman in Venice Beach... or San Fran, Tahoe, or the many other touristy areas I've been. The few times I have encountered that kind of behavior has usually been in shopping malls, during the holiday season, and it usually involves cell phones or candy. But maybe the shopkeepers there have gotten worse since I last visited, it's been a few months.
yeah, and the comparison the the beach front in lisbon is weird too, in comparison to venice beach that street view looked boring and lifeless. portugal is great though.
Thank you for checking out the South Bay beach cities (Manhattan, Hermosa, and Redondo)! I’m born and raised here and I think this is easily the most underrated area in greater Los Angeles. I feel like we have a lot more “beach town” vibes are less touristy than other LA beaches like Santa Monica or Venice
Santa Monica Bay is really its' own thing culturally. I prefer it to the inland parts of LA like where I'm at. Cycling culture really is legit, especially the kids take advantage of cycling as a way to get around.
Awesome video! I’ve filmed hundreds of videos on this path for my channel. You do a great job articulating a lot of things I subconsciously “know” but never really realized all the things you explain in this video, great job!
The concrete rivers have great bike paths, too. For example, you can ride from Anaheim Train Station through Newport Beach to almost Seal Beach on paths that did not allow cars (even crossing).
I was just here two weeks ago! I went from the northern terminus down to Manhattan Beach and back using a Metro Bike Share rental (sooo much cheaper than the stores by the coast). It was fun to be able to follow along with the first 70% of the video knowing most of those twists and turns! Definitely felt a little anxious on Washington though especially without a mirror on my bike
mirrors are a hazard on a bike if you fall. better to leave that automobile mindset behind and rely more on your sense of hearing and vision . Plus there is a perfectly good sidewalk to ride in a relaxed manner right next to the street.
I enjoy bringing my skates here on the E Line trains to rollerblade on the path from Pacific Palisades to Santa Monica Pier. I'll also use the Metro Bike Share rack next to the Downtown Santa Monica E Line station and ride on both the curb-protected bike lanes running on Colorado and Ocean, which continues down the CA Incline and pedestrian bridge with twisting ramps, and back onto the beach bike path. Since you can return the bikes at any rack, I'll end my ride at the Venice boardwalk west end, as there's a Metro Bike Share rack in that area.
Amazing video! It would be interesting if LA tried building a few long distance bike routes similar to this through the city, like they did in London. Also, I have to genuinely congratulate you on finding the perfect name for a YT urbanist channel! 😅👌
There’s a decent amount of these long distances paths in the LA Basin. Most of them are built along riverbeds. But the Dan Gabriel riverbed trail, the Los coyotes riverbed trail and the Santa Ana river bed trail all come in at over 20 miles or longer.
Sending love from London UK! I loved so many parts of LA when I visited, but even the basic lack of sidewalks was shocking. LA really could become a cycling utopia, and I wish you and everyone else campaigning for it the best of luck!
I witnessed a hilarious interaction on venice last time I went. I live in LA but I rarely go to venice because 👀(ifykyk) but there was a guy trying to sling his paintings and had a little tent set up on the pedestrian path like people do, but there was a guy walking along towards us and he had a shopping cart and his dog on a leash walking ahead and across from him (closest side to the artist's tent) and for whatever reason the dog decided to relieve himself onto one of the paintings that was leaned up against the tend along the ground. The artist yelled at the dog to stop and very loudly said "I should kick that dog" but then everyone turned and looked at him when he said that, so he then pivoted and said "you know what, he signed it, it's worth more now" and that's basically venice in a nutshell.
Funny coincidence for you to upload this now! I just biked the manhattan and hermosa beach sections this past weekend for the first time, I was really surprised! It is a great section of infrastructure in southern california
7:00 i rode my Rollerblades and my daughter took her scooter.. great tunnel. good informative video. i think im gonna make some too. thanks for the good video. 👋 via con dios
The Ventura bike path goes underneath the Ventura pier just like in Santa Monica. Also, the San Gabriel River trail can easily give the Strand a run for its money and is actually longer. It's not as glamorous since it doesn't follow along the beach the whole way, but it goes from Seal Beach in Orange County all the way to the base of the San Gabriel mountains just a little East of Pasadena. It has immense untapped potential for bike commuting.
Not too sure if you've looked at it yet, but you should look at the Orange Line bike route in the Valley. I'm curious to see how you'd rate it, especially compared to the Beach route.
I’m too long in the tooth now to cycle from Torrance Beach to Venice but it’s well worth the effort if you’re up to it. Before the beach cycleway there was an elevated wooden track that ran to and from Pasadena and Los Angeles called the California Cycleway. The easements are still delineated on Los Angeles cadastral maps. If you’re traveling north on the Pasadena Freeway it’s on the right. There is a Wikipedia article about. I tried to paste a link but apparently that’s verboten by the TH-cams.
I commute on this bike path every day. At marina del rey it branches off to the balona creek bike path which is also car free and goes all the way to Culver City. I take this route to my job. So the west side is actually very bike friendly.
Thanks for the great video. Checkout the ciclavias If you want to see another example of the pent-up demand for better biking infrastructure in LA. Every time one of those events happen it brings out thousands upon thousands of riders. And it's such a shame the city doesn't to more to encourage biking throughout the yea.
Back during the 1984 Olympics, the city implemented flex time which allowed people to come into work at different hours to free up traffic. But over time managers chipped away at flex time because they don't get Los Angeles. And the other major problem with people is thinking Southern California needs a down town area. So-Cal It doesn't. It's not New York. It would be better for people to start thinking of places in southern California like Tokyo prefects . Nobody needs to sit in traffic for 2 hours everyday, to get into downtown. So there is a lot of slack to chip away at the automobile's road space without adding to other services
I love that bike bath. When I get a chance, I drive up from San Diego. Park my truck at the north edge of Redondo Beach public parking by the power plant. Then get on my bike and ride on that path all the way up to Will Roger’s State beach. Cause that’s where the path somewhat ends. Turn around and head back to my truck. Round trip is about 40 miles. Plenty of miles for my weekend warrior legs and butt. Some of the most beautiful beaches. And a calm atmosphere for any cyclist.
If you put google maps on bike mode the infrastructure is growing massively in LA. I live in Carson, CA and even though Carson doesn't have much, it has connectors to all surrounding cites. You got the LA river trail, Wilmington, San Pedro and Compton which all mostly have great bike infrastructure. I could even ride Carson to to near downtown LA to Santa Monica on virtually all bike lane which spans nearly 35 miles. Granted, some parts of the bike lanes are taken over by homeless its great to see the changes.
I have some good news to share! I know someone that works for the city of Hermosa Beach and they said the city will be copying the same bicycle/pedestrian layout as Manhattan Beach. The bad news is that it is going to take a really, really long time.
We need sky-high bike superhighways, four lanes wide, just for e-bikes and pedal pushers. Gas mini-bikes? No way, José! NIMBYs have been the roadblock for mechanical transport for ages. Biking could open up a whole new world of destinations.
Counties and regional governments often don’t have the power to do many great things beyond transportation or major venues, but this could be a big win for the Los Angeles County commissioners, with several non-Los Angeles communities to support getting the city of Los Angeles on board. As Santa Monica has demonstrated, doing it alone is faster and easier, but it only gets you so far-the rest of the way has to be cooperative!
Being a Native that split the state 30 years ago, I remember why I left. It's very different, unless you make tons of money, it can be a very hostile environment. I traveled 1000's of miles all around the area in the 1960's -90's, I adopted a safer method of riding, never turning my back on traffic, sidewalks were fair game, every man for themselves. Have fun, you can have the "Old Neighborhood", I won't even visit, it's less crowded up here in Oregon.
You can ride 38 miles on the car-free San Gabriel River Trail, but be careful for the people speeding on Ebikes, minibikes and scooters. Then there are miles of no cars on the Rio Hondo trail, Long Beach bike trail, Sunset Beach to Newport Beach. I love riding where there are no cars, no noise.
Those concrete blocks that divided the walking section from the riding section need to be painted florescent green. At night there is no lights. If you get caught out there after sunset without a bike light its a hazard. Ive crashed my bike several times not being able to see those parking dividers.
I agree on more space for pedestrians on that trail I ride bicycles and run and recently did the Bra Run 13K a few months ago and it took place around that area where the planes take off and there were cyclists going right through the middle of packs of runners taking part in the run, I almost got hit a few times
Path took me out. The sand and turns are really ridiculous. The lifeguards who bandaged me and my daughter up says people take ills from the sand all the time. At least on turns, barriers to keep sand off should be implemented. It is a sublime experience otherwise.
the loops of bikepath around the sepulveda basin always piss me off, because there's JUST enough there to see how great it could be, but its still hemmed in by cars almost everywhere
Not to sound sarcastic that you just discovered "the strand." But even in the 70's and 80's there was a push from the southbay beach cities and others to completely build a pedestrian and cyclist thoroughfare the entirety of the ocean line of LA county south. That meant not just ending in Torrance Beach, but avoiding the bluffs of the Palos Verdes Peninsula. By keeping the walkway and cycling path onto the shoulder of Sepulveda Blvd and PCH (which becomes one in that section on town). Through Lomita, connecting into Harbor City, San Pedro Harbor, and into Long Beach. All within the county of LA. Back then the only opposition was from the LA Harbor and rail lines that were expanding to accommodate from moving their freight without obstruction or barriers. I think an organization should take on that cause once again. I think the cities of Harbor City, San Pedro, and sections of Long Beach could use some revitalization. By connecting them to the rest of the LA County coastline.
@fourth_place Not to snub. But TH-cam influencer are about informing current conditions, relaying history, it's pros and cons. Bringing city living and accessibility to light 💡 Urbanists with a TH-cam Camara aren't the guru's of what has or hasn't been built or done. Many communities and planners before the advent of social media started that, and did that leg work. For what's been accomplished. What you bring to the table is opinion. I would love to see you at city planning commissions, presenting drafts, giving actual hard usage numbers to public works?
Calling it a Cycling Highway may sound pejorative, but when we compare how a car highway functions by conveying cars through a place rather than connecting it to places along it, this path performs just like a highway. I think having a separated pedestrian path is not inappropriate considering the traffic is conveys. This is probably one of the few areas I think we should take a page from road/highway engineering, to increase capacity by separating nominal uses that are not compatible with each other. The ped path doesn’t even have to built to the same standards as the bike path, which can lower the cost, plus be an opportunity for more design and flora, that is tragically missing from most LA county beaches.
Great vid, but the real bike paths are the rivers. They cross through many cities and there's always a 7 eleven a few hundred yards away from a street overpass. I would recommend the S.G. River from Azusa(angeles crest mountains) down to seal beach which is 37 miles straight shot.
If your narrative starts in Pacific Palisades and moves Southward, it seems counterintuitive that all of your footage of travelling along the path is in the Northward direction. Other than that distraction, I found this generally enjoyable.
I commuted 10000 to 17000 miles a year for 25 years in and all over Los Angeles….. it’s very easy and as safe as any city…. And even safer for cyclists, when it’s bumper to bumper traffic…
Redondo harbor is easy to navigate lol 😂 the path goes onto the eastern portion of the pier and through the garage ... how the hell did you get lost 😂 ..rode that path when i was 10 and didnt even get lost lol marina del rey is the most confusing portion.
SoCal has a decent amount of long distance bike paths and many of the better ones are built along the flood control channels. To be honest if I was king of CA I’d make a bike oth along eveysingle flood channel I. The LA Basin. They already have paths there for truck access why not let the public use them? I feel like this is a major overlooked possibility.
I wish the bike path went all the way up to the northern part of county line.. i drive from Santa Monica to point dume, and i wish there was a dedicated bike path.. wont ever happen. Too many people love their beach parking, and im sure the residents in malibu don't care about bicycle riders
I find it funny how you completely ignored and didn't even mention the section of bike path from Playa Del Rey, where it goes through Gillis Beach, No Man's Land and Dockweiller State Beach and in front of El Segundo where the Water Treatment Plant, (Scattergood Generating Plant) Chevron Refinery, and SoCal Edison Power Plant are and El Porto Beach (45th st the actual start of Manhattan Beach to Rosecrans). That's a four mile strip of prime bikepath if you don't mind the jets, the State Beach which is the only section of beach where there are fire pits and overnight parking. It isn't the safest place to enjoy the beach due to Imperial Highway ending or beginning depending on the direction you start, being that Imperial travels due East all the way through some of the worst neighborhoods and cities in LA and the people who live inland wanting to enjoy the beach but just don't know how to behave while having fun in the surf and sand. I don't blame you for not having a portion of your video showing that section but, you really should have at least mentioned it. After all it is a State Beach where you can RV camp and have the only fire pits along the whole 26 miles of bike path.
a drawbridge for bikes and pedestrians is incredibly unnecessary and expensive. If you cant have a normal bridge cause of height requirements then the diversion is a better choice.
who would decide that walking a bike path is the best experience? A guy who continually advocates more pavement on the beach sand, that's who . definitely not a glass half full , look at the bright side guy.
It’s weird how liberal cali is and how much their politicians push for public transit yet cali is so car dependent, so many of those streets seriously could use street cars because they are so dam wide.
lmao don't cars become more of a PITA with snow? Digging out your car tires, heating it up, and driving through crap road conditions? Biking wasn't much better, but I just get dressed accordingly and just start riding my bike.
incredible stupidity . LA has arguably the best year round weather on the planet which is ideal for cycling but has the least amount of protected bike lanes ,while Netherlands has some of the worst weather on the planet but has the best cycling infrastructure .
I find it amazing that an area that votes overwhelmingly blue and has great weather year-round, does not have better bike infrastructure and public transportation. I guess it's full of virtue signalers instead of doers.
There’s another reason why Manhattan Beach has never built much parking… it doesn’t want you there 😂
True, very true.
I think the most similar thing we are getting to this is the new currently being built pedestrian/bikepath that's fully separated from the road on slauson in south central LA. It passes throughout a bunch of important streets like Vermont, Western, Crenshaw Broadway, and Avalon and even connects to the A and K line. It's expected to be done december and open early january
Im glad something like this is getting built in LA, especially on Slauson since its such a harsh street to walk and bike on
South l a not south central learn geography.
@@bennuckolls3409 most people dont care about the difference
Hard to not say a 8 lane road would have been nice with optional buss lane for 2 lanes total. But I feel street racing would be a deterrent. Traffic is just bad out there
This is great because the strand is only really useful for people wealthy (or lucky) enough to live in the beach cities
Ballona creek, LA River, san Gabriel River trail, rio hondo River trail. The LA River has a large gap that the city is planning to fill. As of now you can get from Elysian Park to the back of Griffith park or from the city of Vernon to Long Beach. The city has a plan to connect it from Elysian Park to the city of Vernon. Once complete you will be able to ride from essentially Burbank to Long Beach with no vehicles taking up your space.
I take this to work. Im confident its got a better throughput during rush hour than any other car highway in the area.
A million people live within 10km of manhattan beach/redondo beach.
like the "not just bikes" and the bell ring :) great touch
I appreciate that you made this video. The Strand is one of the top 5 coolest things in LA County. With that being said, there were a couple of comments you made that I disagree with.
1.) Those beach parking lots in Pacific Palisades absolutely get slammed during the peak beach months. People travel to the beach, with all their gear, from far and wide across the Southland. You have to provide ample parking space.
2.) Admittedly - Venice Boardwalk is an acquired taste. But I love it. Tired of all these souless, copy and paste commercial zones around the nation. That boardwalk maintains much of its original "come as you are" counterculture vibe. Far superior to the Walk of Fame. Spend a Saturday afternoon on the Boardwalk in summer and then get back to us.
We have a similar setup with lots of parking along the coastal greenways of Mission Bay in San Diego and personally don't mind the excess parking that absolutely gets used on the summer holidays. On random days, it is cool to see the various setups of van-lifers just chilling in the parking lot. The key is that they are narrow lots sandwiched between the road and beach pathway, which don't remind me of an awful strip mall parking lot.
The Venice art culture is no longer on the beach, but is still valued in the community, as is the flourishing musical culture , often on display at the community festivals.
The beach parking lots are some of the most valuable pieces of terrains in the USA. Having them be used exclusively for 4 months and empty the rest of the time is a disaster. Both ethically and financially. It could be restaurants, nice hotels, shops, etc... with parking lots behind, or just with good transit towards some parking lots or the rest of LA. But nop. It's just an expense for the city currently.
@marcbuisson2463 They aren't "empty" any where close to the amount of time you think. You have to remember that the beach is not a hyper local amenity only meant for nextdoor neighbors to use. It's considered a regional destination that people from as far as 100 miles away drive to, all year round. There has to be parking for those people.
@chebemchukwu4481 That's exactly why there should be no parking, but some hotel space, good transit, some place for restaurants, and a way for people living 100 miles away to come there without a car, because right now, the parking is both limiting the access, and limiting the services.
7:20 I think this is a super hot take on the Venice Beach boardwalk. I don't know anyone who doesn't like Venice. Small locally owned businesses along a walking path is actually incredibly good urbanism. Sure there are a lot of souvenir and T-shirt shops but that comes with being a highly-visited place.
My critique of Venice is that those old brick 5 story buildings with retail below and housing above are illegal to build today. They shouldn't be. The whole neighborhood should be filled with 5-8 story mixed-use. But there are anti-housing NIMBYs holding us back, including West LA's city council member who has routinely opposed affordable housing construction there.
I love the rest of the video though. It's such a shame there isn't a bridge over the marina canal. I would love to ride into the south bay cities but I don't want to risk my life on Washington Blvd which is a 7 lane stroad.
Very hot take indeed lol... this guy wouldn't like it in any European or Middle Eastern community center, marketplace, or farmer's market... the shouting, the local and mass-produced goods being peddled everywhere... the evident horrors of an active community and commerce. 😂
There’s a difference between shopkeepers and artisans interacting with passersby in a respectful manner (which may come across as shouting or coercion), and the kind of disrespectful peddling that comes across as groveling or desperate salesmen that are pushy and aggressive, which is more like what we have in touristed areas.
@@ttopero I've never encountered that type of salesman in Venice Beach... or San Fran, Tahoe, or the many other touristy areas I've been. The few times I have encountered that kind of behavior has usually been in shopping malls, during the holiday season, and it usually involves cell phones or candy. But maybe the shopkeepers there have gotten worse since I last visited, it's been a few months.
Thank you! Venice is such a gem with some of my fav local businesses and is the poster child for LA's beloved surf & skate culture.
yeah, and the comparison the the beach front in lisbon is weird too, in comparison to venice beach that street view looked boring and lifeless. portugal is great though.
Thank you for checking out the South Bay beach cities (Manhattan, Hermosa, and Redondo)! I’m born and raised here and I think this is easily the most underrated area in greater Los Angeles. I feel like we have a lot more “beach town” vibes are less touristy than other LA beaches like Santa Monica or Venice
Good luck leaving. Traffic is F’d over in that whole area.
Redondo is beautiful. that pier is next level eats
@@socaljarhead7670 Traffic is not nearly as bad in the South Bay as in most parts of Los Angeles, what do you mean
Shhhhhh!!!!!
Santa Monica Bay is really its' own thing culturally. I prefer it to the inland parts of LA like where I'm at. Cycling culture really is legit, especially the kids take advantage of cycling as a way to get around.
Awesome video! I’ve filmed hundreds of videos on this path for my channel. You do a great job articulating a lot of things I subconsciously “know” but never really realized all the things you explain in this video, great job!
That's a huge compliment! Thanks! :)
The concrete rivers have great bike paths, too. For example, you can ride from Anaheim Train Station through Newport Beach to almost Seal Beach on paths that did not allow cars (even crossing).
@kevin true but you have to watch out for Terminators
Great video! Thank you for putting it together.
Nice video. I live in El Segundo and that is my regular ride. Good to see another take on it.
I was just here two weeks ago! I went from the northern terminus down to Manhattan Beach and back using a Metro Bike Share rental (sooo much cheaper than the stores by the coast). It was fun to be able to follow along with the first 70% of the video knowing most of those twists and turns! Definitely felt a little anxious on Washington though especially without a mirror on my bike
mirrors are a hazard on a bike if you fall. better to leave that automobile mindset behind and rely more on your sense of hearing and vision . Plus there is a perfectly good sidewalk to ride in a relaxed manner right next to the street.
I enjoy bringing my skates here on the E Line trains to rollerblade on the path from Pacific Palisades to Santa Monica Pier. I'll also use the Metro Bike Share rack next to the Downtown Santa Monica E Line station and ride on both the curb-protected bike lanes running on Colorado and Ocean, which continues down the CA Incline and pedestrian bridge with twisting ramps, and back onto the beach bike path. Since you can return the bikes at any rack, I'll end my ride at the Venice boardwalk west end, as there's a Metro Bike Share rack in that area.
Took a few to figure out if this was one of those AI transportation videos (they’re out there!), but this was great. Thank you.
There is a massive effort for bike paths being built all over the city. San Gabriel valley has projects going on all over
Amazing video! It would be interesting if LA tried building a few long distance bike routes similar to this through the city, like they did in London.
Also, I have to genuinely congratulate you on finding the perfect name for a YT urbanist channel! 😅👌
There’s a decent amount of these long distances paths in the LA Basin. Most of them are built along riverbeds. But the Dan Gabriel riverbed trail, the Los coyotes riverbed trail and the Santa Ana river bed trail all come in at over 20 miles or longer.
Nice vid. Would love to see more cycling vids!
I’d love to see a tour video of the San Gabriel River trail from the San Gabriel mountains to Seal Beach!
Sending love from London UK! I loved so many parts of LA when I visited, but even the basic lack of sidewalks was shocking. LA really could become a cycling utopia, and I wish you and everyone else campaigning for it the best of luck!
I witnessed a hilarious interaction on venice last time I went. I live in LA but I rarely go to venice because 👀(ifykyk) but there was a guy trying to sling his paintings and had a little tent set up on the pedestrian path like people do, but there was a guy walking along towards us and he had a shopping cart and his dog on a leash walking ahead and across from him (closest side to the artist's tent) and for whatever reason the dog decided to relieve himself onto one of the paintings that was leaned up against the tend along the ground. The artist yelled at the dog to stop and very loudly said "I should kick that dog" but then everyone turned and looked at him when he said that, so he then pivoted and said "you know what, he signed it, it's worth more now" and that's basically venice in a nutshell.
🤣🤣🤣
Even more accurately "Venice in a nutshell" would be if a homeless person shat on the painting.
Love this path. Have done the whole thing multiple times. It’s a shock when you realize how nice it is.
Fantastic video 👏
Funny coincidence for you to upload this now! I just biked the manhattan and hermosa beach sections this past weekend for the first time, I was really surprised! It is a great section of infrastructure in southern california
Great video
7:00 i rode my Rollerblades and my daughter took her scooter..
great tunnel.
good informative video.
i think im gonna make some too.
thanks for the good video.
👋 via con dios
Great video!
Took this exact path on my first day of biking towards the border one year, ended the day in Lomg Beach, that past was super super helpful
Was someone fighting under the pier at 6:59 ?
Dude what an eye! They were filming a short film or something lmfao
The Ventura bike path goes underneath the Ventura pier just like in Santa Monica.
Also, the San Gabriel River trail can easily give the Strand a run for its money and is actually longer. It's not as glamorous since it doesn't follow along the beach the whole way, but it goes from Seal Beach in Orange County all the way to the base of the San Gabriel mountains just a little East of Pasadena. It has immense untapped potential for bike commuting.
Not too sure if you've looked at it yet, but you should look at the Orange Line bike route in the Valley. I'm curious to see how you'd rate it, especially compared to the Beach route.
I’m too long in the tooth now to cycle from Torrance Beach to Venice but it’s well worth the effort if you’re up to it. Before the beach cycleway there was an elevated wooden track that ran to and from Pasadena and Los Angeles called the California Cycleway. The easements are still delineated on Los Angeles cadastral maps. If you’re traveling north on the Pasadena Freeway it’s on the right. There is a Wikipedia article about. I tried to paste a link but apparently that’s verboten by the TH-cams.
I commute on this bike path every day. At marina del rey it branches off to the balona creek bike path which is also car free and goes all the way to Culver City. I take this route to my job. So the west side is actually very bike friendly.
What is a fourth place compared to a third place?
Fourth Place is your place to learn about U.S. geography, urbanism, transportation, and city planning! ;)
need to connect it to Long Beach and also more connector trails to the light rail
I used to commute from South Bay through this! Honestly lovely commute
That’s the thing - it’s not just bikes. It’s toddlers, dogs, sand dunes, roller bladers and walkers.
You should check out the bike highway along the San Gabriel river that runs from Duarte to Long Beach.
Nice little nod to Not Just Bikes in the intro.
Thanks for the great video. Checkout the ciclavias If you want to see another example of the pent-up demand for better biking infrastructure in LA. Every time one of those events happen it brings out thousands upon thousands of riders. And it's such a shame the city doesn't to more to encourage biking throughout the yea.
Back during the 1984 Olympics, the city implemented flex time which allowed people to come into work at different hours to free up traffic.
But over time managers chipped away at flex time because they don't get Los Angeles.
And the other major problem with people is thinking Southern California needs a down town area. So-Cal It doesn't. It's not New York.
It would be better for people to start thinking of places in southern California like Tokyo prefects .
Nobody needs to sit in traffic for 2 hours everyday, to get into downtown.
So there is a lot of slack to chip away at the automobile's road space without adding to other services
I love that bike bath. When I get a chance, I drive up from San Diego. Park my truck at the north edge of Redondo Beach public parking by the power plant. Then get on my bike and ride on that path all the way up to Will Roger’s State beach. Cause that’s where the path somewhat ends. Turn around and head back to my truck. Round trip is about 40 miles. Plenty of miles for my weekend warrior legs and butt. Some of the most beautiful beaches. And a calm atmosphere for any cyclist.
The Orange Line bike path is decent
If you put google maps on bike mode the infrastructure is growing massively in LA. I live in Carson, CA and even though Carson doesn't have much, it has connectors to all surrounding cites. You got the LA river trail, Wilmington, San Pedro and Compton which all mostly have great bike infrastructure. I could even ride Carson to to near downtown LA to Santa Monica on virtually all bike lane which spans nearly 35 miles. Granted, some parts of the bike lanes are taken over by homeless its great to see the changes.
wait you didn’t bike the bike path?
I have some good news to share! I know someone that works for the city of Hermosa Beach and they said the city will be copying the same bicycle/pedestrian layout as Manhattan Beach. The bad news is that it is going to take a really, really long time.
We need sky-high bike superhighways, four lanes wide, just for e-bikes and pedal pushers. Gas mini-bikes? No way, José! NIMBYs have been the roadblock for mechanical transport for ages. Biking could open up a whole new world of destinations.
Nothing makes automotive companies seethe with rage more than pedestrians. Normal people walking outside are like cockroaches in their house to them.
My father in law was on the Manhattan Beach City Council that created the bike path through the city. 💕 🚲
I’m craving moving back to the west coast and then this video pops up in the algorithm 🤔 🌊 🏄 🚲
Counties and regional governments often don’t have the power to do many great things beyond transportation or major venues, but this could be a big win for the Los Angeles County commissioners, with several non-Los Angeles communities to support getting the city of Los Angeles on board. As Santa Monica has demonstrated, doing it alone is faster and easier, but it only gets you so far-the rest of the way has to be cooperative!
San gabriel river bike path goes from the mountains the beach at a total length of 38 miles! 🤓
Being a Native that split the state 30 years ago, I remember why I left.
It's very different, unless you make tons of money, it can be a very hostile environment.
I traveled 1000's of miles all around the area in the 1960's -90's, I adopted a safer method of riding, never turning my back on traffic, sidewalks were fair game, every man for themselves.
Have fun, you can have the "Old Neighborhood", I won't even visit, it's less crowded up here in Oregon.
It’s a shame they didn’t make this path extend down the entire coast. They could have bike paths from Pacific Palisades down to the OC beaches.
You can ride 38 miles on the car-free San Gabriel River Trail, but be careful for the people speeding on Ebikes, minibikes and scooters. Then there are miles of no cars on the Rio Hondo trail, Long Beach bike trail, Sunset Beach to Newport Beach. I love riding where there are no cars, no noise.
Those concrete blocks that divided the walking section from the riding section need to be painted florescent green. At night there is no lights. If you get caught out there after sunset without a bike light its a hazard. Ive crashed my bike several times not being able to see those parking dividers.
I agree on more space for pedestrians on that trail I ride bicycles and run and recently did the Bra Run 13K a few months ago and it took place around that area where the planes take off and there were cyclists going right through the middle of packs of runners taking part in the run, I almost got hit a few times
Path took me out. The sand and turns are really ridiculous. The lifeguards who bandaged me and my daughter up says people take ills from the sand all the time. At least on turns, barriers to keep sand off should be implemented. It is a sublime experience otherwise.
the loops of bikepath around the sepulveda basin always piss me off, because there's JUST enough there to see how great it could be, but its still hemmed in by cars almost everywhere
Riding through Venice is a miserable experience with too much sand on the path and people stopped on the path everywhere
I live in Redondo Beach
Not to sound sarcastic that you just discovered "the strand." But even in the 70's and 80's there was a push from the southbay beach cities and others to completely build a pedestrian and cyclist thoroughfare the entirety of the ocean line of LA county south. That meant not just ending in Torrance Beach, but avoiding the bluffs of the Palos Verdes Peninsula. By keeping the walkway and cycling path onto the shoulder of Sepulveda Blvd and PCH (which becomes one in that section on town). Through Lomita, connecting into Harbor City, San Pedro Harbor, and into Long Beach. All within the county of LA.
Back then the only opposition was from the LA Harbor and rail lines that were expanding to accommodate from moving their freight without obstruction or barriers. I think an organization should take on that cause once again. I think the cities of Harbor City, San Pedro, and sections of Long Beach could use some revitalization. By connecting them to the rest of the LA County coastline.
I wasn’t alive in the 70s…or 80s…or 90s…😅
@fourth_place
Not to snub. But TH-cam influencer are about informing current conditions, relaying history, it's pros and cons. Bringing city living and accessibility to light 💡
Urbanists with a TH-cam Camara aren't the guru's of what has or hasn't been built or done. Many communities and planners before the advent of social media started that, and did that leg work. For what's been accomplished. What you bring to the table is opinion. I would love to see you at city planning commissions, presenting drafts, giving actual hard usage numbers to public works?
Seems like a big issue would be to find a route through or around Rancho Palos Verdes that won't immediately be lost in a landslide.
4:03 Seen it in the summer?
6:55 Karate fight on the left?
Calling it a Cycling Highway may sound pejorative, but when we compare how a car highway functions by conveying cars through a place rather than connecting it to places along it, this path performs just like a highway.
I think having a separated pedestrian path is not inappropriate considering the traffic is conveys. This is probably one of the few areas I think we should take a page from road/highway engineering, to increase capacity by separating nominal uses that are not compatible with each other. The ped path doesn’t even have to built to the same standards as the bike path, which can lower the cost, plus be an opportunity for more design and flora, that is tragically missing from most LA county beaches.
12:33 Remember to BIKE YOUR WALK 😂
Great vid, but the real bike paths are the rivers.
They cross through many cities and there's always a 7 eleven a few hundred yards away from a street overpass.
I would recommend the S.G. River from Azusa(angeles crest mountains) down to seal beach which is 37 miles straight shot.
Seems the City versus the County is being confused again.
Was that a dig at... 1:28
Not just bikes are about to sue this guy for copyright ©️
more of a nod, fellas
@@fourth_place ohhhh haha!
It’s nice if you live in the area, but there’s only one freeway that accesses it and it’s perpetually screwed.
If your narrative starts in Pacific Palisades and moves Southward, it seems counterintuitive that all of your footage of travelling along the path is in the Northward direction. Other than that distraction, I found this generally enjoyable.
the bike path through redondo continues through the parking lot. Idk how you got lost. Its pretty self explanatory.
I commuted 10000 to 17000 miles a year for 25 years in and all over Los Angeles….. it’s very easy and as safe as any city…. And even safer for cyclists, when it’s bumper to bumper traffic…
Redondo harbor is easy to navigate lol 😂 the path goes onto the eastern portion of the pier and through the garage ... how the hell did you get lost 😂 ..rode that path when i was 10 and didnt even get lost lol marina del rey is the most confusing portion.
5:38 looks so damn fimilar...
SoCal has a decent amount of long distance bike paths and many of the better ones are built along the flood control channels. To be honest if I was king of CA I’d make a bike oth along eveysingle flood channel I. The LA Basin. They already have paths there for truck access why not let the public use them? I feel like this is a major overlooked possibility.
This is the ONLY thing I miss about California
the nimbys already allowed the french to be better
I wish the bike path went all the way up to the northern part of county line.. i drive from Santa Monica to point dume, and i wish there was a dedicated bike path.. wont ever happen. Too many people love their beach parking, and im sure the residents in malibu don't care about bicycle riders
100% behind more public rail transportation, but you won’t replace cars until you take care of crime first.
100% agree
If LA had ladder and rung bike hwy across its length, LA would have less traffic and way less obesity than American avg.
Yeah, it's not a _bike_ path; it's everything but gas powered vehicles path.
After 10am and to 6pm it's pretty much a sidewalk.
Long Beach to Azusa without any auto traffic? What's wrong with this?
I find it funny how you completely ignored and didn't even mention the section of bike path from Playa Del Rey, where it goes through Gillis Beach, No Man's Land and Dockweiller State Beach and in front of El Segundo where the Water Treatment Plant, (Scattergood Generating Plant) Chevron Refinery, and SoCal Edison Power Plant are and El Porto Beach (45th st the actual start of Manhattan Beach to Rosecrans). That's a four mile strip of prime bikepath if you don't mind the jets, the State Beach which is the only section of beach where there are fire pits and overnight parking. It isn't the safest place to enjoy the beach due to Imperial Highway ending or beginning depending on the direction you start, being that Imperial travels due East all the way through some of the worst neighborhoods and cities in LA and the people who live inland wanting to enjoy the beach but just don't know how to behave while having fun in the surf and sand.
I don't blame you for not having a portion of your video showing that section but, you really should have at least mentioned it. After all it is a State Beach where you can RV camp and have the only fire pits along the whole 26 miles of bike path.
a drawbridge for bikes and pedestrians is incredibly unnecessary and expensive. If you cant have a normal bridge cause of height requirements then the diversion is a better choice.
Tragic urbanism is for high income..
If you wanna get away from all the tourist areas and homeless people head to the far southern point of this bike path.
yes long beach is a great spot!
who would decide that walking a bike path is the best experience? A guy who continually advocates more pavement on the beach sand, that's who . definitely not a glass half full , look at the bright side guy.
1:26 say that again
It’s weird how liberal cali is and how much their politicians push for public transit yet cali is so car dependent, so many of those streets seriously could use street cars because they are so dam wide.
What's the point of California having cars if it doesn't snow?
lmao don't cars become more of a PITA with snow? Digging out your car tires, heating it up, and driving through crap road conditions? Biking wasn't much better, but I just get dressed accordingly and just start riding my bike.
Braude is pronounced “brow-dee”
incredible stupidity .
LA has arguably the best year round weather on the planet which is ideal for cycling but has the least amount of protected bike lanes ,while Netherlands has some of the worst weather on the planet but has the best cycling infrastructure .
I find it amazing that an area that votes overwhelmingly blue and has great weather year-round, does not have better bike infrastructure and public transportation. I guess it's full of virtue signalers instead of doers.
pretty much
But this path is an example of great bike infrastructure.
Unfortunately its only really useful as a commute for those wealthy or lucky enough to live near the beach
Is he a communist. Why does he hate cars ?. He can walk and bike in beautiful down town Stalingrad or Beijing where he will feel at home.
Because cars destroy everything. They are heinous.