Tunnel Visionaries

Before a shovel of dirt could be turned, Jim Sowell and his assistant had to weigh in.

“We had to study the condition of traffic, where buses ran, the geology, if there was water in the ground,” said Sowell, an MTA environmental compliance manager and 20-year veteran of the agency. “We had to check crime rates. Are we building this in a dangerous part of town? Will people come?”

Sometimes workers made unexpected findings, such as sloth, horse and camel bones dating to the Ice Age. Once they were identified by archeologists, they were sent to the Los Angeles County Museum of Natural History.

Sowell knew that subway construction would bring some environmental unpleasantness to nearby Angelenos. Noise levels increased and the digging caused some streets to sink in Hollywood. Some businesses along Lankershim Boulevard also complained of sinkage.

Sowell said contractors did the best they could to minimize noise and traffic hazards.

“Construction is a noisy and dusty business,” he said, but “at the end, the subway does more good than harm.”

Specifically, Sowell said the Universal City and North Hollywood stations should reduce pollution and ease freeway traffic if enough commuters use them.

“If you can have 2,000 people riding a rail, that means there will be about 1,800 fewer cars on the road,” he said. “That translates to cleaner air.”