Taking Aim at Gridlock

Bit by bit, technology is making life a little easier for Ventura County commuters. But although innovations such as a new automatic truck weight monitoring system and a planned all-traffic-information radio station might help, as long as cars and freeways remain the transit mode of choice there will be traffic jams.

The most promising bit of technology for people who live in Ventura County and work in Los Angeles County is the Metrolink system. The transit line issued 120 free four-day passes to Ventura County riders during last month’s Democratic National Convention.

The 90-minute ride from Oxnard to Union Station will get smoother during the first two weeks of October when tracks are replaced inside a tunnel in Simi Valley. And it will get more convenient for West County residents when the Montalvo station opens next spring.

In the past year, average daily ridership on Metrolink’s six routes has increased by 13% to almost 32,000 people; about 1,000 Ventura County residents ride it daily.

Those folks probably just smiled at last week’s news story about the new truck scales on the Conejo Grade that can weigh a big rig while it’s rolling along at full speed and electronically signal the driver whether to stop at the inspection station or sail on by.

And they probably laughed out loud at the story about the traffic information and emergency radio station coming next year for Conejo Valley residents who travel to Los Angeles from Pacific Coast Highway or the 101, 405 and 10 freeways. If there’s an accident that will create more than a half-hour delay, Caltrans personnel will relay the problem, the time estimated to clear it and alternative routes to motorists.

Technology can do a lot to help people get from one place to another. But until more of them start using technology such as Metrolink, freeway gridlock will never become obsolete.