How Do We Unclog Southland Traffic?

Re “L.A. Traffic Moving a Bit Faster,” May 10: Hard to believe? Impossible to believe! Anyone who struggles through our almost complete gridlock on a regular basis knows the Texas Transportation Institute is high on diesel smoke.

Drivers from Riverside County travel the roads in Orange and Los Angeles as well, so their lost hours should be combined. And where are any synchronized signals? Nowhere that I have been lately. Also, left-turn signals stall, rather than increase traffic flow (except for the few that show “yield” after the green arrow).

Another frustration are the limited-access HOV lanes, which keep qualified vehicles from entering at any time, and cost taxpayers for up to 11 lines of paint striping and Botts Dots, instead of one broken white line.

Trust me, traffic is worse, much worse.

Ron Lankford

Corona

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Gee whiz. This is a no-brainer. Southern California has pretty good weather year round to use the type of transportation that would keep us flowing smoother.

The benefits of this sort of transportation are that it: (1) usually gets better gas mileage than most cars (mine has gotten 50-plus mpg since 1984); (2) can use the diamond lane with only one person; (3) doesn’t wear down our roadways like cars and trucks; (4) doesn’t take up much space to park; and (5) can go between lanes when there is gridlock, thereby not adding to congestion.

This transportation is called a motorcycle, and I’ve done it daily since 1991 from Van Nuys to Santa Monica.

Commuter motorcyclists should be recognized for their contribution in curtailing this horrendous traffic problem and emission problem we have here in Southern California.

Michael Becker

Van Nuys