Results tagged “study”

A two-year study between the United Way of Greater Los Angeles and USC's Center for Community Health Studies and Housing found that housing the homeless is about $80,000 cheaper than leaving them on the streets. The survey found that taxpayers spent $187,288 a year those living on the streets because of their use of hospitals, jails and clinics. Putting people in permanent housing costs $107,032.

A new study says that Los Angeles is the number one city for sensitive guys -- in where they (we?) can be found and where that sensitive side can best be showcased. Actually, we share the top position. The City of (Sensitive) Angels tied with San Francisco. With six additional Golden State cities filling out the study’s top fifteen, California kicked the less-sensitive butt’s of forty nine other states. Orange County (Anaheim/Santa Ana) came in at number eight.

Blame pollution: 2008 was another banner year for troubled waters at our nation's beaches, according to the results of the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) annual study. Although last year was a dry one, "aging and poorly designed sewage and stormwater systems hold much of the blame for beachwater pollution [and] stormwater runoff contributed to two-thirds of the closing/advisory days in which a contamination source was reported."

The 2009 Urban Mobility Report was released today, and the study gives us insight into how much time and gas we waste in traffic, according to abc7. Published by the Texas Transportation Institute, the study uses 2007 data to compare to earlier years, and while we may want to cheer that we shaved one hour from our "stuck in traffic" time from 2006 to 2007, we are still the worst in the nation when it comes to traffic.

How close are you to obesity? If you're a teenager, the answer is in the geography:

Teens who attend classes within one-tenth of a mile of a fast-food outlet are more likely to be obese than peers whose campuses are located farther from the lure of quarter-pound burgers, fries and shakes.

Last Fall, the ACLU released a study based on post-stop actions of its officers on 810,000 field data reports completed by LAPD officers nearly every time they stopped a vehicle or pedestrian between July 1, 2003 and June 30, 2004. They concluded that black and Hispanic residents are stopped, frisked, searched and arrested by LAPD officers far more frequently than white residents.

"Everyone is a victim of discrimination and everyone gets paid," according to a report that says Los Angeles' civil court system is one of seven "judicial hellholes" nationwide and ranks it the sixth most unjust. Basically, if sue for discrimination, you win, finds the American Tort Reform Foundation.

"A new economic forecast predicts the California economy is in for a rough 2009. The quarterly Anderson Forecast from UCLA says unemployment is going to continue to be ugly, with the jobless rate peaking next year at 8.7 percent -- meaning nearly one in 10 workers will be out of work."

The RAND Corporation came out with a study today focusing on short-term transportation policy options that could improve transportation in the city. They based their findings on what they see as the problem of Los Angeles traffic: mainly cheap and abundant parking and polycentricism (various sub-centers instead of one downtown area). And one of the more interesting reasons why traffic reductions are usually temporary seems to be the human psyche:

A report released from the Brookings Institution says Honolulu has the lowest carbon footprint of any city in the United States. Then at number two is Los Angeles, which is a surprise considering the city's sprawling car culture and industry. Who is not surprised is Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa's office. His deputy for energy and environment told the LA times that "sprawl is a lot worse in other parts of the U.S." and that the city has a "moderate climate, with fewer heating and air-conditioning days, and [it has] relatively newer, less drafty housing stock" than in other parts of the country.

LAX has earned it's best rating ever this year -- average. The Daily News reports on the J.D. Power and Associates airport satisfaction study that was released yesterday and finds that LAX is crawling up the list year by year.

How many times have you seen some boneheaded driver make a stupid move on the road, only to drive up beside them and see them yapping away on their cell phones? Too many times, I'll bet you. Now a new study shows that cell phone users also drive more slowly and make poor lane-change choices, which may slow down traffic overall up to 10%. From the LA Times:

Researchers at the University of Utah have found that motorists jabbering on cellphones drive more hesitantly than undistracted drivers and, as a result, are increasing everyone's average drive time by 5% to 10%.

Continue reading "Cell Phone Use May Make Traffic Worse"