LA’s Forbidden Pedestrian Tunnels
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- čas přidán 7. 02. 2024
- Los Angeles is a city built upon layers of history, with each era leaving its mark on the landscape. Amidst the bustling streets and towering buildings, there's a hidden piece of the city's past that often goes unnoticed: its forgotten pedestrian tunnels. These subterranean passages, once bustling with life, now lie abandoned and largely forgotten by the masses.
Constructed in the early to mid-20th century, these tunnels were designed to provide safe passage for pedestrians, allowing them to traverse busy intersections without the risk of traffic accidents. However, as the city evolved and transportation patterns shifted, many of these tunnels fell into disuse.
Today, these forgotten pedestrian tunnels stand as relics of a bygone era, offering a glimpse into a time when foot traffic reigned supreme in the City of Angels. Some have been repurposed for storage or utility purposes, while others remain eerily deserted, their entrances hidden beneath layers of urban sprawl.
Despite their neglect, these tunnels hold a certain allure for urban explorers and history enthusiasts alike, who seek to uncover the stories and secrets buried beneath the streets of LA. As the city continues to evolve, it's important to remember and preserve these forgotten relics, as they serve as a reminder of the rich and diverse history that lies beneath the surface of Los Angeles.
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IT’S HISTORY - Weekly Tales of American Urban Decay as presented by your host Ryan Socash.
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» CREDIT
Scriptwriter - Dillan Aultimate,
Editor - Karolina Szwata,
Host - Ryan Socash
Music/Sound Design: Dave Daddario
» NOTICE
Some images may be used for illustrative purposes only - always reflecting the accurate time frame and content. Events of factual error / mispronounced word/spelling mistakes - retractions will be published in this section.
I feel like this video misdiagnosed the problem. Tunnels were an effective solution until the bums/junkies/gangs took them over. The overall decay of a functional society is the problem.
I agree, an overall decay of a functional society is the problem, but what and how do you fix that very serious problem. Government is to blame for almost all of it because politicians and lobbyists make the rules which in turn has destroyed trust and left common sense left in the ditch.
Democratic
@@SWExploreyep governments to blame
@@ifeelbetterabouthis.louis3 All political parties are to blame, all governments are responsible
Reopen the institutions.
These tunnels near USC and the coliseum were scary in the 90s.
Too scary. I was there in the 80s - never once did I use those tunnels.
I lived in the USC area growing up there was one near western and 37th. You didn’t go in those tunnels in the 90s believe it.
Heck I wouldn’t go in them now
That sounds so racist but the truth is the truth...
@ScottyCee2012 I know exactly the tunnel you're talking about lol.
It's on 35th and Western.
Can't be a city of angels without all those deaths.
All I see is dead wings
Where do you think all those angels came from.
Wow. That part.
Yikes, that's rough 😬
OOF!! 😂
It's wild that they essentially built subway stops without the subways.
Why? Plenty of countries have these. Just another option for crossing a road instead of lights or a footbridge. They are sometimes favoured in older looking cities as a crossing to protect the look of the area.
RickyT, my native Korea being an example. I don’t know about Japan, China or other Asian nations, but Korea not only has underground tunnels, but shopping centers in those same underground passages as well. Actually, I don’t know if they still do, but they did when I was a child.
There's a pedestrian underpass in Shawnee, OK that is used for children crossing Kickapoo Street which is locked unless in used, and then only with crossing guards protecting the entrances.
dang didnt know that
I think there is (or was) one in El Reno, OK like that as well.
Where if it’s in Kansas City ?
Kickapoo Street? 🤨😆😆
Wow I didn't hear about that.
What a pleasure to find this important but often overlooked subject get the attention it deserves - only to hear my own work summarized at protracted length and in detail - often even paraphrased - without thanks or even acknowledgment. Most of the first half of this video is a long synopsis of my original work, especially Fighting Traffic: The Dawn of the Motor Age in the American City. Also deserving acknowledgement is Ryan Fonseca, for his 2022 article in LAist, "Unearthing LA’s Pedestrian Tunnels and Their Roots In Our History of Traffic Violence," in which the author demonstrates what acknowledging one's sources looks like. The omissions are all the stranger when we actually do have a "CREDIT" line for the material naming two people for the historical content, implying that the information that the audience hears is their work. This channel is called "It's History," but it's not history worthy of the name until its sources are named and acknowledged. You can do better than that.
Thanks for speaking up. The topic is interesting to me since I lived in the LA Basin for over25 years, mostly in Pasadena. No Pedestrian tunnels exist there to my knowledge, but Glendale and Eagle Rock that was familiar.
lol
Wall of text 😂
+
Thank you. That looks like a good book.
I remember these very well in L.A. My mom made me stay out of them. If I could look all the way through and not see anyone inside, I assumed it was safe to pass through and avoid child molesters.
And what would happen if when you were halfway through someone started coming through?
As others said, the tunnels aren't the issue. Japan is covered in pedestrian tunnels and overpasses. They are highly effective in a pedestrian heavy country.
The problem is quite literally diversity. Nobody wants to say it but that's what it is
@qoph1988 lmfao no. Diversity makes socal and LA a mecca
@qoph1988 Diversity isn't an issue. The majority of homeless are white.
The reason you have people living on the streets is lack of housing and lack of humane care systems. That's why Japan doesn't have homeless everywhere despite being expensive.
They ensure poor people have a place to go instead of telling them to get bent.
LTRand, not just Japan, but Korea as well.
It's all about the media, whether left or right leaning.
Taipei has lots of tunnels and bridges for pedestrians with low fences to keep people out of the crazy Taipei traffic. Many places you don’t have the option of not using them. I used them well after dark, no problems.
London too.
Yes. I’ve been to Taipei. Excellent public transportation system…but good luck trying to have honest convo with the LA crowd as to why that is.
@@coldwater5707 I was in 87. They were building the city subway at the time but I rode the trains all over the island 🏝.
@@evanswinford7165 I was there a couple of years ago with my daughters and we were literally walking across dark parks and streets at night going places….stuff I would never do in an an American City, especially one psyop-ed into thinking a Soros DA is a good idea. We have a lot of work to do squaring this place away.
I've been to China 🇨🇳 3 times, I felt safe
I remember we had one of those outside my middle school in South San Gabriel back in the day. We kids knew better than to use it because it was dangerous. I remember when they fenced it and eventually it disappeared
How did you cross the street then?
What was so dangerous about it?
The local crack addict?
@@mro4ts457 drug addicts, prostitutes and gang's is that enough to describe the situation
I grew up in Echo Park during the 80s and 90s and there was a tunnel under the 101. I used it once. It was something else.
@renegonzalez8063 how was it something else? what did u see?!
Those tunnels are dangerous when you are up against urban decay.
what about them was dangerous?
@@manp1039 you have dangerous people that frequent through them and no one will know what happened to you.
@@manp1039They are junkie ambush death traps. Don't be a rube. The incredible ignorance of thinking that these were shut down because of "car culture" or whatever. These people will look for literally any explanation, no matter how unrealistic or labyrinthine, to avoid the incredibly obvious reason why LA changed.
*societal decay
@@davidblackwell6914 I don't understand what you mean by "up against urban decay". Do you mean like cops, social workers or missionaries?
Weren't those tunnels dangerous for anyone?
"Speed doesn't kill. Speed has never killed any one. Suddenly becoming stationary, that's what gets you." - JC
A very interesting point sir!
However, it's MUCH EASIER to suddenly stop at low speeds.
@@user-dj7wv5ok2x yes, but who wants to drive slow? lol
TRUE DAT!
Or in the case of being hit, suddenly not being stationary... so you could say its sudden changes in velocity that kill
When I saw these, I always thought it was the underground subway of Los Angeles.
Same
I always thought they led to the sewers.
california doesn’t have subways
@@DeniseMartinez-qr4gj do some more research.
@DeniseMartinez-qr4gj there are, they're just not very practical to use most of the time so most of LA doesn't depend on them
Vividly recall using the pedtunnel at Wilton place and Hollywood blvd often in the 1960/70's. I can still hear the echo of my footsteps reverberating off the walls and changing pitch via the 'doppler effect' as I made my way from one end to the other. Being that these tunnels provided some security, the less fortunate of the times would often urinate, deficate, and yes, even vomit in seclusion resulting in not only the rancid odor and accompanying rivers and cumulative pools of waste but the added exersize of leap frogging across them in hopes of getting out on the other side with dry shoes.
My tunnel in the 1950's was in Pico Rivera. It crossed under Rosemead Blvd between Beverly Blvd and Olympic Blvd over to North Ranchito Elementary School. By the third grade we knew to walk down to Beverly Blvd and use the cross walk.
I remember going to Magnolia Ave school and having to use the tunnel to cross Venice Blvd. There was always someone sleeping off a drunk there. I lived on Magnolia Ave 61-62
Pico-Union District ? 90015 ?
I remember in the 60's walking to Clifford Street Elementery School and and walking in the tunnel under Glendale Blvd. I have not been there in years , do not know if it is still open.
For those wanting to experience one of these tunnels, there is still one that is used at the Hollywood bowl. They get cramped after leaving a good concert.
I hate to tell you, but most of these are in neighborhoods that aren't much safer above ground. Los Angeles is mostly nasty except the far west side.
True, you are right, but even in the west end, trouble happens. It's almost as if we are no longer safe no matter where we live in Los Angeles, and perhaps the entire Western culture.
@@SWExplore I agree. Especially in Los Angeles where everyone drives.
Other states can use California as an example of what not to do.
@soco13466 exactly. But unfortunately the government rolls out different policies to test in California. Working or not, they will implement them on the rest of the country over time😥
@@soco13466 Hopefully not since California represents the fifth largest GDP in the world all by itself. Texas in Florida are but a fraction of it and of course Texas has more gun deaths per capita in Florida has more junkies per capita.
Ryan trying out the gangsta look!
😂
He better not jaywalk
more like 80s rapper.
straight outta sunset
I’m happy to see that Vanilla Ice finally found his niche, telling history!
I read this right at the start of of the video and was confused...until he popped up on screen, then I couldn't unsee it!!! Rolling in my 5.0...
Word to your mother!
Extremely white white baby! (Jim Carey In living Color)
I thought he became a chef and started singing....cook that rice rice, baby!
A 100-year old pedestrian tunnel in Downtown Long Beach, California is to be restored and re-opened. It goes under Ocean Avenue, and used to lead to the famous "The Pike" amusement center.
That could be useful during the Grand Prix!
I remember the tunnel that went under Santa Monica Blvd near Bundy. It was already locked off in the 70s. I don't think it's there anymore at all. I moved out of state 20 years ago, but now I want to drive by there & see what's changed.
There is an old abandoned tunnel like this underneath the Roosevelt Blvd in Philadelphia at Adams St. It was used for pedestrian access to the old Sears tower (which was replaced by a shopping center). There is also an unfinished subway station for a line that was never built nearby.
07:00 & 11:20 "Fig-a-ROW-ah", not "Fig-oar-ah".
Exactly! Why can't these narrators have their work checked by actual people?
that's at least a rare and slightly difficult word, I once watched him say "basin" as bass-in, then as bay-sin (correctly) only to return to bass-in on the 3rd mention of the word-- could be down to the teleprompter...
At least his outfit is cool.
How do you know that someone lived in LA? They can pronounce both Figueroa and Sepulveda correctly.
@@elwoodblues9613 The Los Angeles Shibboleth!
We had one in Long Beach on Cherry Beach I know it was open when I was a kid but they eventually closed it up with a fence I don't know if it's still there since I moved out of state 20 years ago but I remember how scary it was in that tunnel.
My mom would never let me go inside that tunnel! She said people would get raped in the tunnel. I never went in
Great video! Thanks for putting it together
This reminds me of how I play Cities: Skylines. I only built overpass pedestrian bridges while keeping underground restricted to vehicles and public transit when needed. I always wanted to see how many pedestrians were walking.
as Eddie Valliant said, who needs a car when you can buy a ten cent street car ride?
I grew up in The San Fernando Valley most of my life, and we don't have those Pedestrian tunnels. When I first Saw these Underground stairs, when I come to L.A On the weekends when I was 16 Years Old, I thought it was an Old Subway Station Similar to those in New York or Chicago. But I just discovered this Video right now. I had No Idea it was an Underground Pedestrian. That is Crazy.
woow crazy right?! They do look like the entrances to the subways in NYC and Chicago. If the city really cared I feel like they would be looking for solutions publicly. Its giving irresponsible. smh I lived and worked in LA for 8 years and just now saw the vide too. There are so many issues not being talked about in LA., like cold cases. Where are the leaders that care?
Huh anytime I seen stairs leading under the street I just assumed they where paths to cross the street.... and I grew up in Florida where we don't have under ground stuff
I can't think of any as shown in the video where it's on the sidewalk, but there are a few examples of pedestrian tunnels in the SFV.
Most of the ones I can think of go under the 101. The nearest major streets below.
Burbank Blvd and Etiwanda.
Shoup Ave and Ventura Blvd.
Wilbur and Ventura Blvd.
Always excited to see your videos! This one was so much fun (to learn about at least) am from nyc, haven't been to LA or California before. Love to see the history still. There may be something similar here in Queens nyc. Around Maspeth or Austin St area? (Visitng friends or family) Am from Brooklyn, but always thought better an above ground bridge than to a tunnel? Much more lovelier in my opinion. Like the one in lefrak city, or the one by the world trade. Underground for pedestrian is just so ominous and not an over all lovely experience. The bridge one in Queens for me was a part of my travel to and from school, they'd decorate it for people to honk for certain things, events, etc. What could have been the difference between sky bridges vs tunnels? Financially at least? Thank you for you vids! Always fun to watch and wonder a life in "what ifs"
Remember back then about cars = vehicles = did NOT have very good breaks at all back then! AWESOME VIDEO T. Y. to all for this video 4 all of us!
They probably had great breaks then... Lunch was longer, recess was great, spring was greener and so on.
Brakes*
The automobile in general (car, BUS, and TRUCK), got several huge "breaks"; one was when the cities which had municipal electric railways, forced by the budding automotive industry and the up-and-coming energy corporations, ordered the traction interests (electric "street" railways) to pave the streets in which they had trackage AT THEIR OWN EXPENSE without assistance from any governmental levels! The railways were also prohibited from increasing their fares to offset their losses; these phenomena, coupled with the passage of the anti-electric-rail Public Utilities Holding Company Trust Act in 1935, forced most of these street railways out of business by subsequently forcing them to purchase buses which, in turn, ended up selling millions of private cars.
Then Eisenhower imported Hitler's autobahn, and that spelled the virtual end of all efficient, safe, comfortable, and environmentally friendly ground-based transportation throughout the United States.
When I lived in Tarzana in the 80's there was a pedestrian tunnel that went under the Ventura Fry that I used to get to an arcade. I check on Google Maps and it's still there and open. Yolanda Ave.
Have you done a video on the Chicago Pedway system? That would be awesome if you did.
I agree
The tunnel crossing I used in the 1960s and early '70s to get to school was at Fletcher Dr. and Estara Ave. as you mentioned. The Good Ol'days!
That tunnel across Highland in front of The Hollywood Bowl was so scary, I would only take it with 1000 other people after a concert. At noon on Tuesday...There's C.H.U.D. down there, I swear.
What's C.H.U.D. ?
@lamar1423
0 seconds ago
I know exactly which one you're talking bout. As far as LA underpasses that was one of the biggest.Wide and long. From the Pligramidge Theater.
@@jed-henrywitkowski6470 Cannibalistic Humanoid Underground Dwellers
@@jed-henrywitkowski6470Cannibal Humanoid Underground Dwellers, a 1984 Horror/ SiFi movie.
@@jed-henrywitkowski6470cannibalistic humanoid underground dwellers. It's a movie from the 80s that recently got traction again as leftoid's descriptions for anyone right of their politics.
This is a fine piece of work, thanks so much.
Many thanks!
There was an episode of Adam-12, an early 70s police show, where a gun fight happened in one of these tunnel/street access stairways. I didn’t realize they were so widespread there.
I love that show! It shows you how Los Angeles and the valley used to be.
What a fascinating report. I grew up in a time when we were taught street safety in grade school with little sing-song- chants "Stop at the curb - - Look left! Look right! - Look left! - All clear?- Then you can CROSS!" So many years ago, but that sing-song is still stuck in my head. I never questioned that cars were being prioritized over humans using streets and travel-ways. But you point that out very clearly. Great report on this history!
Yes, the street exists to efficiently move traffic through the city. It’s far more efficient to allow ordered traffic of cars, trucks and busses, then having them open for people to absent mindedly wander
@@eriknervik9003 how dare people have social spaces to interact with eachother 😡😡😡😡😡
@@noah4822
You ever heard of this new invention called church? You can go there and interact with lots of people
Germany here we drive much faster than usa and its much safer per capita or per mile what ever you choose.
TÜV moment
Because Germans have stricter auto schools and drivers are much more vigilant and skilful in average, I believe. In fact, many of us in Europe believe that Germans are the best drivers of the continent. Isn't it the country of Michael Schumacher, after all?
@@Polemodrome thank you for the high praise. But dont underestimate the americans. They have great drivers but many horrible ones.
From where are you mate?
@@marcbeebee6969
I am from France. How do you perceive us generally, as drivers?
I used to live in LA city with my husband, and I was born and raised in the LA metro area. I moved to Massachusetts not even a month ago, and this video made me realize all that I lost when I left since my husband and I are no longer together. I moved out here all on my own and I fear eveything I love "back home" will be lost to me forever.
LA used to have a huge trolley system that was destroyed by car industry.
When I was 6 yrs old, I remember wondering, for the 1st time, to the Blvd. Went down then up to other side of this crossing tunnel that was there. It was such an adventure, standing on other side of the Blvd all by myself.
Slowly returning to cars being a luxury for the rich despite being a necessity for many.
You will have nothing and be happy.
Once upon a time the poor owned horses while the rich owned cars. Now the rich own both cars and horses and the poor can travel via bus.
Good one man. Very interesting!
I live literally right right next to the one in el sereno. The city opened it once during Halloween(my birthday) like 20 years ago. But it’s kept close because it’s too sketchy
I grew up in El Sereno, my grandma still lives there, I remember always walking by the one by Jack in the box on Huntington Blvd, and asking my grandma if she ever been down there, she Said yeah but they closed them after they became unsafe.
@@bingothecat21 that’s the one I’m talking about lol
And again my compliments. Well researched. I have seen the tunnels but you have revealed a lot more of the history and story. I do not understand the significance of the ski beanie for Los Angeles where it never snows.
i went to annandale elementary and thought every school had that little tunnel . So crazy !!!
I believe the tunnel on Broadway and 30th for John Adams Middle School is still in use.
I saw students utilize it during school hours about 3 years ago.
Yep it’s used to walk to the other side for the playground.
Fascinating history. Always hated exposing through these when I was young especially when seeing someone entering from the other end.
I remember back in the mid 70s; not sure if it they're still there today; there were many underground pedestrian tunnels connecting shopping centers, hotel/motels & I think the bus depot to Mayo Clinic in Rochester MN. We went there when my grandfather was getting hip replacement surgery. We stayed at a small motel 1 or 2 blocks from the Mall which had a covered walkway; so we could access the underground passage. It was easier to go that way since my Grandmother had arthritis issues and the hotel offered wheelchairs to get back & forth to the mall. All of those tunnels ended in a large lobby with 6-8 elevators to take you upstairs to the hospital information desk. Also, there is still one pedestrian tunnel in the loop area accessible thru Lower Wacker...or was it Lower Lower Wacker? Not sure but it was close to the underground car meets that pop-up there from time to time.
What I think is a total joke; and Proof of politicians pandering for votes is the issue stated at 14:40. So it's safe to assume that if a group keeps breaking the law; irregardless on the fact it saves lives and the blatantly don't care about the law; politicians will change the law to get the vote. What a friggin' joke.
There were one maybe two underground tunnels located in Atwater Village. The one I remember crossed under the 3300 N Glendale Blvd. block near the 3600 W Revere Ave. block and at the 3500 W Perlita Ave. corner. There was a hobby store next door to an independent grocery store owned by a very nice Japanese man. Bought many penny candies from there. Now that store is a library. I lived on the Glendale side of the tracks between 1963 and 1970.
There was one in front of my old high school in San Diego that crossed below El Cajon Blvd. Due to safety concerns, they sealed it sometime in the 70s.
Hoover high?
@@nineteenoh4 Yeah... Hoover High. It was probably near the front parking lot entrance by the old tennis courts. All traces were erased probably around 1979 when they first renovated the school. I vaguely recall seeing an old photo of the interior in some school photos.
You always have the most interesting topics!
Glad you think so!
We had two tunnels on PCH in Wilmington, CA. One between Fries Ave and Island Ave the other between Avalon Blvd and Broad Ave. We got to use both! Sometime in the late 80's early 90's, both were sealed.
It's pretty sad that society has degraded so far that you can't even have a tunnel put under the road without it becoming a cesspool of crime and villainy.... A low trust society indeed.
The problem comes from corrupt government that allows lobbying groups who have their personal interests only in mind who help destroy society by eliminating regulations and creating new laws that take communal spaces away from the public.
I blame the parents.
Amazing Video!!! Great history lesson.
Glad you enjoyed it!
I didn't know you was a beastie boy.
I enjoy all your content my guy
Maybe the furnace broke....
Maybe he’s undergoing chemo.@@brj_han
Wow. Skip to 4:57 if you want to get to the section where he starts talking about tunnels..
Before that, it was explaining the background for why tunnels were built. That is how a lecture works.
@@Lensmaster1Long winded.
@GoatzombieBubba the whole video was only 16 minutes long. Hardly long winded.
Great video. But when they fill those in, they don’t fill them with concrete. The use Dirt and gravel and they put a concrete wall on each end.
Right. Lots cheaper and easier to reverse.
I was the LA City inspector when a closed down pedestrian subway was filled in with cement slurry. This was funded as part of an emergency sewer repair job. The existing sewer line ran around the pedestrian subway and under a corner of a school. The LAUSD (school) wanted to run the repair job through their approval process. The City's civil engineer for the project did not like the delay so chose to run the repair in a straight line across the tunnel. The restaurant/bar owner on the other side of Melrose Ave told us he was happy that the entrance's chain link cage in the sidewalk was going because it was unsightly and blocked the view of his business.
Excellent episode.
just found this channel instantly subbed. fantastic video on every level you're doing quality work here.
Downtown Seoul is like this. Huge tunnels and MALLS under the streets. Very cool!
because there are no 13%.
Seoul also had tons of pedestrian bridges decades ago, but for some reason they are mostly removed now.
Reminds me of a dark quip common in Germany in the 1960s and 70s: For traffic to flow, pedestrians need to be buried.
Yup, Munich has and had some, one of the larger ones is below the most expensive part of Munich and called Maximiliansforum (intersection Maximilianstr./Thomas-Wimmer-Ring/Karl-Scharnagl-Ring).
Even being on the most expensive part of Munich, it is decaying. Somehow like a ghost subway station without subway. Better to walk on surface.
Really great! I see these gated areas and was not sure what they were! I admit I feel unsafe walking and even driving in all parts of LA . This due to speed, people being on their phone, and what appears to be overall unawareness and the inability to look up and anticipate!
I remember there being one of these tunnels in Long Beach when I was a kid. It went from the park at the end of Cherry Avenue to the beach on the other side of the road. I went looking for it when I visited Long Beach as an adult, and it’s gone. It made it a lot safer to get to your beach than using the crosswalk at street level. Back then, you never walked across a street - you ran!
When crossing the country in 1976 I noticed a pedestrian underpass near the beach. It had a nasty smell and a sign that said "do not urinate in the underpass" and it was like a light went on. Signs like these are only needed when it is a good place to do something and there are no restrooms around.
Was a reasonable alternative provided, or just the sign?
@@williamharris8367 : just the sign. That was my point. A sign implies that is a good place to do something you should not otherwise do!
Good video. Interesting subject. Unfortunately it seems California is de-criminalizing everything. Thank you.
The ONLY thing California is decriminalzing are the serious felonies committed by police, courts, and politicians.
Thank you for the video. I would use the Poppy Peak tunnel in Kindergarten (1988) and always wondered why the tunnel had mirrors. Using the tunnel was normal after school and Highland Park was not a safe place in those days
💀..Always comprehensive, Always relevant..Excellent work, Ryan..!!
Awesome, thank you!
Why didn’t they just build pedestrian bridges? 🤷🏻♂️
If certain people can't follow the laws, I guess we have to make it where there are no laws. I bet I know why the tunnels became unsafe.
I see these tunnels as I drive through L. A. There is one above ground bridge as well I passed through on Manchester Avenue near Avalon Boulevard. That’s been locked up for years.
So that is what they are. I have seen the fenced-off entrances when I travel throughout Los Angeles but could never stop to check one out for myself. I do know there is one accessible tunnel called the Laveta Terrace tunnel that goes under the 101 freeway on Bellevue Ave. and Edgeware Rd.
I'll bet the problems in the tunnels didn't appear until perhaps 30-40 years ago. Before that general time, there was little problem with homelessness and drugs. No spray paints, either.
Gee, I wonder too. Diversity is our strength.
@@davidpawson7393 the institutions were still open, too
Actually it started in the 1950s, as the LAPD went from foot patrols to driving police cars. A foot officer would walk through those tunnels every so often, keeping most undisables away, once foot patrols were replaced by cars, much harder for the police to patrol those tunnels.
@@davidpawson7393bro what? It’s ok if you just proclaim what you really mean. Say it with your chest this time.
@@paulmentzer7658 I'm sure you are right, at least a contributing factor.
Why not put raised metal walkways over the roads? They could cage them in to stop people jumping, etc. It's got to be a lot cheaper than basically digging tunnels.....especially the long ones. They'd be quicker to erect as well.
A ten foot deep tunnel is going to be cheaper then a 20 foot tall bridge, you only have to have seven feet of clearance for a pedestrian tunnel, but you need a 20 foot tall bridge to have the 14 feet of clearance for automotive traffic.
In Greece there are pedestrian bridges over motorways and avenues, they are safe because there is visibility and no one lurks there, they also have bars so people can't jump. In winter it's cold and windy up there, so a really undesirable place to hang out.
@@paulmentzer7658 - But they still have to get rid of all the spoil, use huge amounts of concrete within and put in ramps and steps for both abled and disabled users. It's not just digging a hole in the ground. Not to mention it eventually turns into a crime ridden hole which is then closed, which leaves pedestrians with nothing. Better to put up a metal footbridge that will last, not need as much up keep and will not become a criminal/addict magnet. Especially if they cage in the upper walkways & hang lights up there.
@@topowwow - Yeah it's the same in the UK. There's been many pedestrian tunnels filled in and over bridges put in instead for that reason. All they do now is enclose them because of morons tossing concrete & bottles at cars beneath. Now they can't do that either. Much safer for everyone.
There is a cool old one when they used to put money into the public space like this back in my old hometown area in central PA in Williamsport. I can't remember exactly where but I always wanted to cross it since it went across 4 lanes of highway (220).
There was one in front of Vine Street elementary school in Hollywood which was still open in the 80s and into the 90s
We can’t have anything nice anymore. Gee why is that?
We can't have anything nice any more because people gave up caring. The people who care the least are our politicians who are more concerned with making their millions than enacting laws and regulations that will help and protect every day Americans like me and you.
@@SWExplore since you still live in L.A. I would expect this response. Keep living with blinders on
@@SWExploreThey gave up caring for real, there's plenty of people who virtue signal seemingly for sport who are the exact people who care the least..
Cities don’t care. Back when these tunnels were opened, a crack addict attacking people in the tunnels would be carted off to an asylum. Now, the cops can’t even do anything.
That's fascinating. I live in a LA neighborhood where the houses were built around the 1920's and there is a pedestrian tunnel that leads to a school. It is closed and locked up with a chain-link fence. I get the creeps when I walk by it.
Detroit had them to but in highland park, long closed now but still there
The tunnels are still open near me. Not all of them are "forgotten"
The dude butchered every school name
Thanks Ryan for the info new subject matter for me....
You bet!
Hollister CA. Has one of these tunnels that's used for a elementary school cross walk.
Rumor has it that it was created after a child was hit and killed while crossing the street on his/her way to school and hundreds of students were traumatized as they witnessed it. Late 1930's or early 1940's was when all this happened.
It is still in use to this day
I remember when my mom took us on the run from my dad’s side of the family when I was a kid, we took asylum at a shelter in Highland Park in the Avenues. I used to walk with my mom almost everyday to school and always walked across the street, she never let me use the tunnels because she said if kids go in, sometimes they don’t come back out, but one day she had to work and me and my sister had to walk down the hill to school, and I decided to finally take the tunnel. It was on the other side of the street so I had to walk down further away from my usual route. Once me and my sister came out of the tunnel, I saw my aunt from my father’s side who was a sheriff doing traffic control for the very same school I attended. We got found after that and it changed our lives ever since. Tht tunnel saved my life at the time😭
Figorah St? Fig--your-oh-ah St. You must not be from CA.
You can help him pronounce the word correctly, but the attitude isn’t necessary. Of course not everyone is from California.
My Aunt went to the same elementary school that I did. She knows that pedestrian tunnel better than I do. They closed it during the time I went there.
I was telling her I feel safer on the overpass bridges instead. Today they're covered with a fence, but my Aunt told me they used to be completely open and people used to commit suicide from them.
It seems that we can't have anything NICE in this city without a FEW morons ruining it for everyone.
Here in Mexico city, there are a couple of these across Tlalpan avenue. There are businesses all across the corridor, so there are always people giving maintenance, keeping the place clean and safe for the sake of their business.
We still have some in my town in the UK, and they are for linking housing developments and retail units together where larger A roads cross through. (An A road for us is one step down from motorways but can be 2 (no center divider), 4 or 6 (with center divider) lanes. The larger 6 lanes are not all that common, but the main thing that differs that from a motorway, is there's no hard shoulder (I think it's a safety lane in the US) but there are laybys/pull-ins/services etc) Nerd out.
Homeless bathrooms, shelters, and mugging choke points
NYC has a similar tunnel problem. There are many convenient pedestrian tunnels connecting different subway lines to one another and buildings that have been closed for decades.
Excellent mini-doc up to today, thanks! I was born Santa Monica 1950 but never knew as we left in early 60's.
Wonderful!
14:39, that is a view of highway 192 in Kissimmee, FL that I used to see when I was young and trying to cross the street. I live in L.A. now and found this video very interesting.
The tunnels were great and worked great until LA society invited the monsters in.
yeah the monsters that defunded the homeless shelters in favor of tax cuts forcing bums to sleep in tunnels is pretty sad. i agree comrade.
Getting rid of laws because some people won’t follow them is insane typical California. This is what ruined my state. San Francisco tore down all the freeways put all the traffic on the roads and then banned pedestrian bridges and put bike lanes everywhere. It’s no wonder there’s more injuries. People are the problem if these tunnels worked in 1935 they would work in 1990 if the population was from 1935. At least some of them got turned into art display areas. That was nice and the school is getting the keys made sense.
But getting rid of jaywalking laws is a sensible thing. When you lay the responsibility for making sure you cross the road safely at a non-designated crossing on the pedestrian the lawmakers show respect and confidence in people, and the city will feel more open.
Here in Europe we have a few different approaches, but in e.g. the UK and Sweden jaywalking is not a thing (except on certain well marked and obvious reservations such as motorways). And we have lower death tolls than many US cities.
I went to Logan Elementary in Echo Park back in the 80s. One of the school playgrounds was across the street and we students had to use a tunnel (instead of a crosswalk) to get across. Even then, in the late 80s, these things were rarely used.
There was one in a town adjacent to a town where I used to live in Wheaton illinois. It was close to an older public pool. It wasn't an area that I usually visited on foot, but at least at one time growing up I went to investigate it and walked out there just to cross under it. It was a strange experience and I've learned that more recently it has been closed.
In Chicago there's a bunch of tunnels like that passing under lake shore drive to get from the city to the area by the beach. Last I saw those were still very much in use. That was at least a decade ago but I assume they're still open.
They are, they were mentioned in a COVID piece, using cops on the beach side checking for masks. We were not allowed are freedom of travel during COVID, the mask police were everywhere. MAGA 2024!
I find it funny how people used to walk and bike in the street, but now every driver gets pissed when they see a cyclist on the street.
Not only cyclists, but motorcycles, too. I ride a motorcycle in LA, so I get it.
I grew up in SOCAL in the 50's and you didn't ride a bike in the streets, you rode on the sidewalks.
@kinikinrd how's Brazil now?
if u ride your bike in normal traffic in these days.... You have a death wish
@@genociderjill The truth is...I am 69 years old and cannot afford a car nor the insurance that goes with it. So it's either ride a motorcycle or take the bus/metro. I'll ride my bike with extreme caution.
I don’t understand why they didn’t use bridges. It fixes the smell, the cleaning, the hidden areas, and doesn’t take away any functionality.
Still have to maintain them
Sadly none of this would be necessary if the streets weren’t used as interstate highways. People are homicidal maniacs behind the wheel.
To clear vehicular trafic a bridge has to be 14 feet high in most places. That is 14 feet from the road to the bottom of the Bridge. In effect the actual walkway will be about 20 feet above the road bed.
Since most people are less then seven feet tall, a tunnel only has to be seven feet up and down. Given most walkways are less then six feet wide, you can get away with concrete or steel beams holding up the road bed of to larger then two feet in depth.
Thus, you are looking at nine to ten feet deep for a tunnel or 20+ feet high for a bridge. Bridges are cheaper then tunnels, if at the same demensions, but the taller you go so does the costs, thus 10 feet deep tunnels tend to be cheaper then 20 foot tall bridges.
A further factor is a tunnel is supported on all sides, a bridge is helded up by its piers, thus a bridge will require more enginnering then a tunnel which increases the cost of the bridge.
Federal Regulations on 14 foot clearance:
safety.fhwa.dot.gov/geometric/pubs/mitigationstrategies/chapter3/3_verticalclearance.cfm
www.fhwa.dot.gov/infrastructure/50vertical.cfm
@@IcelanderUSerdon’t forget that pedestrians often are distracted by cell phones.
@@cherylschantz9893SSHHHEEEEIITT!
It's even worse when DRIVERS are distracted by their cell phones!!
Aldama Hawks was my school tunnel ...awesome History!
Wow, brilliantly observed essay that quietly makes me think.... ☯️