Lab 1: Three Maps From The Internet

     I was raised in Phoenix, Arizona and lived there for most of my life. Navigating through Metropolitan Phoenix was very simple because the city roads were arranged in a simple grid pattern. The major intersections were at an average of one mile intervals and there were only a few one way streets in the downtown vicinity. Distances were easy to calculate, and if a turn was missed, the driver could quickly regain track by making two rights and a left, or to lefts and a right without going too far off the original route. The major freeways also created a loop around the most urban areas, as well as cut through the middle, making highway transit efficient.  This map illustrates the simplicity of the layout of the Metro Phoenix road system and the adjacent communities which make up the Metro Phoenix area.

Source: Rein and Grossoehme, high-yield.com.Accessible at: http://www.high-yield.com/images/Phoenix_map_sm.jpg  6:08pm, Oct.7, 2010

     In July, I moved to Los Angeles to attend the University of California. Navigating through the Los Angeles area is a challenge that I deal with on a day to day basis. As the below map illustrates, the roads are arranged in no particular geometric pattern, with the exception of the freeways which bear slight resemblance to a wheel spoke, causing horrendous congestion during peak travel hours at the interchanges. Additionally, certain roads go east and west or north and south for a few miles, then change direction. Other roads just curve or are diagonal in route. This makes navigating extremely challenging for a novice trying to establish a sense of direction while commuting.

     I understand the major factor of the differences between the road layouts between Phoenix, AZ and Los Angeles, CA may simply be that Los Angeles is far more undulating than Phoenix, which is situated in the middle of a valley and is therefore mostly flat. However, I still believe that patterns could still be established to improve the efficiency of the urban commute in Los Angeles.

Source: California 2003, ko-ala-germany.de. Accessible at: http://www.ko-ala-germany.de/html/california_2003.html  5:55pm, Oct. 7, 2010

     In addition, while comparing and contrasting Phoenix and Los Angeles I observed that Phoenix and Los Angeles communities were for the most part, relatively clustered together without gaps between them. However, an interesting observation I made was the fact that the City of Los Angeles has a few communities that appear to “drip” south of the main majority. I just find it strange how the communities south of the major cluster (Harbor City, Wilmington, San Pedro, and Terminal Island) are part of the City of Los Angeles, while communities such as Culver City, Beverly Hills, and Marina Del Rey are not, even though they are completely surrounded by communities that are part of the City of Los Angeles.

Source: Los Angeles Map, losangelesmap.org. Accessible at: http://www.losangelesmap.org/map_los_angeles.jpg  6:00 pm, Oct. 7, 2010

Katherine Waltz
GEOG 7, LAB 1E