While not specifically a real-time tracker, this neat website has a clickable map where you can locate transit vehicles, get next stop information (though not time), and a map of the route. It seems more likely a visualization of where things should be if the schedules are followed instead of something to assist passengers. From what I’ve found, it covers the Los Angeles and San Francisco regions in California. Other cities, such as Phoenix, Arizona, are also covered. The site is Swiss, hence the .ch TLD.
Category Archives: Maps
City Heights – 1889
City Heights, an area of San Diego east of North Park in the central area of the city, is a very old and culturally diverse neighborhood. It was also known as the City of East San Diego before being incorporated into the City of San Diego and renamed City Heights in the mid 1910’s.
In this map, the eastern portion of the University Heights Motor Road, a railway that was built solely to show potential buyers the lands in City Heights, as it passes through the area. The railroad was torn up just a couple years later.
University Heights – 1888
San Diego has changed quite a bit since it was first laid out in the late 1700’s. As the city grew, new neighborhoods were planned farther out from the city center. One of these, University Heights, is still around today by the same name albeit covering a smaller area. The original plan, from 1888, was mostly built and is still quite recognizable today. One major item, a lake known as Mystic Lake, was never constructed. Today, the canyon remains undeveloped and is considered public open space. In addition to the lake,
The map also shows a small section of right-of-way for a railroad just east of Park Blvd. This railroad, the University Heights Motor Road, was built as a way to bring prospective buyers from downtown to East San Diego (later City Heights). It was dismantled not long after construction but traces still remain on maps and in Switzer Canyon.
The name, University Heights, stems from a planned university that was to be sited there. A small teacher’s college, which later became San Diego State University, was indeed located there. In the 1950’s, the structures were mostly torn down except one which remains today. The site is the headquarters for the San Diego Unified School District.
Los Angeles County Survey Records
Los Angeles County Department of Public Works has a wealth of information available on their website. With a bit of patience and some looking around, you can find quite a few treasures using their mapping application. I’ve so far found the original survey data for the “Bridge To Nowhere” roadway, plans for other roadways that were never built in the Sierra Pelona Mountains, as well as the forest service permit for the Shoemaker Canyon Road that was never completed.
USGS Topographical Maps – Online
All of the topographical maps from USGS are online and easily accessible. Visit TopoView on the USGS site for more details and the maps.