LAX gets new radar system that cuts runway incursions

— -- Los Angeles International has unveiled a new $7 million radar system designed to eliminate aircraft runway incursions that have been a major operational problem for years.

The radar is connected to status lights along a runway and eight taxiways and is designed to detect potential collisions between two aircraft or an aircraft and a vehicle. The lights will turn red to alert pilots if the radar detects a potential conflict.

Following Dallas/Fort Worth and San Diego, LAX will be the third airport to use the system, which is installed and maintained by the Federal Aviation Administration.

LAX has had the most runway safety violations in the nation for much of this decade. In 2008, the airport installed a taxiway between its two southern runways to address the problem, and the number of incursions has declined from 21 in 2007 to five this year, FAA spokesman Ian Gregor says.

Some fares rising for LAX FlyAway buses

Los Angeles International is raising fares on its LAX FlyAway bus service originating from Van Nuys and Union Station. The new $7 one-way fare — a $1 increase — for these two routes will start Aug. 1. The fare for a third route, Westwood to LAX, will remain unchanged at $5.

The fare increase is expected to result in an additional $1.5 million in annual revenue. Discount fares on all three FlyAway routes will be discontinued when the new fare starts.

LAX FlyAway buses carried more than 1.5 million passengers in 2008, a 14% increase from 2007. But its ridership is down about 1% in the first four months of this year because of fewer air travelers.

The airport also says it's considering extending the service to Irvine in Orange County.

Briefly ...

•Saddled with a deficit amid the sluggish economy, BART, the San Francisco Bay Area metro system, will raise the surcharge on rides to and from San Francisco International to $4. It currently charges $1.50. That's on top of the basic fare, which will increase by 6.1%. The fare increases, which the airport had initially planned to introduce next year, will go into effect July 1.