Angels Flight will double the fare to 50 cents

Angels Flight Railway president John H. Welborne announced today that the one-way fare to ride the cars up or down Bunker Hill in Downtown will rise to 50 cents next Monday. A Metro Pass will still get you a ride for a quarter. That's been the fare since 1996, at least while the funicular has not been shut down for repairs. There's also a frequent-rider discount available. The former Los Angeles Incline Railway opened with a penny fare in 1901 a short distance from its current, more redevelopment-friendly location.

Anyway, do I need a better reason to re-run Millard Sheets' interpretation of Bunker Hill in the '30s, a painting with his wife as the model that he called Angel's Flight? I do not. It's in LACMA's permanent collection — and it's gorgeous.

Top illustration: Cover of Black Clock #10 showing Angels Flight out the window. Illustration by Jeff Bridges.