Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority plans to replace bus, subway and train passes with electronic fare cards, officials announced Monday. The rechargeable cards, known as Transit Access Passes -- or TAP cards -- will be sold at vending machines across Los Angeles County. Riders will also be able to add money to the cards online.

Who is the young man in the sports coat shown on a grainy videotape spilling mercury on a platform of the Red Line subway station at Pershing Square? When it happened on Dec. 22, officials quickly labeled it a harmless accident. But Thursday, officials acknowledged that the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority botched its response, waiting eight hours after being told mercury was on the platform before clearing the station and cleaning up the spill.

At least four subway passengers either touched or stepped on six ounces of mercury that a man dropped onto a downtown L.A. subway platform, with one commuter finally alerting authorities about the spill eight hours after it occurred. Among those exposed to the mercury was a woman who lives in downtown Los Angeles. She got the mercury on her red house slippers minutes after the man dropped it, said Los Angeles County Sheriff's Det. Danny Regalado.

Federal and local authorities on Tuesday arrested a 27-year-old man they believe spilled mercury on a downtown L.A. subway platform, ending a weeklong dragnet that raised more questions about the handling of the incident. Armando Bustamante Miranda was being questioned by FBI agents and Los Angeles County sheriff's investigators, who are trying to determine why the hazardous chemical was dropped in the station on Dec. 22 by a man who then called an MTA operator to say what he had done.

In an effort to collect fines from scofflaws cited for munching on chips, playing loud music and riding without a ticket on Los Angeles County's commuter trains, officials are considering creating a special court for transit-related offenses. The Metropolitan Transportation Authority collects about $1 million a year in fines, an average of $12 per citation, mostly from passengers caught riding the rails for free. Anyone caught on board without a $1.

A man died Sunday after stepping in front of a Metro Blue Line commuter train in South Los Angeles. The unidentified man, described as about 45 years old, appeared to intentionally move into the path of the northbound train as it approached 48th Place near Long Beach Avenue, police said. Witnesses said the man was walking near the tracks about 4:30 p.m. when he ducked under a guardrail and stood on the tracks, facing the train, according to LAPD Officer Martha Garcia.

It's not that Metro Rail commuters didn't know the subway has color-coded routes. They called off colors used on the rail system with ease. But the color purple -- that got them stuck. "Purple? There is no Purple Line," said commuter Edson Menjivar, 18. "There's blue, there's red, there's gold and green, but no purple." "Purple Line?" asked a puzzled Dan Kaufman, 27, when asked about the route he was on. "This is the Red Line."

In an effort to increase ridership, Los Angeles County transit officials said Friday that they would slash fares on several bus lines for a week, beginning Feb. 18. Bus riders will pay just 50 cents to ride any one of 18 bus lines in the San Fernando and San Gabriel valleys, South Bay and the Westside. The standard fare is $1.25 each way. Officials hope the promotional fare will encourage motorists to try public transit. For more information, go to www.metro.net.

A war of pointed e-mails erupted Wednesday over the propriety of offering free bus and train rides to Los Angeles Marathon participants, with County Supervisor Gloria Molina taking swipes at race organizer William Burke and Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa. The source of Molina's irritation: a city proposal to have the Metropolitan Transportation Authority foot what she and the agency estimated to be a $300,000 bill for freebie rides on race day, March 4.

After a dust-up via e-mail earlier this week, city and county officials have reached an agreement with Los Angeles Marathon organizers that will provide runners with free bus and train rides on race day March 4. The for-profit marathon will foot the bill for participants' fares, while the Metropolitan Transportation Authority will pay for extra trains, buses, drivers and security to accommodate at least 13,000 additional riders.