Resources Available
Our collection contains approximately 250,000 items of significance to Los Angeles transportation history from 1873 to the present. This includes 45,000 books, reports, studies, conference proceedings, plans, maps, and drawings, 20,000 microfiche reports, more than 20,000 photographs and images, over 700 videos, several thousand ephemera, and a growing collection of publicly-accessible
full-text digital documents.
The Library catalog can be searched
via the Internet
as well as from
Internet-capable mobile devices.
Reference Service
Reference service is available to employees and the general public during open hours. This service includes quick reference queries via telephone 213.922.4859 or by email at
library@metro.net. In-depth assistance is provided in-house.
Please contact us for appointments or more information.
Literature Searching
Extensive reference service is facilitated through the use of online systems, including the Dialog Information System which contains over 600 databases covering all disciplines. Two Dialog databases of primary interest to Metro are the Transportation Research Information Service (TRIS) and the National Technical Information Service (NTIS). TRIS is exclusively devoted to the transportation literature and NTIS contains a significant percentage of abstracts on transportation subject matters. All 600 databases, however, are available and used as requested. Both
TRIS
and
NTIS
can now be searched by anyone via the Internet free of charge. Under special circumstances, public patrons may request a Dialog search. A service fee of $10.00 plus payment for the cost of the search is required. Checks are made payable to Metro. Other online systems used in the Library include Lexis-Nexis, as well as transportation, academic or public libraries' online catalogs available through the Internet. Three Internet accounts are assigned to the Library and are earmarked for employees and the public. No personal email or usenet (newsgroup) features are available on these accounts.
Collection Development
Developing the most useful collection of the Library's materials requires active knowledge of the focus, ongoing goals, and objectives of Metro to ensure that selections are made with a sensitivity to the overall agency needs, current trends and directions for the future. Our primary areas of focus are: Transportation Planning, Transit Operations, Intelligent Transportation Systems, General Transportation Research, Transportation Safety, Heavy and Light Rail Construction, Transit Systems Engineering, Urban Planning, Land Use, Local Governance, Labor Relations, Performance Measurement, Government Finance, Employee Development, Public Art, and Los Angeles as a subject.
Staff requests and suggestions for purchase or subscription will be considered by the Library Administrator in context of budget availability and fit with the Library's mission. Materials determined to be related and pertinent to Metro objectives are generally ordered as requested.
Acquisitions and Donations
Currently published literature (books, reports, studies, theses, dissertations, guides, dictionaries, almanacs, directories, etc.), rare and historical monographs, periodicals, CD-ROM, videocassette and DVD products are purchased through various publishers and library distributors. Some items are donated by staff, others are obtained from other transportation agencies, the Transportation Research Board (TRB), the Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS), the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO), the American Public Transportation Association (APTA), the American Planning Association (APA) and the Federal Transit Administration (FTA). Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) and other agency reports are obtained selectively. The Library has maintained a transportation research reports microfiche subscription from National Technical Information Service (NTIS) since 1976.
The acceptance of all gifts of books, serials, music, pictures, prints, films and other library materials is delegated to the Library Administrator. His/her judgment is based on the suitability of the gift, value to the Library, the condition of the gift and the cost to handle and process the gift for Library use. Materials donated to the Library become the property of the Library and will be handled as the Library deems most appropriate. Donated materials are cataloged if they advance the mission of the Library and/or meet a unique need in the collection as deemed by professional Library staff.
The Library cannot offer guarantees that donated material will become part of the Library collection. The Library reserves the right to distribute materials as they see fit. Donated materials may be cataloged, recycled, disposed of as surplus, or discarded at the Library's discretion. The Library may acknowledge the receipt of donations but will not perform appraisals for donated items. The donor will assess his or her own donation for tax purposes. Evaluation must be made by outside appraisers at the donor's expense.
Donations by contractors to Metro must comply with Metro's Code of Ethics. The gift of books, reports, pamphlets, calendars and periodicals are specifically exempted by the Code and State law. Donation of other items should be reviewed by Metro's Ethics Department.
Cataloging
Books are fully cataloged to provide accurate and appropriate bibliographic access. The five basic tools are: 1) the Anglo-American Cataloging Rules, 2nd.ed., which is the national standard for descriptive cataloging and choice and form of entries; 2) the Library of Congress Classification schedules, which are the official schedules for assigning Library of Congress class call numbers; 3) the Library of Congress Subject Headings, the official thesaurus and vocabulary for terminology which facilitates the uniform access and retrieval of items in U.S. library collections; 4) the Transportation Research Thesaurus, which provides a common and consistent vocabulary and taxonomy between producers and users of the Transportation Research Information Services (TRIS) Database; and, 5) the OCLC bibliographic utility, as well as its manuals and website, which are used to determine the proper method of transcribing cataloging information into the OCLC database.
Circulation
Most materials circulate for 14 days and may be checked out by Metro employees, student interns, Board members and consultants only. New books circulate for 14 days with the option of a 7 day renewal. Videos, DVDs, books marked "Reference Only" and photographs circulate on a case-by-case basis with the approval of the Library Administrator. Overdue notices are sent daily via e-mail. The circulation system calculates overdue fines at a cost of 5 cents per day although, at the present time, fines are not levied.
Serials (Periodicals)
Serials are shelved together within the collection for convenience. Transportation serials are maintained as permanent subscriptions and are not circulated or routed. Serials subscriptions information can be found on the
Metro Library Subscriptions List
page. Serials titles can be found in the online catalog.
Interlibrary Loans
Interlibrary loan activity is generated by staff requests to obtain either books or journal articles on rare occasions when they are unavailable in the library and/or unavailable for purchase. A request form is used to note pertinent bibliographic information. The OCLC interlibrary loan database is used for this service and the library will pay up to $25 to borrow items. In general, the library strives to purchase transportation research materials for its permanent collection.
The majority of our interlibrary loan activity is to other libraries through the worldwide OCLC network. The Library charges a minimum of $20 or the IFM fee offered for materials borrowed. Fees are waived for transportation libraries, Transportation Knowledge Network members, and other libraries with whom we have reciprocal loan agreements.
The library does not loan audio-visual materials, nor items from its Archives, Special Collections or Learning Resource Center. All other interlibrary loan requests will be considered. All requests, however, are reviewed for any potential transit system security issues. Metro policy prohibits the loan or circulation of any security sensitive material as determined by the library staff and/or legal counsel. Such security sensitive materials may include, but are not limited to: technical specifications, plans, drawings, blueprints, diagrams, maps, reports, or any other printed matter, film, video tape, photographs, electronic files or data.
Miscellaneous Subject File
The Library maintains an ephemeral, subject-arranged collection of uncataloged pamphlet materials and other documents. It includes various aspects of transportation, general planning, and other topics reflected in our general collection.
Photograph and Film/Video Reproductions
Visitors to our
Flickr photostream website
may use images found there according to the Creative Commons licensing agreement contained therein. If you need photos for commercial use, publication or broadcast, please
contact us
for our Photo Release Form. All photos used should include credit to "Dorothy Peyton Gray Transportation Library and Archive at the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority," and if available, the photographer's name.
Until the digitization of the 20,000 historic photographs contained in Metro's Archives is complete and made available via the web, requests for duplicates of photographs or slides maintained in the Metro Archive are handled through a photographic vendor. The vendor will send a messenger to retrieve and return the Library originals. The cost of this procedure is passed on to the patron and is handled directly with the vendor. Negatives produced are retained by the Library.
If you are looking for film and video, please visit our
YouTube Channel
and
contact us
for more information.
Photocopies
A charge of 10 cents per page is required for personal photocopying and copies made by public patrons. Paper copies larger than 8.5 x 11 are 15 cents.
Tours
Tours are available by appointment for individuals and groups.
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