Boston Mayor Tom Menino speaks to the Democratic National Convention Tuesday. (AP Photo)

LOS ANGELES -- The Democratic National Convention hasn't even ended and already Boston Mayor Tom Menino is thinking ahead to the next one.

Menino said Tuesday that Boston will make a pitch to host the convention in 2004.

Political conventions draw tens of millions of dollars of economic activity, and incalculable prestige and television exposure, said Patrick Moscaritolo, president of the Greater Boston Convention and Visitors Bureau.

Boston and Denver were finalists to host this week's convention, but Los Angeles was chosen because the Democratic National Committee wanted to hold it in a larger state whose electoral votes would be crucial in this tight election year, Menino said.

Those considerations will be less pressing in four years, Menino said, if Vice President Al Gore is elected this fall and is running for reelection in 2004.

Paul Giorgio, who runs a publishing company in Worcester, said this week's convention in Los Angeles would enhance Boston's chances of attracting it the next time around because of a single factor: traffic.

Los Angeles, a sprawling city that relies heavily on the automobile to get around, has been a nightmare for many convention delegates this week. Because events are spread out around the city, delegates have spent much of their time on buses or in cabs, often slowed by traffic.

"I asked someone if I could take the subway, and they just laughed," said Giorgio. "It's like the song, 'LA is a great big freeway."'

Massachusetts Senate President Thomas Birmingham, D-Chelsea, said he was stuck in a bus for nearly 2 hours Monday -- for a ride that can take as little as 25 minutes -- and nearly missed the start of President Clinton's speech.

Menino said, "You have the Big Dig in Boston, but you have worse traffic problems here."

In contrast to L.A., Boston is a much more compact city that is largely navigable on foot or by subway, especially for visitors staying in and attending events within the city.

Those trying to draw the convention to Boston point out that the Big Dig is scheduled to be mostly finished by 2004, and a new convention center is slated to open by the end of 2003.

The city will also have more hotel rooms by then, Moscaritolo said, and perhaps a new Fenway Park.

Besides the distances and traffic, most delegates have little to criticize about their host city this week, where the weather has been sunny and warm every day.

"I'm not grousing," said Birmingham, as he strode in shorts and a T-shirt into yet another brilliant morning. "This isn't exactly heavy lifting."