Transportation of Los Angeles
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Los Angeles has a complex multimodal transportation infrastructure, which serves as a regional, national and international hub for passenger and freight traffic. The system includes the United States' largest port complex; an extensive freight and passenger rail infrastructure, including light rail lines and rapid transit lines; numerous airports and bus lines; vehicle for hire companies; and an extensive freeway and road system. People in Los Angeles rely on cars as the dominant mode of transportation, but since 1990
Los Angeles Metro Rail The Los Angeles Metro Rail is an urban rail transit system serving Los Angeles County, California, United States. It consists of seven lines, including five light rail lines (the A Line (Los Angeles Metro), A, C Line (Los Angeles Metro), C, E Li ...
has built over of light and heavy rail serving more and more parts of Los Angeles. As a result, Los Angeles was the last major city in the United States to get a permanent rail system installed.


Intercity

Transportation in Greater Los Angeles Greater Los Angeles has a complex multimodal transportation infrastructure, which serves as a regional, national and international hub for passenger and freight traffic. The transportation system of Greater Los Angeles includes the United States' ...
is a complex multimodal transportation infrastructure, which serves as a regional, national and international hub for passenger and freight traffic. The transportation system of Greater Los Angeles includes the United States' largest port complex, seven commuter rail lines, and Amtrak service. With many highways, it is integrated into the Interstate Highway System.


Air transportation

In the Los Angeles metropolitan area, there are five commercial airports and many more general-aviation airports. The primary Los Angeles airport is Los Angeles International Airport (LAX). The seventh busiest commercial airport in the world and the third busiest in the United States,
LAX Los Angeles International Airport , commonly referred to as LAX (with each letter pronounced individually), is the primary international airport serving Los Angeles, California and its surrounding metropolitan area. LAX is located in the W ...
handled 28.8 million passengers, of cargo and 380,000 aircraft movements in 2020. Other major nearby commercial airports include: LA/Ontario International Airport (serves the
Inland Empire The Inland Empire (IE) is a metropolitan area and region inland of and adjacent to coastal Southern California, centering around the cities of San Bernardino and Riverside, and bordering Los Angeles County to the west. It includes the cities o ...
); Hollywood Burbank Airport; serves the
San Fernando San Fernando may refer to: People *Ferdinand III of Castile (c. 1200–1252), called ''San Fernando'' (Spanish) or ''Saint Ferdinand'', King of Castile, León, and Galicia Places Argentina *San Fernando de la Buena Vista, city of Greater Buenos ...
and
San Gabriel Valley The San Gabriel Valley ( es, Valle de San Gabriel) is one of the principal valleys of Southern California, lying immediately to the east of the eastern city limits of the city of Los Angeles, and occupying the vast majority of the eastern part ...
s); Long Beach Airport (serves the Long Beach/Harbor area); and
John Wayne Airport John Wayne Airport is a commercial and general aviation airport that serves Orange County, California, and the Greater Los Angeles area. The airport is located in an unincorporated area of Orange County, and it is owned and operated by the cou ...
(serves the
Orange County Orange County most commonly refers to: *Orange County, California, part of the Los Angeles metropolitan area Orange County may also refer to: U.S. counties *Orange County, Florida, containing Orlando *Orange County, Indiana *Orange County, New ...
area). The world's busiest general-aviation airport is also located in Los Angeles, Van Nuys Airport. Santa Monica Airport is also located near Los Angeles.


Intercity train services

Union Station is the major regional train station for Amtrak, Metrolink and Metro Rail. The station is Amtrak's fifth busiest station, having 1.4 million Amtrak boardings and de-boardings in 2019. Amtrak operates eleven daily round trips between San Diego and Los Angeles, five of which continue to Santa Barbara via the Pacific Surfliner, the only service that runs through Los Angeles multiple times daily. Two of those trips continue to
San Luis Obispo, California San Luis Obispo (; Spanish for " St. Louis the Bishop", ; Chumash: ''tiłhini'') is a city and county seat of San Luis Obispo County, in the U.S. state of California. Located on the Central Coast of California, San Luis Obispo is roughly halfwa ...
. The Coast Starlight provides additional service on the route and beyond to the San Francisco Bay Area, Sacramento, and on to Seattle, Washington. Amtrak motor coaches connect from Los Angeles to the San Joaquin Route in
Bakersfield Bakersfield is a city in Kern County, California, United States. It is the county seat and largest city of Kern County. The city covers about near the southern end of the San Joaquin Valley and the Central Valley region. Bakersfield's populat ...
with frequent service through the Central Valley of California to Sacramento and
Oakland Oakland is the largest city and the county seat of Alameda County, California, United States. A major West Coast port, Oakland is the largest city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area, the third largest city overall in the Bay A ...
, and eastward to San Bernardino and Las Vegas. There is also daily service to Chicago, Illinois on the
Southwest Chief The ''Southwest Chief'' (formerly the ''Southwest Limited'' and ''Super Chief'') is a passenger train operated by Amtrak on a route between Chicago and Los Angeles through the Midwest and Southwest via Kansas City, Albuquerque, and Flagstaff ...
, and three times a week to New Orleans, Louisiana on the
Sunset Limited The ''Sunset Limited'' is an Amtrak passenger train that for most of its history has operated between New Orleans and Los Angeles, over the nation's second transcontinental route. However, up until Hurricane Katrina in 2005, it operated betwe ...
. Due to the effects from
Hurricane Katrina Hurricane Katrina was a destructive Category 5 Atlantic hurricane that caused over 1,800 fatalities and $125 billion in damage in late August 2005, especially in the city of New Orleans and the surrounding areas. It was at the time the cost ...
, Sunset Limited service between New Orleans to Jacksonville, Florida has been discontinued, although Amtrak is required by current federal law to develop a plan to reinstate the service. The Texas Eagle is a second train to Chicago, which operates thrice weekly.
Sunset Limited The ''Sunset Limited'' is an Amtrak passenger train that for most of its history has operated between New Orleans and Los Angeles, over the nation's second transcontinental route. However, up until Hurricane Katrina in 2005, it operated betwe ...
and Texas Eagle trains operate on the same track between Los Angeles and San Antonio, Texas before splitting off towards their respective destinations. Amtrak Pacific Surfliner trains stop at several locations in
Los Angeles County Los Angeles County, officially the County of Los Angeles, and sometimes abbreviated as L.A. County, is the most populous county in the United States and in the U.S. state of California, with 9,861,224 residents estimated as of 2022. It is the ...
, including:
Glendale Glendale is the anglicised version of the Gaelic Gleann Dail, which means ''valley of fertile, low-lying arable land''. It may refer to: Places Australia * Glendale, New South Wales ** Stockland Glendale, a shopping centre *Glendale, Queensland, ...
, Bob Hope Airport in
Burbank Burbank may refer to: Places Australia * Burbank, Queensland, a suburb in Brisbane United States * Burbank, California, a city in Los Angeles County * Burbank, Santa Clara County, California, a census-designated place * Burbank, Illinois, ...
, Chatsworth, and
Van Nuys Van Nuys () is a neighborhood in the central San Fernando Valley region of Los Angeles, California. Home to Van Nuys Airport and the Valley Municipal Building, it is the most populous neighborhood in the San Fernando Valley. History In 1909, t ...
. Due to the large volumes of import freight that flows into the city's port complex, Los Angeles is a major freight railroad hub. Freight is hauled by Union Pacific Railroad and
BNSF Railway BNSF Railway is one of the largest freight railroads in North America. One of seven North American Class I railroads, BNSF has 35,000 employees, of track in 28 states, and nearly 8,000 locomotives. It has three transcontinental routes that ...
. The now-defunct
Southern Pacific Railroad The Southern Pacific (or Espee from the railroad initials- SP) was an American Class I railroad network that existed from 1865 to 1996 and operated largely in the Western United States. The system was operated by various companies under the ...
once served the Los Angeles area before merging with Union Pacific. The
Alameda Corridor The Alameda Corridor is a freight rail "expressway" owned by the Alameda Corridor Transportation Authority that connects the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach with the transcontinental mainlines of the BNSF Railway and the Union Pacific Rail ...
, a below-grade rail corridor connects the port to the city's main rail yards and to points further north and east.


Intercity highways

The major highway routes providing intercity connections are Interstate 5 (which goes north to Sacramento and south to San Diego),
U.S. Route 101 U.S. Route 101, or U.S. Highway 101 (US 101), is a north–south United States Numbered Highway that runs through the states of California, Oregon, and Washington, on the West Coast of the United States. It is also known as (The Royal Roa ...
(which goes north to Santa Barbara and San Francisco), and
Interstate 10 Interstate 10 (I-10) is the southernmost cross-country highway in the American Interstate Highway System. I-10 is the fourth-longest Interstate in the United States at , following I-90, I-80, and I-40. This freeway is part of the originally pl ...
(which goes west to Santa Monica and east to Phoenix, Arizona).


Intercity bus services

Greyhound,
Megabus Megabus may refer to: *Megabus (Europe), a low-cost coach service with services in Europe owned by ComfortDelGro. *Megabus (North America) Megabus, branded as megabus.com, is an intercity bus service of Coach USA/Coach Canada operating in the eas ...
, FlixBus, and various smaller bus lines provide intercity bus services. Megabus departs from Union Station and directly connects Los Angeles to San Francisco Bay Area and Las Vegas. Greyhound connects directly to
Bakersfield Bakersfield is a city in Kern County, California, United States. It is the county seat and largest city of Kern County. The city covers about near the southern end of the San Joaquin Valley and the Central Valley region. Bakersfield's populat ...
and from there into the
California Central Valley The Central Valley is a broad, elongated, flat valley that dominates the interior of California. It is wide and runs approximately from north-northwest to south-southeast, inland from and parallel to the Pacific coast of the state. It covers ...
, San Diego, Las Vegas, and the San Francisco Bay area. It departs from Los Angeles at its main station located in southeast downtown Los Angeles and from a secondary terminal located in the North Hollywood neighborhood of Los Angeles.


Harbors

The
Port of Los Angeles The Port of Los Angeles is a seaport managed by the Los Angeles Harbor Department, a unit of the City of Los Angeles. It occupies of land and water with of waterfront and adjoins the separate Port of Long Beach. Promoted as "America's Port", t ...
is located in San Pedro Bay in the San Pedro neighborhood, approximately south of
Downtown ''Downtown'' is a term primarily used in North America by English speakers to refer to a city's sometimes commercial, cultural and often the historical, political and geographic heart. It is often synonymous with its central business distric ...
. Also called ''Los Angeles Harbor'' and ''WORLDPORT L.A.'', the port complex occupies of land and water along of waterfront. It adjoins the separate Port of Long Beach. There are also smaller, non-industrial harbors along L.A.'s coastline. Most of these like
Redondo Beach Redondo Beach (Spanish for ''round'') is a coastal city in Los Angeles County, California, United States, located in the South Bay (Los Angeles County), South Bay region of the Greater Los Angeles area. It is one of three adjacent Beach Cities, b ...
and
Marina del Rey Marina del Rey (Spanish for "Marina of the King") is an unincorporated seaside community in Los Angeles County, California, with an eponymous harbor that is a major boating and water recreation destination of the greater Los Angeles area. The p ...
are used primarily by sailboats and yachts. The
Port of Los Angeles The Port of Los Angeles is a seaport managed by the Los Angeles Harbor Department, a unit of the City of Los Angeles. It occupies of land and water with of waterfront and adjoins the separate Port of Long Beach. Promoted as "America's Port", t ...
and Port of Long Beach comprise the largest seaport complex in the United States and the fifth busiest in the world. Over 11 percent of United States international trade (by value) passes through the Los Angeles region, and the Los Angeles customs district collects over 37 percent of the nation’s import duties. The port includes four bridges: the Vincent Thomas Bridge, Henry Ford Bridge, Gerald Desmond Bridge, and Commodore Schuyler F. Heim Bridge.


Ferry services

There are ferries serving the offshore island community of
Avalon, California Avalon is the only incorporated city on Santa Catalina Island, in the California Channel Islands, and the southernmost city in Los Angeles County. The city is a resort community with the waterfront dominated by tourism-oriented businesses. The ...
; they are mainly used for day excursions and to move supplies to Catalina Island. There is no regular vehicle ferry service to Avalon, since the city restricts the use of cars and trucks within its borders.


Intracity


Freeways

There are a dozen major freeways that crisscross the region. California's first freeway was the Arroyo Seco Parkway segment of
California State Route 110 110 may refer to: *110 (number), natural number *AD 110, a year * 110 BC, a year *110 film, a cartridge-based film format used in still photography * 110 (MBTA bus), Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority bus route * 110 (song), 2019 song by C ...
, also known as the Pasadena Freeway. It opened on January 1, 1940 and links downtown Los Angeles to downtown Pasadena. From Chavez Ravine north to
Pasadena Pasadena ( ) is a city in Los Angeles County, California, northeast of downtown Los Angeles. It is the most populous city and the primary cultural center of the San Gabriel Valley. Old Pasadena is the city's original commercial district. Its ...
it can be quite dangerous because there is no shoulder, the lanes are narrow, the turns are sharp (not always properly banked), and the ramps are quite short and offer little room for acceleration to freeway speed; all of this is because the freeway was designed for much slower cars and much less traffic volume than exists today. Commercial vehicles over are prohibited from using this freeway. Newer freeways are straighter, wider, and allow for higher speeds. Major freeways in Los Angeles include: *
Glendale Freeway State Route 2 (SR 2) is a state highway in the U.S. state of California. It connects the Los Angeles Basin with the San Gabriel Mountains and the Victor Valley in the Mojave Desert. The highway's southwestern end is at the intersection of C ...
* Santa Ana Freeway * Golden State Freeway * Santa Monica Freeway/San Bernardino Freeway *
Antelope Valley Freeway The term antelope is used to refer to many species of even-toed ruminant that are indigenous to various regions in Africa and Eurasia. Antelope comprise a wastebasket taxon defined as any of numerous Old World grazing and browsing hoofed mammals ...
*
Seaside Freeway A seaside is the marine coast of a sea. * A seaside resort is a resort on or near a sea coast. Seaside may also refer to: Places Canada * Seaside Park, British Columbia, also known as Seaside United Kingdom * A mostly undeveloped coastal area i ...
* Pomona Freeway * Marina Freeway * Gardena Freeway * Hollywood Freeway * Ventura Freeway * Terminal Island Freeway * Glenn M. Anderson Freeway/Century Freeway * Harbor Freeway * Arroyo Seco Parkway *
Ronald Reagan Freeway Ronald is a masculine given name derived from the Old Norse ''Rögnvaldr'', Hanks; Hardcastle; Hodges (2006) p. 234; Hanks; Hodges (2003) § Ronald. or possibly from Old English '' Regenweald''. In some cases ''Ronald'' is an Anglicised form of ...
* Foothill Freeway * San Diego Freeway *
Long Beach Freeway Long may refer to: Measurement * Long, characteristic of something of great duration * Long, characteristic of something of great length * Longitude (abbreviation: long.), a geographic coordinate * Longa (music), note value in early music mensur ...
Major highways in Los Angeles include: * Pacific Coast Highway/Lincoln Boulevard * Santa Monica Boulevard * Decker Canyon Road *
Topanga Canyon Boulevard State Route 27, commonly known by its street name Topanga Canyon Boulevard (), is a state highway in the U.S. state of California that runs from the Pacific Coast Highway ( California State Route 1) at Topanga State Beach near Pacific Palisades ...
*
Alameda Street Alameda Street is a major north-south thoroughfare in Los Angeles County, California. It is approximately 21 miles in length, running from Harry Bridges Boulevard in Wilmington; and through Carson, Compton, Lynwood, Watts, Florence-Graham, Hunti ...
* Slauson Avenue * Highland Avenue * Venice Boulevard
Angelenos A person from Los Angeles is called an Angeleno. The demographics of Los Angeles are determined by population surveys such as the American Community Survey and the United States Census. According to U.S. Census Bureau estimates, Los Angeles' ...
are noted for referring to freeways with the definite article ("The 101"), in contrast to most other areas of the United States, who omit the article. Referring to freeways by name, for example "The San Diego Freeway", is essentially a holdover from the time when the freeways were built, and is diminishing. Nevertheless, freeways continue to be officially named; for example, State Route 118 was christened the Ronald Reagan Freeway.


Rush hour

Los Angeles has synchronized its traffic lights. The mean travel time for commuters in Los Angeles is shorter than other major cities, including New York City, Philadelphia and Chicago. Los Angeles' mean travel time for work commutes in 2006 was 29.2 minutes, similar to those of San Francisco and Washington, DC.
Rush hour A rush hour (American English, British English) or peak hour (Australian English) is a part of the day during which traffic congestion on roads and crowding on public transport is at its highest. Normally, this happens twice every weekday: on ...
occurs on weekdays between 5 am and 10 am, and in the afternoon between 3 pm and 7 pm (although rush-hour traffic can occasionally spill out to 11 am and start again from 2 pm until as late as 10 pm, especially on Fridays). Traffic can occur at almost any time, particularly before major holidays (including Thanksgiving, Christmas, and three-day weekends) and even on regular weekends when one otherwise would not expect it.


Streets, street layout, the boulevards, and street problems

The city has an extensive street grid. Arterial streets (referred to as ''surface streets'' by locals, in contrast with freeways which are usually grade-separated roadways) connect freeways with smaller neighborhood streets, and are often used to bypass congested freeway routes. Consequently, most of the surface arterial streets in Los Angeles have various forms of congestion control. Some of the more common means of maintaining surface street traffic flow is the use of loop-sensors embedded in the pavement allowing for intersection traffic signal timing adjustments to favor the more heavily delayed roadways; the use of a traffic control system allows for the synchronization of traffic signals to improve traffic flow (as of October 2009 this system is currently installed at 85% of the city's signalized intersections, more than any other US city); restrictions on vehicle turns on roadways without designated turning lanes during rush-hours; and the extensive use of rush-hour parking restrictions, allowing for an extra lane of travel in each direction during peak hours (weekdays excluding holidays generally from 7-9am thru 4-7pm, although hours vary by location) by eliminating on street parking and standing of vehicles, with violators being ticketed, and in the case of priority routes known as "anti-gridlock zones", immediately towed by specialized enforcement teams dubbed "tiger teams" at steep cost to the violator. 1st Street divides the block numbering grid north and south, and southwest of the Los Angeles River, Main Street divides the city east and west. Northeast of the river, block designations are divided east and west by Pasadena Avenue and North Figueroa Street. From downtown Los Angeles to Long Beach, in a straight-down vertical pattern, east–west streets are numbered (starting with 1st Street in downtown, to 266th Street in
Harbor City Harbor City is a highly diverse neighborhood in the Harbor region of Los Angeles, California, with a population upward of 36,000 people. Originally part of the Rancho San Pedro Spanish land grant, the Harbor City was brought into Los Angeles as ...
), and north–south streets are named. (1st Street is one block south of Temple.) There are many exceptions to the numbered streets, but the above pattern is generally used. This same numbered pattern is not mirrored north of Temple. Addresses are then numbered east or west stemming from Main Street (a major north south artery). Therefore, the landmark Watts Towers at 1765 E. 107th Street is approximately 107 streets south of 1st Street, and on the 17th street east of Main Street. Although the numbered streets are sequential, they do not necessarily equal the number of blocks south of 1st Street, as there are streets such as 118th Street and then 118th Place. Many of the numbered streets also continue into neighboring cities, but some cities, such as Manhattan Beach, have made their own numbered street grid. Also, some districts of Los Angeles, such as Wilmington, San Pedro, Venice, and Playa Del Rey have their own numbered street grids. Many arterials have been labeled as boulevards, and many of those mentioned below have been immortalized in movies, music, and literature. Major east–west routes include: Roscoe, Victory, Ventura,
Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywood, ...
,
Sunset Sunset, also known as sundown, is the daily disappearance of the Sun below the horizon due to Earth's rotation. As viewed from everywhere on Earth (except the North and South poles), the equinox Sun sets due west at the moment of both the spring ...
, Santa Monica, Beverly, Wilshire,
Olympic Olympic or Olympics may refer to Sports Competitions * Olympic Games, international multi-sport event held since 1896 ** Summer Olympic Games ** Winter Olympic Games * Ancient Olympic Games, ancient multi-sport event held in Olympia, Greece b ...
,
Pico Pico may refer to: Places The Moon * Mons Pico, a lunar mountain in the northern part of the Mare Imbrium basin Portugal * Pico, a civil parish in the municipality of Vila Verde * Pico da Pedra, a civil parish in the municipality of Ribei ...
,
Venice Venice ( ; it, Venezia ; vec, Venesia or ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 small islands that are separated by canals and linked by over 400  ...
, Washington, Adams,
Jefferson Jefferson may refer to: Names * Jefferson (surname) * Jefferson (given name) People * Thomas Jefferson (1743–1826), third president of the United States * Jefferson (footballer, born 1970), full name Jefferson Tomaz de Souza, Brazilian foo ...
, Exposition, Obama Boulevard, and Martin Luther King Jr (formerly Santa Barbara Avenue), and Century Boulevard. The major north–south routes include:
Topanga Canyon Topanga () (Tongva: ''Topaa'nga'') is a census-designated place (CDP) in western Los Angeles County, California, United States. Located in the Santa Monica Mountains, the community exists in Topanga Canyon and the surrounding hills. The narrow s ...
,
Crenshaw Crenshaw may refer to: Places in the United States *Crenshaw, Los Angeles **Crenshaw High School *Crenshaw County, Alabama *Crenshaw, Mississippi *Crenshaw, Pennsylvania Transportation *Crenshaw Boulevard *Crenshaw station (C Line, Los Angeles Met ...
, Reseda, Lincoln, Sepulveda,
Van Nuys Van Nuys () is a neighborhood in the central San Fernando Valley region of Los Angeles, California. Home to Van Nuys Airport and the Valley Municipal Building, it is the most populous neighborhood in the San Fernando Valley. History In 1909, t ...
, Westwood,
Beverly Glen Beverly Glen is a neighborhood in the Santa Monica Mountains region of Los Angeles, California, located around Beverly Glen Boulevard north of Sunset Boulevard and south of Mulholland Drive. Stone Canyon Reservoir lies in the neighborhood. The nei ...
, San Vicente, Robertson, La Cienega, Laurel Canyon,
Glendale Glendale is the anglicised version of the Gaelic Gleann Dail, which means ''valley of fertile, low-lying arable land''. It may refer to: Places Australia * Glendale, New South Wales ** Stockland Glendale, a shopping centre *Glendale, Queensland, ...
, Avalon Boulevard, and Main Street. There are many other famous L.A. streets which carry significant traffic but are not labeled as boulevards. Examples include: Broadway, Bundy Drive, Barrington Avenue, Centinela Avenue, Fountain Avenue, Mulholland Drive, Slauson Avenue, Pacific Coast Highway, Century Park East, Avenue of the Stars, Century Park West, Normandie Avenue, Highland Avenue, Melrose Avenue, Florence Avenue,
Manchester Avenue Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The tw ...
, Vermont Avenue, La Brea Avenue, Fairfax Avenue, Western Avenue, Van Ness Avenue, Figueroa Street, Grand Avenue, Huntington Drive, Central Avenue,
Alameda Street Alameda Street is a major north-south thoroughfare in Los Angeles County, California. It is approximately 21 miles in length, running from Harry Bridges Boulevard in Wilmington; and through Carson, Compton, Lynwood, Watts, Florence-Graham, Hunti ...
, and Imperial Highway. West Los Angeles has many streets named after states that run east and west. Somewhat confusingly, adjacent Santa Monica uses a few of the same state names for different streets of its own.
Pothole A pothole is a depression in a road surface, usually asphalt pavement, where traffic has removed broken pieces of the pavement. It is usually the result of water in the underlying soil structure and traffic passing over the affected area. Water ...
s are a notorious problem in Los Angeles and frequently cause severe damage to all kinds of vehicles. In 2008, then-mayor Antonio Villaraigosa made "Operation Pothole" one of his top priorities for that year and pledged to fill 1 million potholes. However, due to the city's poorly managed budget, the city's Bureau of Street Services has only a single dedicated pothole-repair truck to cover of streets (meaning that the backlog is still bad and getting worse).Steven Leigh Morris
"L.A. Metro Buses Hammered By Potholes on Aging Wilshire Boulevard,"
''LA Weekly'', 5 September 2008.
Many city streets, such as Wilshire Boulevard, were engineered when cars, trucks, and buses were much smaller, and desperately need to be torn up and rebuilt from scratch to handle the weight of today's larger vehicles. Furthermore, due to its severe budget problems, Los Angeles is one of the few California cities that does not use raised pavement markers on its streets. Thus, Los Angeles drivers must be vigilant not only for potholes, but for other drivers drifting out of lanes due to the lack of tactile feedback normally provided by such markers.


On foot

In congruence with the assertion of a popular song that "nobody walks in L.A.", only 3.5% of Los Angeles residents commuted to work by walking in 2016 and Los Angeles residents walk for exercise at rates similar to those of other major U.S. cities. There are a number of commercial areas in nearby cities that have been redeveloped in the past two decades specifically to accommodate
pedestrian A pedestrian is a person traveling on foot, whether walking or running. In modern times, the term usually refers to someone walking on a road or pavement, but this was not the case historically. The meaning of pedestrian is displayed with ...
traffic.
Old Town Pasadena Old Pasadena, often referred to as Old Town Pasadena or just Old Town, is the original commercial center of Pasadena, a city in California, United States, and had a latter-day revitalization after a period of decay. Old Pasadena began as the ce ...
was redeveloped in the late 1980s by moving parking off
Colorado Boulevard Colorado Boulevard (or Colorado Street in Glendale and Arcadia) is a major east–west street in Southern California. It runs from Griffith Park in Los Angeles east through Glendale, the Eagle Rock section of Los Angeles, Pasadena, and Arcadia, ...
so as to make the street pedestrian-focused. Likewise, the Third Street Promenade in Santa Monica was closed off to vehicular traffic altogether in 1965 and revitalized with improved pedestrian amenities in 1988.
Downtown Los Angeles Downtown Los Angeles (DTLA) contains the central business district of Los Angeles. In addition, it contains a diverse residential area of some 85,000 people, and covers . A 2013 study found that the district is home to over 500,000 jobs. It is ...
has numerous public escalators and skyways, such as the Bunker Hill steps to facilitate pedestrian traffic in the traffic-laden and hilly terrain. Downtown Los Angeles is one of two neighborhoods in Los Angeles ranked as a "walker's paradise" (with walk scores 90 or above) by Walkscore. The other is Mid-City West, which encompasses the area of the city immediately south of West Hollywood and east of Beverly Hills. Nevertheless, much of Los Angeles remains pedestrian unfriendly. A large percentage of sidewalks in the City of Los Angeles (43% or of the ) are in ill repair stemming from the City Council decision in 1973 to use the federal money they had to take over the responsibility from the adjacent property owners. Previously they had conformed to California law which puts the responsibility for repair of sidewalks on the property owners. As certain popular species of trees accelerated the damage caused by roots, the council failed to concurrently allocate funds for continuing city repairs of such sidewalks. Voters were unwilling to approve funding repairs with a tax or a bond measure. The city again began dedicating funds for sidewalk repairs in 2000 but defunded the program during the Great Recession. In 2015, the city agreed to a landmark legal settlement that would fix the backlog of broken sidewalks and make other improvements to help those with disabilities navigate the city. The biggest agreement of its kind in U.S. history would settle a lawsuit on behalf of people in wheelchairs or others with mobility impairments who argued that crumbling, impassable sidewalks and other barriers were a violation of the
Americans With Disabilities Act The Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 or ADA () is a civil rights law that prohibits discrimination based on disability. It affords similar protections against discrimination to Americans with disabilities as the Civil Rights Act of 1964 ...
since they were prevented from accessing public pathways.


Bicycle travel

Bicycling accounts for approximately 1% of Los Angeles commuting and has almost doubled in the last ten years. People in Los Angeles commute to work by bicycle about twice as frequently as the US average There are extended stretches of bicycle paths such as the
Los Angeles River bicycle path The Los Angeles River bicycle path is a Class I bicycle and pedestrian path in the Greater Los Angeles area running from north to east along the Los Angeles River through Griffith Park in an area known as the Glendale Narrows. The 7.4 mile sectio ...
, which runs from Burbank to Long Beach, with only a brief hiatus through downtown.


Mass transit

The primary regional public transportation agency is the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (LACMTA), commonly referred to as Metro or MTA. The agency, which operates bus, light rail and subway services, averages 767,000 transit trips per weekday. It is the third largest transit agency in the United States. Other municipal transportation agencies in Los Angeles County ( LADOT, Long Beach Transit, Montebello Bus Lines, Norwalk Transit, Redondo Beach, Santa Monica's Big Blue Bus, Santa Clarita Transit,
Torrance Transit Torrance Transit is a transit agency primarily serving the South Bay region of Los Angeles County. In , the system had a ridership of , or about per weekday as of . History Torrance Transit inaugurated service on January 15, 1940 using three ...
and Foothill Transit) have an additional 405,000 average weekday boardings. In February 2008, LACMTA introduced the
Transit Access Pass The Transit Access Pass (TAP) is a contactless smart card used for automated fare collection on most public transport services within Los Angeles County. It is administered by the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (Metro), ...
(TAP) universal fare system. The TAP smart card allows bus and rail passengers to tap their cards on the farebox for faster boarding. TAP readers are installed on bus fareboxes and on turnstiles and standalone validators at rail stations. Because not all Metro Rail stations have turnstiles, it operates on a proof-of-payment system: as such, Metro's fare inspectors randomly check to make sure TAP users have validated their card by using a wireless handheld unit. TAP is now accepted on a number of different transit systems in Los Angeles County.


Buses

The extensive bus system operated by LACMTA includes the Metro Local,
Metro Rapid Metro Rapid is a local express bus service with bus rapid transit (BRT) characteristics in Los Angeles County, California. At its peak, Metro had dozens of Rapid routes, but , the system has been largely discontinued. Just three Metro operated Rap ...
, and formerly Metro Express services. Local buses tend to be orange, rapid buses red, and express buses blue. Rapid bus route numbers usually begin with a 7 and express bus numbers begin with 4 and 5. The buses have an estimated 1.3 million boardings on the weekdays. Including other municipal bus operators, Los Angeles County averages 1.7 million bus boardings per weekday, accounting for approximately 5.9% of the 29 million daily trips originating in Los Angeles County. LACMTA has two
bus rapid transit Bus rapid transit (BRT), also called a busway or transitway, is a bus-based public transport system designed to have much more capacity, reliability and other quality features than a conventional bus system. Typically, a BRT system includes ...
lines: the G Line and the J Line. The G Line runs from Warner Center/Woodland Hills to the North Hollywood B Line station, began operations on October 29, 2005 as the Orange Line. For 13 of its stretch (21 km of its 22.5 km stretch), the articulated buses, built by North American Bus Industries and dubbed ''Metro Liners'', operate on bus-only lanes that follow an old railroad right-of-way. Portions of the route parallel Chandler and Victory Boulevards, and Oxnard Street. The J Line runs along
Interstate 10 Interstate 10 (I-10) is the southernmost cross-country highway in the American Interstate Highway System. I-10 is the fourth-longest Interstate in the United States at , following I-90, I-80, and I-40. This freeway is part of the originally pl ...
and Interstate 110 between El Monte Station and the Harbor Gateway Transit Center. Foothill Transit also operates a bus rapid transit system called the Silver Streak, which runs from Montclair to
Downtown Los Angeles Downtown Los Angeles (DTLA) contains the central business district of Los Angeles. In addition, it contains a diverse residential area of some 85,000 people, and covers . A 2013 study found that the district is home to over 500,000 jobs. It is ...
along the
El Monte Busway The El Monte Busway (also known as the I-10 ExpressLanes) is a shared-use express bus corridor (transitway, busway) and high occupancy toll lane, high occupancy toll (HOT) lanes running along Interstate 10 in California, Interstate 10 between Un ...
on Interstate 10. Other bus systems: *
Culver CityBus Culver CityBus is a public transport agency operating in Culver City, California, currently serving Culver City, the unincorporated community of Marina del Rey, and the adjacent Los Angeles neighborhoods. Its regular fleet is painted bright g ...
- green (local) and grey (rapid) * Santa Monica's Big Blue Bus * Montebello Bus Lines * Numerous other municipal bus systems


Metro Rail

Between its light rail and
heavy rail Various terms are used for passenger railway lines and equipment; the usage of these terms differs substantially between areas: Rapid transit A rapid transit system is an electric railway characterized by high speed (~) and rapid accelerati ...
systems, Metro Rail has of rail, averaging 308,653 trips per weekday, and accounting for approximately 1.1% of the 29 million daily trips originating in Los Angeles County. The network includes five above-ground light rail lines ( L Line, E Line, A Line, K Line and C Line) and one underground
subway Subway, Subways, The Subway, or The Subways may refer to: Transportation * Subway, a term for underground rapid transit rail systems * Subway (underpass), a type of walkway that passes underneath an obstacle * Subway (George Bush Interconti ...
with two branches ( B Line and D Line). Ranked by daily ridership, the Los Angeles subway ranked as the ninth-busiest rapid transit system in the United States. Ranked by passengers per route mile, however, the system ranks sixth, transporting 8,846 passengers per route mile, more than San Francisco's
Bay Area Rapid Transit Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) is a rapid transit system serving the San Francisco Bay Area in California. BART serves 50 stations along six routes on of rapid transit lines, including a spur line in eastern Contra Costa County which uses ...
or the
Chicago 'L' (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...
. The Los Angeles Metro Rail system connects disperse areas of the county including Long Beach,
Pasadena Pasadena ( ) is a city in Los Angeles County, California, northeast of downtown Los Angeles. It is the most populous city and the primary cultural center of the San Gabriel Valley. Old Pasadena is the city's original commercial district. Its ...
, Norwalk, El Segundo, North Hollywood,
Inglewood Inglewood may refer to: Places Australia *Inglewood, Queensland * Shire of Inglewood, Queensland, a former local government area *Inglewood, South Australia *Inglewood, Victoria * Inglewood, Western Australia Canada * Inglewood, Ontario *Inglewo ...
and
Downtown Los Angeles Downtown Los Angeles (DTLA) contains the central business district of Los Angeles. In addition, it contains a diverse residential area of some 85,000 people, and covers . A 2013 study found that the district is home to over 500,000 jobs. It is ...
. As of 2022, there are four additional rail expansion projects under construction and various other projects under study. The timing of their construction will depend on the availability of funding. These projects include: * Connection of the C Line and K Line to
LAX Los Angeles International Airport , commonly referred to as LAX (with each letter pronounced individually), is the primary international airport serving Los Angeles, California and its surrounding metropolitan area. LAX is located in the W ...
through a people mover (under construction). *
Regional Connector The Regional Connector Transit Project is a transit project currently constructing a light rail tunnel for the Los Angeles Metro Rail system in Downtown Los Angeles. It is designed to connect the A Line and E Line, which currently end at 7th S ...
in Downtown Los Angeles, connecting the A, E, and L lines (under construction). * Westward extension of the Purple Line subway (D Line) to Westwood, thru UCLA and Central LA (now under construction). * Further extensions of the L Line from Azusa to
Pomona Pomona may refer to: Places Argentina * Pomona, Río Negro Australia * Pomona, Queensland, Australia, a town in the Shire of Noosa * Pomona, New South Wales, Australia Belize * Pomona, Belize, a municipality in Stann Creek District Mexico ...
, named the
Gold Line Foothill Extension The Foothill Extension is an extension of the Los Angeles Metro Rail L Line light rail line from its former terminus in Pasadena, California, east through the "Foothill Cities" of Los Angeles County. The first stage of the plan, Phase 2A, exten ...
. (under construction). * Further extensions of the L Line
East Los Angeles East Los Angeles ( es, Este de Los Ángeles), or East L.A., is an unincorporated area in Los Angeles County, California. As of the 2020 census it had a population of 118,786, a drop of 6.1% from 2010, when it was 126,496. For statistical purpo ...
to Whittier, named the
Eastside Transit Corridor The Eastside Transit Corridor is a light rail line extension that currently connects Downtown Los Angeles with East Los Angeles. However, the extension is planned to extend further southeast to connect with the Gateway Cities, continuing from a ...
(final study stages). * The new
East San Fernando Light Rail Transit Project The East San Fernando Valley Light Rail Transit Project (formerly the East San Fernando Valley Transit Corridor Project) is a transit project which proposes the construction of a light rail line on the east side of Los Angeles's San Fernando Va ...
in the valley is set to start construction in 2023. * A
C Line Extension to Torrance The C Line Extension is a project by the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority to extend the C Line (formerly known as the Green Line) from its terminus in Redondo Beach to Torrance. It is expected to open for service betwee ...
is under study, the southern terminus in the South Bay area. * A new light rail line thru the gateway cities is under study named the
West Santa Ana Branch Transit Corridor The West Santa Ana Branch Transit Corridor is a planned light rail line, mostly following the Pacific Electric's historic West Santa Ana Branch, connecting Downtown Los Angeles to the City of Artesia and other cities in southeastern Los Angeles ...
from DTLA thru Artesia. * A new HRT subway line corridor has started study from the San Fernando Valley to UCLA and eventually LAX. The Sepulveda Pass Transit Corridor. * A northern extension of the K line from Crenshaw to West Hollywood and a connection to the Hollywood Bowl. Currently under study. Called the
Crenshaw Northern Extension Rail Project The Metro K Line Northern Extension is a project planning a Los Angeles Metro Rail light rail transit corridor extension connecting Expo/Crenshaw station to Hollywood/Highland station in Hollywood, Los Angeles, Hollywood. The corridor is a north- ...
. * A eastern extension of the D line in Downtown Los Angeles with a single new station in the Arts District. * A new BRT or HRT on a north to south route along Vermont Avenue is currently under study. * Metro plans to convert the BRT Orange Line into a LRT. * Metro also plans to begin a study of a BRT or LRT from LAX to Santa Monica thru Lincoln Blvd.


Commuter rail

Also serving Los Angeles and several surrounding counties is Metrolink, a regional commuter rail service. Metrolink averages 42,600 trips per weekday, the busiest line being the San Bernardino line.


Los Angeles public transportation statistics

The average amount of time people spend commuting with public transit in Los Angeles, for example to and from work, on a weekday is 86 minutes. 31% of public transit riders ride for more than 2 hours every day. The average amount of time people wait at a stop or station for public transit is 20 minutes, while 38% of riders wait for over 20 minutes on average every day. The average distance people usually ride in a single trip with public transit is , while 30% travel for over in a single direction.


Vehicle for hire companies

Vehicle for hire companies face numerous regulations in California. Taxis in Los Angeles are regulated by the Board of Taxicab Commissioners. There are 9 taxi companies in Los Angeles that operate more than 2,300 taxis. Some of the largest Taxi companies in Los Angeles are LA Yellow Cab, Bell Cab, and United Independent Taxi. RideYellow, Curb and Flywheel are three of the most popular mobile apps providing taxi service in Los Angeles. Uber and Lyft operate in Los Angeles.


Superbloom street lights

In November of 2019, Los Angeles Chief Design Officer Christopher Hawthorne launched L.A. Lights The Way under the supervision of Mayor Eric Garcetti, an open competition to design and fabricate a new, improved, and multi-use standard
LED A light-emitting diode (LED) is a semiconductor Electronics, device that Light#Light sources, emits light when Electric current, current flows through it. Electrons in the semiconductor recombine with electron holes, releasing energy i ...
powered
street light A street light, light pole, lamp pole, lamppost, street lamp, light standard, or lamp standard is a raised source of light on the edge of a road or path. Similar lights may be found on a railway platform. When urban electric power distribution ...
to be installed and supplant the 220,000 existing less efficient high pressure sodium street lamps and the current single-function, utilitarian, LED-operated CD953 model streetlight that has been standardized throughout Los Angeles since 2009. According to Hawthorne, the L.A. Lights the Way initiative serves as an opportunity "to reconnect with the city's 'rich tradition' of streetlight modernization," a potential way to "mitigate the unequal distribution of the city's 'most beautiful' streetlights, which are currently concentrated in the wealthiest neighborhoods," and as an avenue through which to establish Smart City infrastructure throughout Los Angeles. Additionally, the timeliness of the design competition echoes the larger, city-wide efforts to refurbish and modernize the city’s public environment in preparation for the
2028 Olympic Games The 2028 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXXIV Olympiad, also known as Los Angeles 2028 or LA28) is an upcoming international multi-sport event scheduled to take place from July 14 to July 30, 2028, in and around Los Angeles, Cali ...
(though the L.A. Lights The Way initiative is not explicitly included in Garcetti's
Twenty-eight by '28 The Twenty-eight by '28 initiative is an effort set forth by former Mayor Eric Garcetti that the City of Los Angeles complete 28 transportation infrastructure projects before the start of the 2028 Summer Olympics on and the 2028 Summer Paralympics ...
transit infrastructure plan). On September 3, 2020, Hawthorne announced via Twitter that of the over 100 anonymous global entries, the winner of the contest’s $70,000 prize was the Superbloom concept, coincidentally created by the L.A.-based design studio Project Room. The Superbloom street light is a modular-designed system that, according to project leader Sandy Yum, employs
biomimicry Biomimetics or biomimicry is the emulation of the models, systems, and elements of nature for the purpose of solving complex human problems. The terms "biomimetics" and "biomimicry" are derived from grc, βίος (''bios''), life, and μίμησ ...
in the form a bouquet of flowers, with each metal tubular “flower” serving a distinct technological or physical feature. Yum describes the design focus of the Superbloom concept was, "to take the ever increasing number of things we demand from our streetlights — shade, traffic sensors, telecom, EV charging, wayfinding, banners, the list goes on — and translate that into a form that is uniquely LA." The Superbloom concept, according to Project Room, embodies a systems-based approach to engineering municipal infrastructure, and that the Superbloom system anticipates and invites future innovations given that extra “tubes are built in to the design for future use. Additional arms can be quickly and affordably fabricated. The streetlight expresses its purposes as simply as possible and yet remains open to change and to the future.” The proposed Superbloom system is designed to incorporate features that have the potential to mitigate the detrimental effects of the various environmentally racist modern urban design phenomena, such as increasing the amount shade to combat urban heat islands that are disproportionately found in low-income communities of color. However, concerned citizens, media outlets, and other advocates of environmental justice have also noted the potential racial and class-oriented implications of
security lighting In the field of physical security, security lighting is lighting that intended to deter or detect intrusions or other criminal activity occurring on a property or site. It can also be used to increase a feeling of safety. Lighting is integral to cri ...
, claiming that such an interconnected, municipally owned system has the potential to expand and streamline the LAPD's preexisting practice of mounting "security cameras, gunshot monitors, and other surveillance tools," thus increasing the potential for the over-policing and subsequent racial profiling of lower-income or racially/ethnically homogenous neighborhoods.


Commuting

In 2006, of the 4,423,725 workers aged 16 or older in Los Angeles County, 72.0% commuted to work driving alone, 11.9% commuted by driving in a carpool and 7.0% commuted on public transportation. 64.9% of public transportation commuters were non-white, 70.2% were Hispanic and 67.6% were foreign born. 75.5% of public transportation commuters earned less than $25,000. However, only 32.7% of public transportation commuters had no vehicle available to them for their commute. In the same year, for the City of Los Angeles, of the 1,721,778 workers aged 16 or older, 63.3% commuted to work driving alone, 11.5% commuted by driving in a carpool, 11.0% commuted by public transportation, and 3.4% walked. The percentage of population using public transport in Los Angeles is lower than other large U.S. cities such as San Francisco, Chicago and
New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...
, but similar to or higher than other western U.S. cities such as
Portland Portland most commonly refers to: * Portland, Oregon, the largest city in the state of Oregon, in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States * Portland, Maine, the largest city in the state of Maine, in the New England region of the northeas ...
and Denver. 63.8% of public transportation commuters in the City of Los Angeles in 2006 were non-white, 75.1% were Hispanic and 73.9% were foreign born. 79.4% of public transportation commuters earned less than $25,000 and 37.6% had no vehicle available to them for their commute. Since 2006, driving alone increased at the expense of carpooling and public transportation. According to the 2016 American Community Survey, 69.7% of working Los Angeles (city) residents commuted by driving alone, 8.7% carpooled, 9.2% used public transportation, and 3.5% walked. About 2.8% commuted by all other means, including taxi, bicycle, and motorcycle. About 6.1% worked at home.


Concerns


Air quality

Los Angeles is strongly predisposed to accumulation of
smog Smog, or smoke fog, is a type of intense air pollution. The word "smog" was coined in the early 20th century, and is a portmanteau of the words ''smoke'' and '' fog'' to refer to smoky fog due to its opacity, and odor. The word was then inte ...
, because of peculiarities of its geography and weather patterns. The millions of vehicles in the area combined with the additional effects of the Los Angeles/ Long Beach complex frequently contribute to further air pollution. Los Angeles was one of the best known cities suffering from transportation smog for much of the 20th century, so much so that it was sometimes said that ''Los Angeles'' was a synonym for ''smog''. In particular, the entire area in between Los Angeles Harbor and
Riverside Riverside may refer to: Places Australia * Riverside, Tasmania, a suburb of Launceston, Tasmania Canada * Riverside (electoral district), in the Yukon * Riverside, Calgary, a neighbourhood in Alberta * Riverside, Manitoba, a former rural m ...
has become known as the "Diesel Death Zone".


Sidewalks

The city has about of sidewalk. Many are perilous or impassable due to lack of maintenance to those who have disabilities that affect their mobility. In 2015, the city committed to spending $1.4 billion over the next 30 years to resolved a class-action lawsuit citing violations of the Americans With Disabilities Act by fixing other barriers to full and safe access to city streets.


See also

* Asbury Rapid Transit System (1935-1958), small, privately owned bus system * Freeway system of Los Angeles *
Great American Streetcar Scandal The General Motors streetcar conspiracy refers to the convictions of General Motors (GM) and related companies that were involved in the monopolizing of the sale of buses and supplies to National City Lines (NCL) and subsidiaries, as well as to ...
, conspiracy theory on demise of Red Car system * History of Pacific Electric (Red Car)


References


External links


City streets that existed in 1903-04 but are no longer extant
{{DEFAULTSORT:Transportation In Los Angeles Los Angeles Los Angeles, California