When I needed to get to the USC campus south of downtown Los Angeles yesterday for the LA Times Festival of Books, I expected traffic to be nightmarish, parking to be limited and expensive, and the entire experience of getting there and then getting home by car to be an ordeal. I also knew that I could take the LA Metro system of subways and light rail to get right to the door for about $5 with many fewer hassles. It was a no brainer.
Most people, even those here in LA, even MANY of those who have lived in LA for decades, don’t know how easy or extensive Metro is. Here’s to hoping that work being done preparing for the upcoming Summer Olympics in three years (if they don’t pull them for another foreign city due to our current government) will educate folks and spread the word.
Metro here consists of subways, light rail, dedicated bus routes, and regular street buses. It’s not perfect (getting to LAX is tough, for example, but they’re working on that) and it’s usually slower than taking your own car (although there are days…) but it’s worth having a TAP card with $20 or so loaded on it in your wallet, just in case.
In theory, I could have picked up any one of about three different bus lines within a mile or so of my house. From there I would have transferred to the Orange Line dedicated bus lane which goes to the North Hollywood transit center. There I could have gotten on the Red (B) line subway, transferred to the Expo (E) line light rail, and gotten off right at the front gate to the USC campus. Depending on the timing of the transfers, it would have taken maybe 2:30. (Driving there myself with no traffic would be about 0:40 with zero traffic, and about 1:30 yesterday morning.)
Instead, I drove to the Universal Studios station (one stop down the line from North Hollywood, but there’s a big parking lot there and it’s fast & easy to get to), and got on the Red (B) line there. Total time from my door to meeting my daughter near the Tommy Trojan statue was 2:05.
Descending into the Earth from the parking lot at the Universal Studios station.
Making sure I had funds on the TAP card I carry around.
Going down to the train tracks. On the right, headed north one more stop to the North Hollywood transit center, on the left, headed south to Hollywood and then to Union Station, where in theory I could catch an Amtrak train to go as far as I wanted.
Artwork everywhere. I’ve been on the subway in London, New York, Washington, Prague, Kyoto, Seoul, and Shanghai – the LA subways are as good or better than any in terms of functionality, safety, and cleanliness.
Transferring to the Expo line at 7th/Metro Center station. From here, it’s four stops to USC. Easy peasy.
If you’re coming to visit LA and you’re going to be going all over doing sightseeing and visiting friends and folks, sure, maybe a rental car is easier, as long as you’re comfortable driving the LA freeways. (Which, while legendary for the stress levels and traffic, aren’t REALLY any worse than Chicago, New York, Boston, Dallas, or any other large American city.) But if you’re staying in LA (and not, say, down in Orange County by Disneyland, where the LA Metro system doesn’t connect well) and just want to get to a few popular places (downtown, Hollywood, Santa Monica, the beach) you might just want to check out if Metro will work for you.
We Love The Stars Too Fondly 