Los Angeles Metro Rail
The Los Angeles Metro Rail is an urban transit system in Los Angeles County, California, United States. It is operated by the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (Metro). The system has a total of six lines and 107 stations. Four lines are light rail (A, C, E, K), and two are rapid transit (B and D). The Los Angeles Metro Rail system also connects to the Metro Busway (G & J), Metrolink, Amtrak, and other transit services.
| Los Angeles Metro Rail | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 | |||
| Info | |||
| Owner | Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority | ||
| Transit type | |||
| Number of lines | 6 | ||
| Number of stations | 107 | ||
| Daily ridership | 184,400 (weekdays, Q4 2023) | ||
| Chief executive | Stephanie Wiggins | ||
| Website | metro | ||
| Operation | |||
| Began operation | July 14, 1990 | ||
| Technical | |||
| System length | 109 mi (172 km) | ||
| |||
The A Line is the oldest in the system. It opened on July 14, 1990. Since then, the system continued to expand to more places. More expansions are currently under construction such as the D Line Extension to West Los Angeles.[1]
As of 2024[update], the Los Angeles Metro Rail light rail system is the busiest in the United States. The rapid transit lines are the ninth busiest.[2]
Current system
Lines
The Los Angeles Metro Rail system includes six lines and 107 stations. The lines used to be named by colors, but are now known by letters since 2020. Metro also uses the same line letter naming system for its Metro Busway lines.[3] Below is the list of the rail lines and how many stations each go to:
| Line Name | Stations | Termini | Type | Opened |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 A Line
|
48 | Pomona North
Downtown Long Beach |
Light rail | July 14, 1990 |
 B Line
|
14 | North Hollywood
Union Station |
Rapid transit | January 30, 1993 |
 C Line
|
11 | LAX/Metro Transit Center
Norwalk |
Light rail | August 12, 1995 |
 D Line
|
8 | Wilshire/Western
Union Station |
Rapid transit | January 30, 1993 |
 E Line
|
29 | Downtown Santa Monica
Atlantic |
Light rail | April 28, 2012 |
 K Line
|
13 | Expo/Crenshaw
Redondo Beach |
Light rail | October 7, 2022 |
Stations
Los Angeles Metro Rail has 107 stations. The light rail stations are mostly above ground, but some are underground. Rapid transit stations (B and D Lines) are all underground.[4] Each station has ticket vending machines, maps, electronics digital display to point out directions , and artwork reflecting the local culture.[5] All stations also have elevators, escalators or ramps.
The underground stations generally are larger and have two levels. The top level is where passengers can buy tickets. The bottom level is where passengers board trains. The underground stations are built to withstand earthquakes.[6]
Fares
To travel on Metro Rail, passengers need a Transit Access Pass (TAP) card. They can get the card from a tap card vending machine at every station via cash or debit card. There is fare inspectors throughout the system who check if someone has one. With a TAP card, passengers can switch between Metro lines for free within 2 hours after starting their ride.
Since July 2023, Metro has replaced its 1-Day, 7-Day, and 30-Day passes with fare capping. This means that riders will never have to pay more than $5 (for up to 3 rides) in a day or $18 (for up to 11 rides) within seven days. Fares for students, seniors, disabled, or low-income people are cheaper.[7][8] The graph below shows the different fare types and their prices:
| Fare type | Regular | Senior (62+)
Disabled/Medicare |
Students
(K-12; College) |
Low Income |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| One-way trip | $1.75 | $0.35 (all other times)
$0.75 (rush hours) |
$0.75 | 20 free rides then Regular fare |
| 1-Day Cap | $5 | $2.50 | $2.50 | |
| 7-Day Cap | $18 | $5 | $6 |
Safety
The Los Angeles Metro Rail has the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department watch around half of the system's trains and stations. The Los Angeles Police Department is also responsible for stations in the city of Los Angeles. Security staff monitor the system via closed-circuit television cameras.[9]
History
Before the Los Angeles Metro Rail system, the Pacific Electric Railway and Los Angeles Railway were the two urban train systems in Los Angeles County. The systems were in operation from 1901 to 1961. In 1927, the two systems started replacing their rail lines with buses since more people in the county were using cars for transport. In 1958, the systems were taken over by a government agency. It was known as the Los Angeles Metropolitan Transit Authority (MTA).[10] By 1963, all rail lines were gone and replaced with buses.[11]
In the 1970s, people started wanting the return of rail transit. This was because traffic was increasing on the county's freeways and roads. Also, gas prices and the population of the area were growing quickly. During the decade, the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (Metro) began planning the first new train lines. In 1980, Proposition A was passed to pay for the construction of the new lines.[12]
The Blue Line (now the A Line) was the first light rail line in Los Angeles constructed since Proposition A. It opened on July 14, 1990. It initially ran from Downtown Long Beach to Downtown Los Angeles at 7th Street/Metro Center station. From its start, the line was very popular.[13]
Los Angeles's first rapid transit lines (B and D) opened later in January 1993. The light rail system continued to expand with the C Line in 1995, the L Line in 2003 (now part of the A and E Lines), and the E Line in 2012. The newest line, the K Line, opened in 2022.[14]
Los Angeles Metro Rail Media
Metro A Line train stationed at Downtown Long Beach (formerly Transit Mall) station
Southbound Metro B Line train departing from Hollywood/Highland station
Westbound Metro E Line to Downtown Santa Monica station stopped at Expo/Sepulveda station
Two Siemens P2000 trains at Memorial Park station
Former Metro Gold Line (now part of the E Line) train at Atlantic station
The first operating segment of Los Angeles Metro Rail opened on July 14, 1990, then known as the Blue Line.
References
- ↑ Wiekel, Dan (November 7, 2014). "L.A.'s not-quite 'subway to the sea' finally breaks ground". Los Angeles Times. https://www.latimes.com/local/california/la-me-westside-subway-20141108-story.html. Retrieved 10 May 2015.
- ↑ "Public Transportation Ridership Report | Fourth Quarter 2023" (PDF). American Public Transportation Association. March 4, 2024. Archived from the original (PDF) on March 23, 2024. Retrieved May 17, 2024.
- ↑ "LA, meet our new lineup". metro.net. Retrieved December 23, 2023.
- ↑ "Metro Facts at a Glance". Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority. November 12, 2024. Retrieved April 16, 2025.
- ↑ "Artworks by Location". Metro Art. Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority. Retrieved April 16, 2025.
- ↑ Hymon, Steve (August 10, 2012). "Designing a subway to withstand an earthquake". The Source. Archived from the original on December 15, 2018. Retrieved February 25, 2019.
- ↑ "Fare Capping". metro.net. Retrieved July 1, 2023.
- ↑ "L.A. Metro Fare Capping Starts July 1 - Streetsblog California". cal.streetsblog.org. 2023-06-07. Retrieved July 1, 2023.
- ↑ "LAPD Officers to Patrol Metro Buses, Trains in the City of Los Angeles". lamayor.org. February 23, 2017. Archived from the original on June 2, 2020. Retrieved July 2, 2017.
- ↑ Hebert, Ray (February 17, 1958). MTA Plans Faster Service, End to Overlapping Routes. https://latimesblogs.latimes.com/thedailymirror/files/1958_0217_hebert01.jpg. Retrieved January 22, 2021.
- ↑ Taplin, Michael (1991). "City of the Automobile: Los Angeles looks to Light Rail London". Light Rail Review 2 (Platform 5 Publishing/Light Rail Transit Association): 27–30. .
- ↑ Berkowitz, Eric (August 18, 2005). The Subway Mayor. http://www.laweekly.com/2005-08-18/news/the-subway-mayor/full/. Retrieved October 12, 2013.
- ↑ "MTA Starts 3-Car Train Service on Busy Metro Blue Line". metro.net. Archived from the original on June 3, 2021. Retrieved January 22, 2020.
- ↑ Elkind, Ethan (March 16, 2022). "From Rail to Roads and Back Again: The Rebirth of L.A.'s Public Transit". PBS SoCal. Retrieved May 18, 2024.