New Metro bus priority lanes along N. La Brea Avenue are now open in the City of West Hollywood and the City of Los Angeles. A ceremony celebrating the official unveiling of the 5.7 miles round trip stretch and Metro’s new Electric buses, took place this morning at the West Hollywood Gateway.
Community leaders and transit representatives showed up to speak to members of the press, including Mayor of Los Angeles Karen Bass, Metro Board members and LA County Supervisor Lindsey Horvath, Metro Board members Katy Yaroslavsky, Jacquelyn Dupont-Walker, WeHo Mayor Sepi Shyne, WeHo Councilmember Chelsea Byers, LA Councilmember Hugo Soto-Martinez and more.
“This will save time for working families. This priority lane can make a difference in people’s lives by making it easier for them to access opportunities because many residents that live along this corridor rely only on the bus to get around and use the bus system at least five times per week,” said Mayor Bass.
City and transit leaders say they are part of a larger project to speed up transit service and improve its reliability.
Metro, the City of Los Angeles, and West Hollywood celebrated the opening of the 5.7-mile round trip stretch of bus priority lanes running north and south on La Brea Avenue. The lanes also run from Sunset Boulevard on the north side down to Olympic Boulevard on the south end.
Metro says the new lanes benefit the 12,000 daily bus riders on the route. They priority lanes in both directions along N. La Brea Avenue from Sunset Boulevard at the north to Coliseum Street at the south will improve transit travel times during weekday peak hours. Though most of the project is in the City of Los Angeles, the first phase includes three blocks of N. La Brea Avenue in the City of West Hollywood from Romaine Street to Fountain Avenue.
The City of West Hollywood is coordinated with Metro on the implementation of shared bus/bike lanes that were recommended for this segment of N. La Brea Avenue as part of the City’s Pedestrian and Bicycle Mobility Plan. Within the first phase of the project, including all portions within the City of West Hollywood, new bus lanes will operate on weekdays from 7 a.m. to 9 a.m. and again from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m., replacing the additional general-purpose travel lane that currently becomes available in each direction during peak hours when curbside parking is prohibited.
The goal of the project is to improve speed and reliability for existing transit service on N. La Brea Avenue including Metro’s Line 212 bus service and West Hollywood’s Cityline Commuter service, which provides free rush-hour and Saturday evening service to and from Hollywood & Highland and the Metro B line. Once installed, drivers will be prohibited from driving in the new bus priority lanes during weekday peak hours except when making right-hand turns. The lanes will be enforced by the City’s Parking Enforcement staff, just as existing peak hour no-parking restrictions are today.
Seventy-five percent of bus riders on this corridor do not own cars and use the bus system at least five times per week. Additionally, all routes under consideration for Metro’s future Northern Extension of the Crenshaw/LAX light rail line also include a stop at Santa Monica Boulevard and N. La Brea Avenue, so bus lanes may also one day extend the reach of future rail service.
For more details about the La Brea Avenue Bus Priority Lanes Project, please visit Metro’s project website at www.metro.net/labrea or review the Metro project fact sheet.
The homeless that don’t pay will love this