Metro’s happy to announce that after nine years of hard work, The Regional Connector Transit project will open on Friday, June 16, 2023!
This project was brought to life by Metro with the intention of providing riders with two new direct routes: from Azusa to Long Beach and from East Los Angeles to Santa Monica. Both routes will cross through Downtown Los Angeles.
Now, the A (Blue), E (Expo) and L (Gold) Lines will become two lines. The A Line will be the one running from Azusa to Long Beach, and the E Line will go from East Los Angeles to Santa Monica.
The project includes three new underground stations: Little Tokyo/Arts District Station, Historic Broadway Station and Grand Ave Arts/Bunker Hill Station, which is where the A and E Lines will be passing.
The idea is to facilitate transportation for riders making their journey faster. Now, they will be able to reach these locations without the need to transfer lines making it more convenient for them. This project has been in the works since 2014 and took almost a decade to complete. It is being completed at a perfect time as with gas prices going up, using the Metro is a good way to save money. Riders also get a chance to explore Los Angeles more easily than using a car.
I have a car, and every time I want to go to Downtown LA to get ramen, I think about the amount of traffic, the parking, the gas and all the other things which makes me not want to go. However, I recently learned how to get to my favorite ramen with my friend on the Metro and it has been super easy. So, I highly everyone to try out Metro when going to Downtown LA because there are a lot of things one can do when not having to worry about the car.
Not only does the project make transportation easier for riders, but it also brings many benefits. The launch of this project brings new opportunities for jobs, education and essential services.
Recently, Metro launched its new Metro Ambassadors program to make Metro more safer and easier for riders. Now riders are able to ask the Ambassadors at the underground stations for help navigating the lines and serve as a support system. There have been many crimes going on during Metro so it’s nice to see them doing their best to make it even safer by having Ambassadors and implementing more security cameras. For more information on this program check out their website.
Overall, Metro has been working on making its transportation easier and affordable for everyone.
A sweet thing that Metro has announced on one of their Instagram post is that riders will be able to ride for free on the opening weekend so be sure to check out the new project on June 16th!
For more information on the Regional Connector Project check out their website.