Bus Lanes Expand Territory in Los Angeles

Joe Linton reports that the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (Metro) and the Los Angeles Department of Transportation (LADOT) are adding a 1.6-mile bus lane connecting the MacArthur Park and Echo Park neighborhoods.

The Alvarado Street bus lane is the latest of a "crop" of new bus lanes, though this is the first project to be located outside of Downtown Los Angeles. The bus lane project is one result of a "bus speed improvement initiative spearheaded by L.A. City Councilmember and Metro Boardmember Mike Bonin," explains Linton.

Additional details on the project:

Per LADOT’s initial report on the facility, the Alvarado project “will increase bus frequency along the corridor from approximately ten minutes to seven minutes, and reduce travel time by three minutes in each direction.” To minimize parking loss, the bus lanes will operate only on weekdays, and at peak hours in peak directions: 7-10 a.m. southbound and 3-7 p.m. northbound. In addition to serving Metro line 200, the bus lanes will also, for a few blocks, serve LADOT’s DASH Pico Union/Echo Park buses.

Demographic data on the riders of the routes that will use the lanes are included in the source article. Astute observers will recall that a bus-only lane on Flower Street in Los Angeles achieved a certain level of Internet virality in December 2019, helping to build political support for more bus priority around the city.