The Other Missing Transit Link to LAX

There is more than one new connection to LAX and the region's rail networks in the works.

1 minute read

January 17, 2017, 12:00 PM PST

By Casey Brazeal @northandclark


LAX Airport

Joseph Sohm / Shutterstock

Metrolink, the Los Angeles region's commuter train service, does not currently connect Orange County and the Inland Empire to Los Angeles International Airport, but that may be about to change. 

"Commuters on Metrolink, Metro’s heavy-rail cousin, come from Riverside and Orange County to the busy Norwalk/Santa Fe Springs Metrolink Station on Imperial Highway," according to Steve Scauzillo, reporting for in the San Gabriel Valley Tribune. The Norwalk/Santa Fe Springs Metrolink Station is located 2.8 miles away from the eastern terminus of the Metro Green Line, also in Norwalk, which is the line that passes closest to LAX.

To connect these two stations on separate rail systems, the Southern California Association of Governments (SCAG) is holding public meetings to consider an aerial train, underground subway, or dedicated busway. "One could call SCAG’s project the Rail-to-LAX II," writes Scauzillo. The existing Metro Green Line and the under-construction Crenshaw Light Rail Line will also eventually gain a connection to LAX in the form of a people mover that connects the airport to the Airport Metro Connector 96th Street Transit Station.

Tuesday, January 10, 2017 in San Gabriel Valley Tribune

portrait of professional woman

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching. Mary G., Urban Planner

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching.

Mary G., Urban Planner

Cover CM Credits, Earn Certificates, Push Your Career Forward

Aerial view of town of Wailuku in Maui, Hawaii with mountains in background against cloudy sunset sky.

Maui's Vacation Rental Debate Turns Ugly

Verbal attacks, misinformation campaigns and fistfights plague a high-stakes debate to convert thousands of vacation rentals into long-term housing.

July 1, 2025 - Honolulu Civil Beat

Logo for Planetizen Federal Action Tracker with black and white image of U.S. Capitol with water ripple overlay.

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker

A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.

July 2, 2025 - Diana Ionescu

White and purple sign for Slow Street in San Francisco, California with people crossing crosswalk.

San Francisco Suspends Traffic Calming Amidst Record Deaths

Citing “a challenging fiscal landscape,” the city will cease the program on the heels of 42 traffic deaths, including 24 pedestrians.

July 1, 2025 - KQED

Google street view image of strip mall in suburban Duncanville, Texas.

Adaptive Reuse Will Create Housing in a Suburban Texas Strip Mall

A developer is reimagining a strip mall property as a mixed-use complex with housing and retail.

2 hours ago - Parking Reform Network

Blue tarps covering tents set up by unhoused people along chain link fence on concrete sidewalk.

Study: Anti-Homelessness Laws Don’t Work

Research shows that punitive measures that criminalized unhoused people don’t help reduce homelessness.

4 hours ago - Next City

Aerial tram moving along cable in hilly area in Medellin, Colombia.

In U.S., Urban Gondolas Face Uphill Battle

Cities in Latin America and Europe have embraced aerial transitways — AKA gondolas — as sustainable, convenient urban transport, especially in tricky geographies. American cities have yet to catch up.

6 hours ago - InTransition Magazine