I may pop into Los Angeles for a couple of days and most of what I want to see is reachable on the various subway lines. Likely will stay at the Westin Bonaventure, and know there is a SuperShuttle between LAX and the hotel, but I also notice that several Green Line stations cannot be very far from the airport. Are there any transit buses that serve LAX which go to one of these stations? As a subway buff, I would like to ride as much of the new system as possible, in part to explore the public artworks on display.

I'm 99% positive there is a shuttle bus from LAX to the El Segundo green line station (board the bus outside baggage claim at the terminal you arrive at and keep an eye out for a sign on the bus that says "Green Line").

Yes you can get to downtown this way but it might take a LONG time. You'd have to take the bus to the green line station and take that to the blue line, then transfer to the blue line and take that to downtown. Not sure which station you exit to get to the Westin Badadventure.

Check out this website to see if it helps any more:

http://www.mta.net/

Here's another link:

http://www.lawa.org/lax/laxframe.html

Click the Ground Transport button, then Public Transport button for more info.

Enjoy your stay here in Los Angeles!

Thanks. I subsequently did some checking on the MTA site and there is a shuttle that does a loop around the terminals and then goes to the Aviation station. Supposed to take about an hour from there, even with the change to the Red line. Have lots of time.

You take theairport bus shuttle to the light rail "Green Line" Aviation Station. The buses run about every 15 min. Buy you ticket there. Its best to have coins as sometimes the machines will not accept greenbacks. www.metro.net

MisterNice

Take a "G - Metro Station" bus at the shuttle bus area which is remarked by blue sign on the arrival level.
It's a free service to 'Aviation - LAX' station.
You can pay the ticket by cash or coin.
I believe that LA metro doesn't accept credit cards or debit cards.

Thanks everyone. Just to update this for anyone else wanting to undertake this folly: it is the G-LAX shuttle bus that runs out to the Aviation station. You get it from the Blue Airport Shuttles bays on the lower arrivals levels. [You could take a B-Parking Lot shuttle and walk 5-minutes but not really worth it unless you want to look at the collection of exotic aircraft on the lawn of a local banquet hall: WWII fighters of all origins, some Korean War jets and even a Bell X series rocket plane!]

However, once at the station, the ticket dispensers only take cash [coins or $1 bills]. Best deal, unless you are just going to a city hotel, is a $3 day pass [$1.50 if you are over 62]. The Green route is all above ground and runs along the right-of-way of a major expressway. Service is about every 15-minutes and you will likely want to transfer to the Blue Line at the Rosa Parks station to get into the city centre. [Very poor signs but walk to the east end of the platform and take escalator or lift down to the Blue Line station.] This line also runs on the surface, but is more an LRT going through Black [great view of the Watts Towers] and Hispanic neighbourhoods. At 7th station you will likely want to change to the Red Line, a true subway which runs either to the Union Station or out in two spurs to Hollywood.

Total travel time between LAX [hotel shuttle to Green Line shuttle to station to Wilshire/Western station and transfer to bus for Beverly Hills, Museum Mile, etc.] is about 2-hours. However, as a tourist is does give one a peek at an LA that most seldom see. Once you figure it out, the LA Transit System is actually quite good and very cheap. There are also buses that go right into Santa Monica from the LAX transit centre, which also makes for an interesting drive. Just $1.75 each direction.

Biggest drawback is that the whole system is automated -- except for the drivers -- and I encountered just one fare checker in two days of riding the system, other than buses, of course. Thus it is impossible to get directions, etc. There is, however, one can get information and a very good transit/city map at the ticket kiosk at Union Station. However, you must take the escalator up to the "Transit Centre" there, and not the railway station at the opposite end.

This system is also known for its interesting public art at all stations. This also makes for an interesting "tour".

Good information. More than I knew and I live here

Total travel time between LAX [hotel shuttle to Green Line shuttle to station to Wilshire/Western station and transfer to bus for Beverly Hills, Museum Mile, etc.] is about 2-hours.

I guess this is why RTD (Rapid Transit District) changed their name to MTA (Metro Transportation Authority). Not very rapid. Just for comparison, the same trip during non-rush hour times - taking the 105 freeway to the 405 to the 10 (which runs right into downtown) -would be about 1/2 hour, or 1 1/2 hours druing rush hour. The airport and downtown essentially bracket Los Angeles east to west.

However, as a tourist is does give one a peek at an LA that most seldom see.
Really? I thought you couldn't miss this part of L.A.


Once you figure it out, the LA Transit System is actually quite good .
REALLY?

Interesting to have an outsider's perpective on our much maligned transit system. To me it is completely inefficient and useless. The majority of Angelenos never ride the MTA because the Metro lines don't go where you need to go and the buses are disgusting and slow.

Hi, Shareholder et. al--

I'm planning to do a similar trip.

I will be dropping off my Thrifty rental car early morning -- perhaps 4 a.m. -- and need to get to Union Station to catch the 6:05 Pacific Surfliner to San Diego for the day. As a railfan, I'd rather ride the subway system than take buses (even though I have done the entirety of L.A.'s MTA rail system).

Using the MTA's R/G/B (heh) line timetables -- and assuming the trains aren't too late -- I've found that, in order to arrive at Union Station with an acceptable minute margin to catch the Surfliner requires the following:

BEST OPTION:
Depart Aviation Blvd. (Green Line) by 4:28 a.m
Arrive Union Station at 5:34 a.m.

LAST MINUTE OPTION (before I cancel returning my rental car or take a cab)
Depart Aviation Blvd. 4:43 a.m.
Arrive Union Station 5:59 a.m

Again, these transit times are assuming none of the trains are sufficiently late to make me miss my transfers. I'd of course prefer to catch the 4:28 Green Line so that if one is late, I'll still be able to catch the following trains and make it in by 5:44, 5:49, or at the latest, 5:59.

My real question and reason for posting is: how long do I need to allow after dropping my rental car off to make it to the Aviation Blvd. station by 4:20 or so? Maps.google.com shows the Thrifty office is about 1.3 miles from the Green Line station. I guess I could walk it, maybe in about 15-20 minutes. Or, if they're open, would the Thrifty shuttle drop me off there? (Anyone familiar with that location's operating policies and procedures?)

Shareholder, based on your experience here, do you think this trip is doable? Should I allow myself even more time than I've given myself? Is this whole idea nuts? ;-)

TIA,
Jackal

Jackal, We did a similar trip a few years ago but were able to drop the rental car at Union Station for no extra fees. This worked perfectly for us. Don't remember which rental company though.

I have a meeting in the Burbank area (South of the Airport on Hollywood Way) on a Thursday afternoon. I then have a flight from LAX to TPE on SQ that departs at 11:25PM.

Let's pretend for a moment that the only flights that I can get to the LA area are into LAX....

Assuming that I arrive LAX around 8:45 AM how long will it take me to drive to the Burbank area? I'm assuming 30 - 45 minutes... 405 - 101 - 134 - Hollywood Way.

On the return suppose my meeting gets out at 5:00PM... How long will it take me to get to LAX (or should I catch a flight from BUR to LAS to LAX ;) )?

I know that I can take the MTR to Union Station and then Metrolink to BUR (and the same in reverse), but in looking at the timetables that's looking like potentially MORE frustrating than fighting traffic.

I know that I can take the MTR to Union Station and then Metrolink to BUR (and the same in reverse), but in looking at the timetables that's looking like potentially MORE frustrating than fighting traffic.

:D :D :D

You have never seen LA traffic, have you?

Couldn't help myself for a moment...

I'd skip the flight to LAS.

I'd say brings lots of map, if you're getting a rental car and allow 1 1/2 times non-rush hour traffic time in rush hour. Bring pen and paper also to figure out sidestreets in case the freeway is a mess because of an accident or something.

If you are going from airport to airport, you might want to consider the following:

http://www.supershuttle.com

http://www.primetimeshuttle.com

I have a meeting in the Burbank area (South of the Airport on Hollywood Way) on a Thursday afternoon. I then have a flight from LAX to TPE on SQ that departs at 11:25PM.

Let's pretend for a moment that the only flights that I can get to the LA area are into LAX....

Assuming that I arrive LAX around 8:45 AM how long will it take me to drive to the Burbank area? I'm assuming 30 - 45 minutes... 405 - 101 - 134 - Hollywood Way.

On the return suppose my meeting gets out at 5:00PM... How long will it take me to get to LAX (or should I catch a flight from BUR to LAS to LAX ;) )?

I know that I can take the MTR to Union Station and then Metrolink to BUR (and the same in reverse), but in looking at the timetables that's looking like potentially MORE frustrating than fighting traffic.


OMG! LMAO! :D

Ahem...sorry. You should try to get a flight directly into BUR. I know, you said, "let's pretend". Lucky your meeting is in the afternoon. The cross-valley or cross-basin trips could take you a couple of hours, or more. Very hard to tell with L.A. The 405 is usually a crawl. Fortunately you have scheduled your meeting in the afternoon and your departure on SQ is late at night. Expect to spend most of the day in your rental car.

M8

Assuming that I arrive LAX around 8:45 AM how long will it take me to drive to the Burbank area? I'm assuming 30 - 45 minutes... 405 - 101 - 134 - Hollywood Way.

Morning traffic on the 405 North is actually not that bad once you get past the 10 interchange. Pretty much full speed from Westwood on... By then, most of rush hour should have passed, too.

On the return suppose my meeting gets out at 5:00PM... How long will it take me to get to LAX

Now that is just going to be UGLY, no matter how you slice it. I would do 134 E, 5S, 110S, 105W and be happy if it took only an hour.

Now that is just going to be UGLY, no matter how you slice it. I would do 134 E, 5S, 110S, 105W and be happy if it took only an hour.

Yeesh.. maybe that BUR-LAS-LAX flight isn't a bad idea...

Or, just find a jetBlue flight with an iffy nose gear ;)

Uggghhh......

Thanks everyone! I had a feeling that I wasn't going to like the responses.

I was hoping to take care of a business meeting at the beginning of a personal trip, but in retrospect it looks like a bad idea. I'm one of those people who gets pretty neurotic in advance of an international flight and I think that I might just completely lose it if I get stuck in traffic on the way to the airport.... Even if I have 5 hours.

Looks like I'm going move the meeting up a couple of days and endure the HP RJ to BUR :(

My suggestion:

Due to time constraint, your best bet is to hire a car service that will pick you up from the airport and straight to your meeting in Burbank. (I've done this many times living in Toluca Lake a few years ago and having to jet for same-day meeting flights via LAX.)

By the way, your goal is doable, so don't be discouraged.

With a flight arrival of 8:45a, you will most likely get out of the airport around 10a -- depending if you have baggages, etc. If luck is on your side that morning, you may even get out sooner. Anyway, even with a 10a departure from LAX, you will still make it to Burbank by 11:25a. At 10a, the freeways are more cooperative. Your driver will most likely take you via one of these routes - or tell him if he's not sure:

FASTEST:
1) 105 EAST > 110 NORTH > 5 NORTH.

IF 110 NORTH IS CONGESTED:
2) 105 EAST > 110 NORTH > 10 EAST > 5 NORTH

We have a side-street route we use in our company that provides our drivers with a 90% guarantee of getting there in 50 minutes, but it's too long to give that route here.

Upon leaving your meeting, it's best you hire the same car service (if you had a good experience with them in the morning) to take you to LAX. Your worse case scenario on a typical rush hour drive would be 2 hours. So you're safest time of arrival at LAX will be 8p -- which will still be enough time for your late-night flight.

I've done what you're planning to do many times, and it's gonna be okay. Car service will cost you around $50 each way.

Another solution is to take the Super Shuttle or Primetime Shuttle from LAX to BUR airport. (I know this exists via Super Shuttle, but I'm just not sure of the price.) Then you can switch shuttles when you're at the Burbank airport and head to your meeting. However, the car service may just give you less headache and stress -- and it may end up costing the same at the end.

Good luck, have a safe flight and positive meeting!

What you have proposed is very doable. Agree that having a car take you to the meeting and back to LAX is the way to proceed. I think worst case scenario from LAX to Burbank will be 1.5 hours. Leaving Burbank area as late as 7:30 p.m. will still get you back to LAX with plenty of time to spare.

Unfortunately your arrival time and meeting time will put you in rush hour both ways. Yes, it's doable but plan on at least an hour or more in traffic each way. Car service is a good idea but I am not sure where you will find one for $50. My house (which is 3 miles from BUR) to LAX is $75-85 each way with everyone I have ever checked/heard of.

Definitely rental car. Definitely get one you don't mind sitting in for along time. You won't miss your flights, but you will be on the freeways for a good amount of time. No need to reschedule your trips though.

Also take some Xanax and get a rental car with XM satellite for sitting in Los Angeles gridlock.

Let's pretend for a moment that the only flights that I can get to the LA area are into LAX....

Assuming that I arrive LAX around 8:45 AM how long will it take me to drive to the Burbank area? I'm assuming 30 - 45 minutes... 405 - 101 - 134 - Hollywood Way.

If you are going w/ a car rental, I think you're a tad low in your time estimates, and would figure 60-75 minutes. Equally, I'd avoid the 101 as the 405 & 134 interchanges are both notorious for plugging up, even outside of rush hour traffic. Going N. on the 405 to Burbank Blvd. and then taking this surface street East (or dropping south to Magnolia Blvd. or Chandler Blvd. which are even better) is apt to save you real time instead of sitting in freeway congestion.

On the return suppose my meeting gets out at 5:00PM... How long will it take me to get to LAX (or should I catch a flight from BUR to LAS to LAX ;) )?

I'd figure an hour and a half to two hours at 5 p.m.... Although if you go out to dinner in the Valley, and save your trip "over the hill" until after 6:30, I'd guess that you're back to looking at an hour to an hour and 15 minutes total travel time. Maybe eat somewhere in Encino on Ventura Blvd, which has almost any cuisine your heart might desire.

I know that I can take the MTR to Union Station and then Metrolink to BUR (and the same in reverse), but in looking at the timetables that's looking like potentially MORE frustrating than fighting traffic.

Actually, if I were trying to do an "all public transit" routing, I'd try going mostly Metro light rail rather than trying to transfer to the heavy rail Metrolink. Take the shuttle to the metro green line, green line to blue line, blue line to red line. The last station on the Metro Red Line is at Lankershim Bl. & Chandler Bl....and you should be able to catch a taxi from the waiting zone there, as Hollywood Way is less than 2 miles. As near as I can make out the schedules, you'd be looking at 2:00 to 2:15 in travel time. (For the bargain concious, using a "Metro Day Pass", less the taxi(s) at the Valley end, the whole trip would cost $3 ;) )

If you do a mapquest directions search from the address of BUR to the address of LAX and then choose "avoid highways," you will get excellent directions for how to get from BUR to LAX on surface streets. The route provided (Hollywood Way -- Barham -- Cahuenga -- Highland - [the transition from Highland to La Brea is the only part of the directions I can't verify: I would cut over on Franklin] - La Brea -- Stocker -- La Cienega -- La Tijera -- Airport) basically combines my route from BUR with my route to LAX!

Yep, you're right!'

Here's specific directions on how to get from LAX to BUR in a more reliable way:

1) Century Blvd East

2) La Cienega North

3) Slauson East

4) La Brea North

5) Right on Edgewood Place, which turns into Highland North

6) Left on Cahuenga Blvd

7) Right on Barham Blvd.

I guess Edgewood between Highland and La Brea is confirmed. Mapquest out!

Jackal, We did a similar trip a few years ago but were able to drop the rental car at Union Station for no extra fees. This worked perfectly for us. Don't remember which rental company though.
I just rented a car for the entire time I was down there--a really nice Chrysler 300 from Dollar. Worked much better in terms of getting to the airport at the end of my stay.

Just for future reference for others, there are two rental agencies inside Union Station. Budget is one of them. I don't remember what the second one is, but my subconscious seems to remember it being Hertz.

My trip to SAN was awesome! Gorgeous train ride.

I once rode the trains all the way from Hollywood to Long Beach. Went to some used bookstores, then came back. It took an entire afternoon--several hours. But it was interesting.

Actually, the train lines are pretty good for tourists. You can stay downtown, take the train to the walk of stars, and to Universal Studios, and not have to screw with car rental and parking hassles. But it's definitely not for people in a hurry, simply because of the vast distances to be covered.

Interesting to have an outsider's perpective on our much maligned transit system. To me it is completely inefficient and useless. The majority of Angelenos never ride the MTA because the Metro lines don't go where you need to go and the buses are disgusting and slow.
I'm kind of an insider/outsider. Being from CA but living out of town currently affords me both perspectives.

I love trains and often plan trips around them. (This last one was mainly designed for me to take the Surfliner from L.A. to SAN. My next one is to take the Acela from BOS to NYC. The one after that is to take the Acela from DC to NYC. On those two trips, I'm not even planning to rent a car, because I can get around DC, NYC and BOS all on foot and by subway, which completely thrills me.

But there are some places that just doesn't work--both for locals and for tourists. L.A. is one of those places.

Kef's right when he says the Metro trains don't go anywhere you need to go. L.A. covers a HUGE area--I can't give a size comparison off the top of my head, but it wouldn't surprise me if the L.A./Orange County megalopolis is the size of a small East Coast state.

OK, wow. I just did some research, courtesy of the Wikipedia. What is considered the "Greater Los Angeles Area (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greater_Los_Angeles_area)" is 1,000 km^2 larger than the state of Maine (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maine).

That's a heck of a lot of area to cover with only four Metro lines (the R/G/B lines and the new Gold line). And it's complicated by another problem: L.A.'s suburban spread is so vast that the traditional notion of "downtown"--the "CBD" ("central business district") where everyone goes to work--doesn't apply here. Yes, there is a "downtown" with some high-rises and business headquarters, but it's largely ignored: Most Angelenos could quite possibly spend their entire lives without setting foot in downtown L.A. Most of the city is made of a spread of single-family housing neighborhoods with commercial development spread along the main streets and centralized in numerous points throughout the cities. Combine that with the fact that most people can live and work on opposite sides of the city--you can live in Pasadena and work in Palos Verdes (between which there are no train connections)--and you have an area in which public transportation just will not work, at least not without a MAJOR, multi-trillion-dollar project of dozens of high-speed train lines, perhaps operating in a large ring-and-spoke system with feeder lines going everywhere.

So, in addition to the four Metro light-rail/subway lines, there are six Metrolink lines (full-sized "heavy" rail commuter trains). But even with these, most of the residents of the Los Angeles area are still anywhere from a 10 to 30 minute drive (much less walk)--if not more--from the nearest Metrolink station. The best the Metrolink can do is operate as a park-and-ride...and not a very efficient one at that.

And hotturnip's comment is somewhat on, but I digress on a few points. First, yes, it's possible to navigate to some of L.A.'s tourist sites by train, but it's inconvenient and slow. And many of the sites--from Griffith Observatory to Disneyland and thousands of others--are not immediately accessible by train (in the case of Disneyland, one might be able to find a hotel shuttle or bus that can pick you up from the Anaheim train station, but the station's not immediately next to the park). Entire areas of Los Angeles are missing from rail access (both Metro and Metrolink). And if the Metro lines are intended to be convenient for tourists to avoid renting cars, their first mistake is not hooking the Green Line directly to the airport terminals.

I'd love to see a functional public transit and train system in L.A. I just don't think it's feasible, due to the way L.A. is laid out. But if one ever appears and people use it, it'd be awesome for two reasons: a) it'd be fun to ride and b) the freeways would be clear so I could set my cruise control at 95 and not have to worry about traffic.

:-D

G'night,
Jackal

It's true that the rail system in L.A. covers only a small part of the city, but if it happens to go where YOU want to go, then it's great. I've ridden the Red Line quite a lot lately, and it's almost always full of people, even on the weekend. In rush hour, it's positively packed. So I would not call it "useless".

Ed

Mantra for tourists (especially those of you who come from localities where there is good public transit): L.A. has a VERY rudimentary transit system that is not rapid, and does not serve most of the places you will want to go.

Your time is valuable.

Rental cars are cheap (can be obtained on Priceline.com at LAX for typically $16-20 per day).

Repeat after me: Dude, you need a car in L.A.

Mantra for tourists (especially those of you who come from localities where there is good public transit): L.A. has a VERY rudimentary transit system that is not rapid, and does not serve most of the places you will want to go.

If you are visiting friends, family, or business associates in L.A. and you admit to them you are using public transit on your visit, they will (rightly) perceive you as crazy.

Your time is valuable.

Rental cars are cheap (can be obtained on Priceline.com at LAX for typically $16-20 per day).

Repeat after me: Dude, you need a car in L.A.

Indeed. Let me use an example:

I want to fly into LAX and use public transportation to get to my grandfather's house in Simi Valley.

1. Wait for 15 minutes, then spend 15 minutes on the G shuttle from LAX to the Green Line Aviation Blvd. stop.

2. Take the Green Line to the Rosa Parks stop.

3. Switch to the Blue Line and take it to 7th St./Metro Center.

4.Switch to the Red Line. Take it to Union Station. Total time elapsed for steps 2-4: 90 minutes.

5. Wait for 30 minutes and then take a n often-less-than-once-hourly Metrolink from Union Station to Simi Valley (45 minutes).

6. Figure out how to get from Simi Valley's Metrolink station to my grandpa's house: perhaps there's bus service, which would add another 30 minutes (at least) to the trip. If not, take a cab.

So, using trains and maybe a bus or two, you'd have to figure on anywhere from 3 hours 30 minutes to 4 hours (and maybe more).

Guess how long this trip takes via car. Try 45 minutes. In rush hour traffic, maybe 1:30.

And if my grandpa lived in Thousand Oaks? There's no train service there, so I'd be out of luck.

Having said that, the above trip *does* sound rather fun to me...if I had no time commitments...

If you're trying to go downtown, it'd actually be faster to fly into Burbank and take the Metrolink from Burbank Airport Station to Union Station. But then again, where would you go once you hit there? Hollywood and Long Beach are about the only places reachable by the Metro (as people above have illustrated).

Dude, you need a car.

Indeed. Let me use an example:

I want to fly into LAX and use public transportation to get to my grandfather's house in Simi Valley.
[snip of directions]
Guess how long this trip takes via car. Try 45 minutes. In rush hour traffic, maybe 1:30.

As a born and raised native of L.A., let's start w/ a few observations:

1) Simi Valley is NOT part of greater L.A.... It's in Ventura County, with the dividing line being Santa Susana Pass.

2) The directions you offer are NOT the most direct via public transit, nor the fastest. If I were trying to get from LAX to Simi, I'd take the Van Nuys FlyAway Bus (http://www.lawa.org/vny/flyAwayInfo.cfm) from my terminal to the VNY parking lot, catch MTA #169 Bus East to the Van Nuys Metrolink Station, and ride Metrolink out to Simi... Where three of the four local bus routes stop at the Metrolink station. Total time in transit might be as long as four hours...but could be as short as two depending upon how you hit the connections.

3) Your travel times by car are very optimistic. Figure at least half an our catching the shuttle to the car rental lot and at least an hour from there to the average residence in Simi, IF THERE IS NO TRAFFIC. Rush hour? Double that.

And if my grandpa lived in Thousand Oaks? There's no train service there, so I'd be out of luck.

...and if he lived in T.O. he'd STILL be in Ventura County. :p

Sheesh, all right. I didn't mean to fuel an argument.

1. Yes, Simi is not technically in "Greater Los Angeles." I was using it because it's a place I'm familiar with, it's in Southern California, and it's served Southern California's commuter rail system. So, fine, choose Chatsworth and Woodland Hills instead of Simi and T.O, respectively, and cut off 15 minutes of drive time.

2. I've taken the Flyaway a dozen times and find it very useful, and yes, it's probably much faster to do it your way, but I was attempting to keep the rail-centric focus of this thread intact. (Besides, trains are more fun than buses.)

3. I don't know how fast you drive, but when I drive and/or my grandpa drives, it's 45 minutes in light traffic. There's usually a little slowage before hitting the interchange between the 405 and the 10, but most of the time when I arrive midmorning, traffic over the Sepulveda Pass is light, and average freeway speeds are 75-80mph. I also was excluding the rental car process in my time estimate, as usually someone picks me up directly at the airport. I'll agree with you there: figure at least a half hour before driving your car out of the lot. In fact, I'd allow even more: a 10 minute wait for the bus, a 10 minute drive to the lot, a 5-10 minute wait in line, a 5 minute transaction, and 5-10 minutes to go find your car and load it up. call it 45 minutes to be on the safe side. Still, 45 minutes plus your two hour rush hour estimate to Simi is 1:15 short of the travel time by train.

No matter what the exact times are, the point of this thread is that public transportation in L.A. is of limited usefulness. It's great if you live in a suburb and commute to work in downtown (that is, if you don't need to stop off anywhere after work). You can't get away with not owning a car unless all of your travel is between Long Beach, Hollywood and downtown (and even then, you have to be within walking distance of a Metro stop, and how likely is that?

And for tourists, about the only sights that you can get to via Metro are some of the sights in Hollywood, the downtown attractions (Union Station, Pershing Square, Angels' Flight (currently out of service), the Disney Hall, the new Catholic cathedral, and the Queen Mary in Long Beach (which is still a ways from the Blue Line terminus). Oh, and you can now get to Pasadena via Gold Line. Everything else requires a car--even the sights that are "near" Metrolink stops, such as Disneyland and Knott's Berry Farm (Anaheim), Magic Mountain (Santa Clarita), and whatever else there is to do in L.A., are too far to walk from their stations.

OK, enough arguing (and I'll stop, too). Let's all be friends again...

Hi there,
Last year I passed through LA as a tourist with a mission...

After travelling there many times and always renting a car, I wanted to try something a bit different. Our plan was to fly into LA, do some stuff and then get the train up to San Jose. The plan was to see how much we could do without renting a car.

We picked our hotel carefully - I think it was the Hilton Garden Inn by the airport. This was important as we could get the shuttle bus from the airport (late pm arrival into LAX) and then in the morning walk to the Green Line station next door. This worked out fine and we got into LA OK and had a look around. It was then easy to get to Union Station and get the train northwards.

OK, we didn't exactly do a lot of stuff in LA but it was a nice change to not have a car. If you are a train/subway fan then try it, it is OK!

Jason

If you are visiting friends, family, or business associates in L.A. and you admit to them you are using public transit on your visit, they will (rightly) perceive you as crazy.



It all depends. My parents live close to a Red Line station; they use it all the time themselves. When I go to visit them I sometimes use it too, if I happen to be going someplace else on the line.

Of course I wouldn't use it to get to/from the airport.

Ed

It's true that the rail system in L.A. covers only a small part of the city, but if it happens to go where YOU want to go, then it's great.
Ed

Ditto what he said - I would add and have the time. While rudimentary and keeping in mind that the Greater Los Angeles Area is substantially larger than some of the cities w/ well-established metro systems, I certainly think it's an option for people.

I took the Green/Blue line to downtown LA from the beach earlier this year for a trade show at the convention center simply because I was sick & tired of rush hour traffic. It was easy, faster & less expensive (no parking fee or gas other than to get to El Segundo Station). If I had to be in LA I'd certainly do it again, although perhaps not late at night. I also know quite a few people who use the Red Line regularly.

I also know an FTer who had to go to San Diego area from Long Beach, so took the blue line to town I think (can't remember if he had any changing), then a train to San Diego & then some commuter thing. Now that one I thought was a bit nuts given he could have been in SD in an hour or so from SD vs the time his convaluted routing, but hey the guy likes trains, so to each their own.

Cheers.

Ditto what he said - I would add and have the time. While rudimentary and keeping in mind that the Greater Los Angeles Area is substantially larger than some of the cities w/ well-established metro systems, ...

Make that STATES... LA & Orange County alone are 6084 square miles of territory. Connecticut & Rhode Island together are 5888. The city of Los Angeles alone is 470 sq. miles. Contrast that to NYC at 321, San Francisco at 47, and Washington DC at 61 square miles, and yes all of them have "greater metropolitan areas," but consider how spotty the public transit is "out of town." All of urbanized London is 1600, Paris a puny 1051; only the greater Tokyo-Yokahama area is close at 5230 square miles... But it's population is nearly twice that of Los Angeles (30 vs. 17 million).

Traditional urban public transit relies upon high population densities to be frequent and cost effective, yet the historic spread of the communities and lack of real hub for circulation in the greater L.A. area doomed most urban transit plans.

What I thought interesting was that there were hopes the earthquakes a fews ago would get more people on public transportation, but no such luck. However, higher gas prices earlier this year saw a spike in folk taking public transport. I do know the Red Line gets a lot of usage.

And aren't they extending or creating a line to go through the westside - thought I read about that in the LA Times a month ago.

Not to sidetrack this, but where does one pick up the bus (Big Blue - $1.75 or something) that goes to Santa Monica?

PS - I invariably find those out-of-towners that are condescending about LA's public transport options are usually from those puny places like DC, SF, etc, who truly don't understand the 'size' of LA. Or it's like people call & say I'm coming to "LA" & then you have to gently tell them that yes they're going to be in the Greater Los Angles Area, but they're 65 miles away from where you live...and their hometowns are nowhere near 65miles large...

Cheers.

What I thought interesting was that there were hopes the earthquakes a fews ago would get more people on public transportation, but no such luck. However, higher gas prices earlier this year saw a spike in folk taking public transport. I do know the Red Line gets a lot of usage.

And aren't they extending or creating a line to go through the westside - thought I read about that in the LA Times a month ago.

Not to sidetrack this, but where does one pick up the bus (Big Blue - $1.75 or something) that goes to Santa Monica?


I *think* you can pick up the Big Blue in the Transportation Center... Lot C?

There have always been talks about the Red Line... I'm sure it'll happen as soon as they put in that Light Rail line going down Exposition :D

But now there's an Orange Line, which is more of an dedicated express bus route that stops at "stations". It runs into the Valley from the Red Line, so still no Westside connection.

And I agree with your comment about the size of LA and outsiders... they just don't understand:( The opposite sort of happens to me. I presume any other city is the size of LA, so when I actually get there, I'm like, "that's it?" Imagine my surprise when I actually (and accidentally) walked from one side of Manhattan to the other :eek:

I'd like to interject a few thoughts on LA and mass transit. I agree that the area is very vast and you'd have to know the lay of the land to really utilize the transit system for everything. For instance, I can't imagine how to get to a TV show taping in the valley by bus.

That being said, there are some very feasible options for mass transit. The subways have already been covered here, and they are good for downtown shopping, Hollywood, and Universal. Some things you guys haven't touched on, though:

1. The Big Blue Bus which services West LA is not dirty like the MTA buses are. It is a great way to cover the area around Santa Monica, Venice, UCLA, and the like. Plus, it's really cheap. The last time I was on one, it was 50 cents. That's a bargain.

2. The red express MTA buses are great. You can get on one of those in Beverly Hills and get to Santa Monica Pier in half the time because they make limited stops. They're also very clean, especially in comparison to regular MTA buses.

3. Amtrak operates a shuttle between the Anaheim station and Disneyland. I've never used it, but I was on a train to San Diego with someone who had, and they said it was very efficient.

4. The Amtrak lines up and down the Pacific Coast are awesome. You get amazing views and a far less aggrivating trip than if you took the freeway. It is my favorite way to get between San Diego and Santa Barbara other than flying. And with the fares within So Cal, that is one expensive plane trip. In contrast, Amtrak is something like $20 from SAN to LAX. You just can't beat it.

5. If you REALLY want to get adventurous on trains, try going from SAN to SNA via public transit! You go from a trolley in SAN to a bus to the Oceanliner regional train to another train in Orange County to a bus. I've never done it, but a friend of mine did when we were in college. I was flying as a nonrev (friends with the airline employee), and she'd pricelined a ticket. We stayed in SAN, and she had to fly out of SNA. She wanted to go cheap and wasn't old enough to rent a car. So she set out on that trek. Personally, I'd have taken Amtrak to Irvine or Santa Ana and taken a taxi to the airport. But youth is not always so practical.......

Anyway, just my 2 cents on the whole Southern California tranist situation.

P.S. San Diego has a much better transit system. You can definitely do San Diego without a car. The trolley is just awesome.

Why not take the Hilton Garden Inn shuttle to the metro station right next door? Is that better/quicker than Aviation station?

Not sure who your question is directed to?

Not sure who your question is directed to?
TrishBOS, what exactly are you saying? Take the Hilton Garden Inn shuttle to the Hilton Garden Inn, and then walk to a neighboring station? Is there a station next to the Hilton Garden Inn?

If there is, that seems to be a misuse of the Hilton Garden Inn's shuttle, and I'm sure they wouldn't appreciate that. Usually shuttle buses confirm that you have a reservation before they take you, unless you express an interest in walking in and staying there.

I don't think anyone said that the LAX shuttle to Aviation station is inconvenient. What's inconvenient is L.A.'s public transportation system in general--especially its train component. So, no matter how you get to the Green Line, it won't take you most places you want to go, including Burbank's TV studios (though the new Red Line extension does go pretty close to Universal Studios, I think), Griffith Observatory, the Getty Center, the Reagan and Nixon museums, Knott's Berry Farm, and a plethora of other L.A. sights.

I don't know much about L.A.'s bus systems, since buses don't interest me nearly as much as trains. I take L.A.'s train system on occasion because I like trains, but if I want to actually go anywhere, it's far more convenient to just rent a car.

San Diego, on the other hand, as chicaloca453 said, is very doable without a car--I think you can get pretty much everywhere except for Sea World, Point Loma, and the San Diego Zoo Adventure Park without a car (if you're willing to walk a bit). You can even go to the Mexican border via the trolley and walk across.

And I may be wrong--you might be able to get to the three above places via a shuttle bus or something.

IceTrojan: Everyone told me I'd be shocked at how small Boston was. Looking at maps, it really looks quite large. But even with the forewarnings, I was still shocked at how small the core of Boston really is. I walked from the Park Street Church to the Bunker Hill monument in just about an hour--and that was stopping for pictures and Dunkin' Donuts (which is an East Coast thing, I guess, even though they're not that great).

And we drove up to Maine in just over an hour and a half. That's less than the drive from my grandpa's house in Simi Valley (all right, that's really 10 minutes outside of L.A.) to Disneyland.

mlshanks nailed it on the head. In a place like L.A., the only people who are going to use the train system (Metrolink and the Metro) are park-and-riders who won't need to use their cars for anything between work and home. And given the lack of a hub or "CBD" (or really multiple good-sized hubs and "CBDs"), park-and-riding really isn't a solution for most of the population, since most can't ride where they need to go.

So, as much as I love trains, I can't really foresee much more significant and useful expansion in L.A. But they're certainly fun to ride--again, my favorite so far is the gorgeous winding ride through the Antelope Valley and out onto the high desert.

TrishBOS, what exactly are you saying? Take the Hilton Garden Inn shuttle to the Hilton Garden Inn, and then walk to a neighboring station? Is there a station next to the Hilton Garden Inn?

If there is, that seems to be a misuse of the Hilton Garden Inn's shuttle, and I'm sure they wouldn't appreciate that. Usually shuttle buses confirm that you have a reservation before they take you, unless you express an interest in walking in and staying there.

While there is a free city shuttle that goes to the Green Line station at Imperial & La Cienega, the station at Mariposa & Douglas is indeed adjacent to the HGI. And it is a wonderful LAX travel secret that a couple of bucks and a smile will persuade most LAX hotel shuttle bus drivers to take you anywhere you want to go, within reason. You could also go to the HGI for lunch.

I live within walking distance to a bus going close to LAX. If I am going on a long trip, I will leave my car at my finance's house in Long Beach. Public transit will take approx 1.5 hrs each way. To save around $100 in parking costs, I will do that if I take the time to do so. I have to take a G bus at LAX, then the Green Line & then a Long Beach bus. In other countries, I can travel from the airport to the city in much less time.

LA does not have very good public transit. Many other cities have very good transit. (NYC, London, Singapore, etc)

Does anyone know what a cab fare would be from LAX to N. Highland ave in Hollywood? I just wanted to get an idea of how much

thanks so much!

I'd say probably about $50, including tip.

... without traffic.

Hi All,

Will be in LA next month and wanted to take in a concert at the Disney Hall. Work has me at the Beverly Hills Hotel. Don't snicker, but I investigated mass transit and a two-bus itinerary will take 1:53. Other than renting a car, are there any options? shuttle service on concert evenings?

TIA

Forget taking public transport if this is a weeknight concert. Getting through Hollywood will likely take longer than what the schedule says.

Best option is likely a cab which I'm guessing will be $30-40 each way. Renting a car will prob cost the same (when you count parking charges), if price is an issue, and you will also have to deal with parking.

Not aware of any shuttles or other transport options but doubt that is an option. This is LA after all.

You may want to call the concierge at the hotel in advance and see if there are other options.

Good luck.

What two-bus routing were you looking at? Metro bus route #2 runs (essentially) on Sunset from the Pacific Ocean to downtown LA - this means that it will stop on Sunset in front of the BHH (at or near the corner of Sunset Blvd. and Beverly Drive), and it will take you to the corner of Grand and Temple, which is just two blocks away from the WDCH (which is at the corner of Grand and 1st Street.

According to the weekday timetable, leaveing Sunset/Beverly at 6:02 pm would get you to your destination just after 7:00 pm (the timetable gives only the mark for the end of the line, so I'm estimating the time for Grand and Temple).


Route 2 Timetable and Map (.pdf file):

http://www.mta.net/images/002-302.pdf


Overall Metro Map (big .pdf file):

http://www.mta.net/images/System_Map.pdf

Best option is likely a cab which I'm guessing will be $30-40 each way. Renting a car will prob cost the same (when you count parking charges), if price is an issue, and you will also have to deal with parking.

You may want to call the concierge at the hotel in advance and see if there are other options.

Figure its between $70 and $100 to take a cab both ways or to arrange for a driver. I am sure the hotel could arrange to get you a cheap rental car for 1 day for less money than that. Check with the concierge.

If they will, my suggestion is to go a little out of the way on the start of your journey and take Olympic Blvd. It will be faster in the long run.

What two-bus routing were you looking at? Metro bus route #2 runs (essentially) on Sunset from the Pacific Ocean to downtown LA - this means that it will stop on Sunset in front of the BHH (at or near the corner of Sunset Blvd. and Beverly Drive), and it will take you to the corner of Grand and Temple, which is just two blocks away from the WDCH (which is at the corner of Grand and 1st Street. ]
The "trip planner function" actually provides two choices for 1st/Grand Ave. The first one was bus 305 to 550 or 305 to 445. The second is the choice you mentioned. With just one bus, this is potentially do-able. I'll also investigate a cheap rental car option.

Walk down a few blocks to wilshire,take the wilshire express bus to Bh and get off in BH-hail a cab from there.
Or take the metro(station a block from DH)to hollywood and highland and take a cab from there.
Bit of a hassle-but if time is not as much of a strain as is money.

If you're set on using public transportation, I would agree with the last post:

Take a cab to the Metro station at Hollywood & Highland (about 5 miles from BH, maybe a $10 cab ride). Then take the Metro red line Downtown to Civic Center station, and walk a few blocks to Disney Hall.

This way you won't be in traffic most of the time. The subway is generally fast and reliable.

Yep, if it were me, being cheap and in need of exercise, I would walk down to Wilshire from the hotel, take the bus down Wilshire to the Metro station and then train it to Disney Hall. Cost, around three bucks roundtrip, plus a walk through a beautiful area. BH is very safe to walk around, even at night, unless the BHPD harasses you for being a pedestrian (getting less common). Keep in mind it is not always so easy to hail a cab in the L.A. area. You can certainly get one at the hotel featured in "Pretty Woman" which is on Wilshire (forget the name). Maybe you'll see Julia there. :)

By the way, if you rent a car, parking in Disney Hall area is around $10, although often you can find street parking for free at night.

Yep, if it were me, being cheap and in need of exercise, I would walk down to Wilshire from the hotel, take the bus down Wilshire to the Metro station and then train it to Disney Hall.IIRC there is a Wilshire Limited which, as the name implies, stops only at major intersections (including the intersection of Wilshire & Western, where you could switch to the Wilshire spur of the Red Line as biggestbopper suggests - exit the Metro at Civic Center/Tom Bradley Station, then walk two blocks to WDCH).

The only factor here is that it will be commute time, so the busses (especially) and the trains are likely to be crowded.


not always so easy to hail a cab in the L.A. area. You can certainly get one at the hotel featured in "Pretty Woman" which is on Wilshire (forget the name). Maybe you'll see Julia there. :) That would be the Beverly Wilshire (now run by Four Seasons).[/QUOTE]

Yeah, there is an express bus line that runs on Wilshire; they're red and you can't miss them. It's a hike from the Beverly Hills Hotel to Wilshire, by the way... It's around 10 blocks and those north of Santa Monica are long blocks. I'd echo the sentiments of other posters by suggesting taking the express bus line to the Red Line.

That being said, Wilshire is a complete disaster going from Beverly Hills to downtown during afternoon/evening rush hour and I can't imagine the bus lines, express or otherwise, are any good to get from BH to the WDCH in a timely fashion. I'd rent a car; it's probably cheaper to do so considering your time is valuable. I 'd estimate 45 minutes from the BH Hotel to the WDCH if you take Cañon to Little Santa Monica to Burton to San Vicente to Olympic to get to downtown.

If you're set on using public transportation, I would agree with the last post:

Take a cab to the Metro station at Hollywood & Highland (about 5 miles from BH, maybe a $10 cab ride). Then take the Metro red line Downtown to Civic Center station, and walk a few blocks to Disney Hall.

This way you won't be in traffic most of the time. The subway is generally fast and reliable.
Eh, you'd just as well take the 2 bus on Sunset and walk the three blocks north from Sunset to Hollywood...

Thanks everyone for suggestions. I'm going to the Sunday afternoon concert instead. I assume the No 2 bus is probably the best bet for that scenario?

Instead of starting a new thread, I decided to add onto this not-so-new/not-so-old one.

I've always had it in my head that it would be MUCH cheaper to park at a station and take the Green line to LAX ($1.25 ticket x 2 vs. $10/day in Lot C). Well, I had some extra time this morning so I cruised by the El Segundo Station to scope it out for a 2-night stay. Unforunately, I did find broken window glass in one parking stall, so I decided to continue on to LAX.

My other thought was the Norwalk Station... while really far away, it has a security guard on site... I just need to find out if they're there 24/7.

Does anyone know of a station that is safe to park at along the Green Line?

IceTrojan, I 'think' the Redondo station might have security guard, but that's just a guess. I've parked at El Segundo station before w/ no problem, but it wasn't overnight.

Cheers.

Redondo does not have a guard but it is well patroled and I have never had a problem leaving our car there overnight.

first time I am actually going to leave the car at home and take a cab to the gold line station/fly away-lax 8 days away-repeat.
Since the parking at union station(a bargain at 6 bucks a day btw)would come out to around $60 because of schedule I figure it will be half of that doing it this way.
Now I just have to find a place to store the cat for under $15 a day!

I've parked at the Redondo station overnight once. The problem is that there's only one train that leaves early enough in the morning to make the early flights. All the other early trains start at the Douglas station.

I've parked at the Redondo station overnight once. The problem is that there's only one train that leaves early enough in the morning to make the early flights. All the other early trains start at the Douglas station.

How early do you fly? :o

There is a 4:20AM, a 4:49AM and a 5:02AM train.

Hi all, I am planning on a trip to LA next month and I am wondering if there is any cheap transportation (i.e. train) to downtown near the LA convention center?

You can take the bus to the Green Line and either connect to the Blue Line or get off the the Green Line at the Harbor Freeway stop and take the express bus to downtown.

A taxi is a flat $42 to downtown.

Take the nonstop flyAway bus to Union Station (USD 3), then transfer to the Metro Red Line (stops about six blocks from the CC ) or any number of bus lines that will take you even closer to the CC:

http://www.lawa.org/flyAwayInfo2.cfm

Thanks for the info. $42 is not too bad. How busy is the taxi line at the airport usually? I will be arriving on either a Thur or Fri night after 9pm.

Cab lines aren't that long; you shouldn't have to wait very long, plus it's post rush hour so getting downtown should only take about 30 minutes. Cheers.

Supershuttle runs frequently and is 15$+tip which is a good deal in my eyes ^

Since when is the LAXflyAway only 3$ ?? :confused:

Since when is the LAXflyAway only 3$ ?? :confused:

Since... always and forever.

Take the nonstop flyAway bus to Union Station (USD 3), then transfer to the Metro Red Line (stops about six blocks from the CC ) or any number of bus lines that will take you even closer to the CC:

http://www.lawa.org/flyAwayInfo2.cfm

Actually, the red line does not go that near the convention center...
(and its a fair walk between the flyAway & the Red line)

....you'd need to take the red line to the blue line (7th Street/Metro Center), and then get off at the first stop, Pico/LA Convention Center.

Frankly, it would be cheaper and easier to take the Bus to the Green Line, the Green Line to the Blue Line, and the Blue up to Pico/LA Convention Center.

Actually, the red line does not go that near the convention center...
(and its a fair walk between the flyAway & the Red line)

....you'd need to take the red line to the blue line (7th Street/Metro Center), and then get off at the first stop, Pico/LA Convention Center.

Frankly, it would be cheaper and easier to take the Bus to the Green Line, the Green Line to the Blue Line, and the Blue up to Pico/LA Convention Center.

If you're looking for a cheap way to get to the cc, the above (bus-gl-bl-cc) is the way to go. It's about a 1/2 block from the Pico/LACC stop on the blue line to the entrance of the cc. I did the gl/bl combo to a convention & now if I just have to attend a cc downtown, I don't bother driving, just do the public transport thing.

Cheers.

Since... always and forever.

I think it was $3.50 OW, $6 RT between LAX and Van Nuys. Then when the Union Station service began, it became $3 OW on both lines.

Honestly, I don't know the Shuttle>Green Line>Blue Line route would be any faster than FlyAway>Union Station>Red Line>Blue Line, because of the 15 stops. Taking the FlyAway would take 4 stops from Union Station.

Another option is FlyAway to Union Station, then DASH Bus Route D (http://www.ladottransit.com/dash/routes/downtown/downtown.html), which runs every 5 minutes during commute times M-F, lets you off near the Pico Blue Line station, and also costs only $.25.


I think it was $3.50 OW, $6 RT between LAX and Van Nuys. Then when the Union Station service began, it became $3 OW on both lines.In the context of this discussion, why would one talk about LAX-Van Nuys?

The LAX-Union Station FlyAway has always been $3.

For a blend of cheap and easy you could do the Flyaway to Union station and take a cab to the CC. Then again, I am usually only connecting at Union Station, I don't recall if I have ever seen a cab outside but I am sure they are there somewhere. Anyone caught a cab at Union Station?

What a great suggestion the flyWay bus to Union Station was! Last weekend I flew in Friday afternoon (3pm) for a wedding (niece), and was loath to ask any relatives to pick me up. Drive to LAX Friday afternoon -- how ugly would that be. Anyway, I spent $4 on the FlyAway bus, $6.25 on a Metra train, and disembarked really close to my sister's home. If not for this thread, I would not have been aware of flyAway. And, since my relatives are standard "auto-centric Angelinos," so they had no idea.

Not only was this transit inexpense, was amazingly quick. ^^

Take the nonstop flyAway bus to Union Station (USD 3), then transfer to the Metro Red Line (stops about six blocks from the CC ) or any number of bus lines that will take you even closer to the CC:

http://www.lawa.org/flyAwayInfo2.cfm

Howdy,

Next month, I'll be arriving to the Amtrak station at 9:00pm and will need to make my way down to the Fairmont Newport Beach. Since I'm travelling alone, I'm looking for the most cost effective method of doing so.

I'm not too familiar with the LA area but have found a couple of options online:

1) Prime Time shuttle, for around $60 on a shared van service.
2) Change to an Amtrak train about an hour later to Santa Ana, then take a taxi.

My conern about the first option is that their last shuttle leaves at 9:35pm, so if the train is delayed from Seattle, I'll be SOL. I imagine Amtrak provides guaranteed connections if booked on the same ticket, so the second option might be safer, and cheaper (how much would the cab cost approx?).

So I am leaving to option number 2, however any advice or alternatives would certainly be appreciated. I looked into a one way car rental (I am departing the next afternoon from SNA at around 3pm) but that was going to be quite a bit more expensive when taking parking into consideration, and it seems that the Union Station rental counters close around 6pm.

Thanks! And if anyone happens to be in the area in the evening of October 4th or during the morning/afternoon of the 5th, I would certainly be up for drinks or lunch.

Fairmont Newport Beach is really more like Fairmont Irvine/Santa Ana. :) It's literally across the street from SNA, a good 15 minute drive from what most of us would consider "Newport Beach."

I'd probably just take the train to SNA, then take a taxi. Taxi shouldn't be more than $20 from the Santa Ana station to the Fairmont. Do your homework, though, and have a few numbers of local taxi services (the OC area is not really public transit-friendly, so you need to be prepared).

Why don't you want to rent a car? How will you get around in the OC? And, how will you get back to wherever you leave from? In the end, car rental is usually the best choice in L.A. area, unless you have lots and lots of time.

Won't need a car in SNA - the Fairmont has a shuttle to the beach and SNA airport where I'll be departing from.

SNA airport where I'll be departing from.

Okay, now I have to ask...why are you taking the train from Seattle? :confused: :)

For fun :cool:

It's part of a longer two-week vacation. Originally I was going to spend a few days with my friend in Phoneix, but when that fell through I started thinking of things that would be interesting that would eat up a few days and decided on the Coast Starlight. Due to some strange quirk of illogical airfare pricing, coming back from Brussels to Vancouver via Phoneix ended up pricing the same as Brussels-Seattle then Santa Ana-Vancouver (also via Phoenix - still getting a dinner in with my friend there). So-loads of extra miles, and a scenic train trip sounded pretty good to me.... I've actually been down to the beach at Newport so may even skip that part depending how I'm feeling and just go shopping around the hotel. My flight isn't until 3:30pm so I have lots of time.

Whatever I chose, I'd leave a lot of leeway in my schedule...

(Hint: They don't call that train the "Star-LATE" for nothing...my bro once arrived in Seattle from LA over 10 hours behind schedule :td:)

Looking at www.amtrakdelays.com, the last three weeks of train 11 arrivals to LA have averaged a bit over an hour late...with two delays in the 4-6 hour range. That's not encouraging when the last Surfliner south to Santa Ana departs at 10:10... Yes, there's a couple of late night motorcoaches to Santa Anna... (12:40 am and 2:50 am), but you could end up sitting around LA Union station for a few hourswaiting for them.

Car!!! You can always drop it off at SNA, which is almost across the street if you REALLY don't need a car in Newport. You're kindof isolated at the Fairmont, so I would consider keeping it, but up to you. Always nice to cruise down to Laguna :)

Well, I decided to take your advice and consider a rental. Unfortunately, the offices at the station close well before the train arrival and, at least with Hertz, "after hours pickup is not available". Budget's website does not state that but will not let me make the booking.

That means I'd have to hoof it down to the airport first, and then rent from there. That really seems like it's a lot more hassle than it's worth.

I think I'll just book the through ticket to Santa Ana. What is Amtrak's policy regarding connections? Would they typically hold the last train a few minutes, or would they just rebook on the bus? I know with VIA up here in Canada, they would generally hold the train for connections if it is not too delayed.

I think I'll just book the through ticket to Santa Ana. What is Amtrak's policy regarding connections? Would they typically hold the last train a few minutes, or would they just rebook on the bus? I know with VIA up here in Canada, they would generally hold the train for connections if it is not too delayed.

Frankly, I find the possiblity of Amtrak holding the last Surfliner train darn low, unless they knew there was a *large* group connecting (more than a bus load), and it was a short (5-10 minute) hold...

Frankly, if the Starlight was over an hour late, I'd prepare to wait for the late bus...although they *might* call for an immediate bus if they knew there was a large connecting crowd.

I would say take the train to Irvine and then taxi from there, if you can catch the last one.

I'm going to a concert at the Staples Center and was wondering what the best form of transportation would be from/to the UCLA area. Is driving myself make sense or getting a limo better?

You can take the 10 down or some of the wider East West streets like Pico or Venice. There's plenty of parking lots nearby. Last time I was there and had to pay for parking in the lots... IIRC I think it was somewhere between $10-20, but keep in mind, this was for a Kings game. I have no clue how much a limo will cost.

All your options involve being stuck in traffic during the week though, so plan accordingly.

You can take the bus down Wilshire and transfer to the subway (at Western?) which will take you to Staples. The subway is fast, the bus depends on traffic.

This avoids a lot of hassle with parking and after event traffic.

Another option is to eat at the Original Pantry and walk to Staples afterwards. The Pantry is historic (for L.A.) and never closes--pretty cheap, too with pretty good food. http://www.pantrycafe.com/ You can usually park for free on the street by the pantry if it is not during the business day.

You can take the bus down Wilshire and transfer to the subway (at Western?) which will take you to Staples. The subway is fast, the bus depends on traffic.

This avoids a lot of hassle with parking and after event traffic.


Good point. I thought about suggesting that; I guess for me it seems like a long bus ride, esp at night, but YMMV.

Anyways, catch either the 720 (ideally), 20 or 21 to Western and Wilshire. Enter the Metro Red Line station and catch any train (they all head downtown). Get off at 7th St. Metro and Transfer to the Metro Blue Line. Take it one station down to Pico. Staples Center will clearly be visible. On the return trip, at the 7th St. Metro Station, make sure to catch a Wilshire/Western bound train and not a North Hollywood bound train. It'll say on the train and the red LED display overhead.

For the round trip, I would suggest getting a day pass as each ride is $1.25, while a day pass is $5.00. I know some folks will say that they don't check tickets on entry for the Metro Rail lines, but skipping fare is 1) bad karma and 2) a big fine if your just unlucky enough to be on train where the PD are checking for tickets.

I'm not sure about late night frequency, so you will probably want to check mta.net for details.

Another option is to eat at the Original Pantry and walk to Staples afterwards. The Pantry is historic (for L.A.) and never closes--pretty cheap, too with pretty good food. http://www.pantrycafe.com/ You can usually park for free on the street by the pantry if it is not during the business day.

This is a great suggestion, just allow yourself plenty of time as the Pantry can often have a line, especially when there is an event at SC.

At approximately 7pm on a Friday evening... how bad will traffic be?

Google maps is showing an "up to 1 hr, 0 min" in traffic travel time.
http://maps.google.com/maps?q=lax+to+sna&ie=UTF8&oe=utf-8&client=firefox-a&z=11&om=1

Any advice for the best routing to avoid traffic?

And, don't suggest LAX-SNA on the EMB120. :D

Departing LAX at 7pm on a Friday likely will be about an hour to 90 minutes to go the 45 miles. The problem is too long a stretch of the 405 to say for any certainty. With all the interchanges you pass, any backups on any one of them and it can double your travel time. Going to SNA itself or the area? The 405 is really the only direct route, unless you're going elsewhere in OC.

I'd allocate 90minutes, and agree re: the 405 being the most direct route unless you're going elsewhere in the area.

Cheers.

I did that exact commute a few weeks ago picking up a friend from LAX and taking her back home of the 405/Jamboree in Irvine. (one offramp further than SNA) Picked her up and left LAX at 6:45 PMish on a Friday. Traffic was slow on the 405 South, but still moving up until you reach the 605 interchange, then it gradually gets back up to speed, about 90-100 min total.

Going NORTH on the 405 towards LAX is a totally different story though.:p


Good luck!
Steve:)

Definitely have to allow yourself a minimum of 90 minutes if you have to be somewhere in OC at a certain time.

You know why we call it the 405 ?
Cause sometimes it takes 4 o 5 Hours to get from LA to OC.

Seriously. For a normal late Friday commute. LAX to SNA. No Carpool.
90 Minutes would be normal. Get a carpool buddy and then 60 Minutes is a resonable estimate. BEWARE. Any major accidents or overturned trucks and all bets are off. Listen to the radio 1070 KNX for tarffic updates.

You know why we call it the 405 ?
BEWARE. Any major accidents or overturned trucks and all bets are off. Listen to the radio 1070 KNX for tarffic updates.

1070 gives trafic on the 5's i.e. 7:15 7:25 etc
and 980 gives it on the 1's 7:01 7:11 etc.

Traditional urban public transit relies upon high population densities to be frequent and cost effective, yet the historic spread of the communities and lack of real hub for circulation in the greater L.A. area doomed most urban transit plans.

Transit and city form are a chicken-and-egg problem: without good transit, things (houses, offices, tourist attractions) will scatter all over the map, which makes it difficult and expensive to provide good transit. "Who Framed Roger Rabbit?" is obviously a dramatization, but it has some basis in reality: the initial sprawl of Los Angeles was driven by streetcars, not automobiles, and even today many of the freeways follow old Pacific Electric routes.

Enough of that old "things clustered around old transit lines" infrastructure remains to make at least a limited view of Los Angeles possible without a car: Wilshire or Santa Monica boulevards through the Westside, for instance, are pretty obviously lined with cool things to do. That might be why it's the focus of a few Transit Adventures (http://www.experiencela.com/Adventures/) itineraries from Experience LA (the local tourist board). Similarly, UAL's in-flight magazine recently ran a feature article on LA by Metrorail (http://www.hemispheresmagazine.com/2007_09/feature-ticket.php).

There's also this NYT piece (http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9C04E6DD103DF933A25751C0A9649C8B 63) on Santa Monica and Venice largely without a car. The Big Blue Bus heads from LAX's bus terminal right through Venice and into SM.

Who Framed Roger Rabbit?" is obviously a dramatization, but it has some basis in reality: the initial sprawl of Los Angeles was driven by streetcars, not automobiles, and even today many of the freeways follow old Pacific Electric routes.

Slight correction...other than Cahuenga Pass, mostly the old trolley right-of-way have become major city streets or railroad lines, not freeways. This has to do with the fact that Pacific Electric, Los Angeles Railway, and other major trolley companies had specific language in their franchises with the city that required them to run on public streets...and pay for all the maintenence. When they years of losses finally resulted in their abandonment (the city had also capped the fares, and been very slow to raise them), the city pulled up the tracks that were not still in service by Southern Pacific RR for freight service, and added lanes or center parkways.

There's also this NYT piece (http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9C04E6DD103DF933A25751C0A9649C8B 63) on Santa Monica and Venice largely without a car. The Big Blue Bus heads from LAX's bus terminal right through Venice and into SM.

You can also ride Big Blue Bus #3 from the airport all the way out to UCLA's Ackerman Bus Terminal...where you can connect to numerous MTA routes.

Does anyone out there have any recomendations for limousine service between LAX and Hollywood (Hollywood & Highland) besides Super Shuttle? Two or maybe three of us are going over New Years and we are considering a limo to void some of the hassles of the trip to/from the airport. :eek:

I've used Art Limousine Service (800) 355-9410 for about 3 years. Flat rate from airport approximately $75.00 including gratuity.

I am heading up to LAX tomorrow night from Orange County (Huntington Beach) for a trip to HNL. Does anyone have any recommendations for a good car service and what the approximate cost would be?

I have a reservation on Jetblue for Thanksgiving LGB-ORD-LGB out 11/20 back 11/27. Due to a business trip it looks like I'm going to have to skip the outbound but still use the return. This creates the problem of getting from LGB to either ONT or, if I leave me car home, to Chino Hills. One-way rentals start at $80, any other options? I land about 8pm and I don't want to use one of those share-a-ride vans.

Possibly OT, but: don't most airlines cancel your whole itinerary if you don't show for the outbound? And if you do call, don't they re-fare the one-way?

Maybe that's not an issue here; I'm not familiar with the airline.

I have a reservation on Jetblue for Thanksgiving LGB-ORD-LGB out 11/20 back 11/27. Due to a business trip it looks like I'm going to have to skip the outbound but still use the return. This creates the problem of getting from LGB to either ONT or, if I leave me car home, to Chino Hills. One-way rentals start at $80, any other options? I land about 8pm and I don't want to use one of those share-a-ride vans.

Boy, that's a tough time to get from LGB to the ONT area.

During the day one can take the Long Beach Transit route 111 (or a taxi) from LGB Airport to the transit mall and then use the Blue Line to get to L.A., switch to the Red Line to get to Union Station, and use Metrolink to get to Pomona or Covina

There is also a Metro Express Bus (577x) from Long Beach Transit Mall to the El Monte Bus Station, which IIRC has parking.

http://www.lbtransit.com/Schedules/Default.aspx?routegrp=110&routes=111,%20112&direction=North&day=today&mode=map

www.metrolinktrains.com

www.metro.net

http://www.metro.net/riding_metro/bus_overview/500_599/577.pdf

Also, check if there is an "off-airport" company like Thrifty who may allow you to do a cheaper one-way drop-off at ONT the next day. This once worked for me for a late arrival at LAX where I needed to get home (and could dump the car at ONT the next day).

Good Luck!

Possibly OT, but: don't most airlines cancel your whole itinerary if you don't show for the outbound? And if you do call, don't they re-fare the one-way?

I looked into it, I don't think Jetblue handles it like the legacies but I'm not sure. I would cancel the outbound, not simply no-show, and it looks like Jetblue allows you to keep those funds for future use (minus the change fee.) I checked the fares and even if they did re-fare me to the one-way it would be less than the value of the ticket.

BTW, my business trip got delayed so I won't need to worry about transportation. I appreciate the info though.

I'm flying into LAX and need to make my way to Sherman Oaks. Under normal circumstances I would rent a car and drive, but I suspect I will be very weary after some long flights.

Could anyone reccomend a good car service (e.g. black car/limo) from LAX to the valley? Its very difficult to tell the companies apart based on thier web sites, and the prices are very similiar (75 dollar range). Thanks.

I use Dalia Limosine at least twice a month. They are based in Sherman Oaks, so their pricing should be relatively similar.

http://www.dalialimo.com/

Hi,

I want to attend an event in downtown LA, a block away from the Miyako Hotel. My event starts at 9am on Friday, Jan 4. I am trying to make my trip cheaper by shaving off a night's stay and just fly into LA and head straight to the event.

However, I am unfamiliar with LA do not know how long it would take for a shuttle van to reach this location next to the Miyako Hotel.

I have more options flying into LAX, earliest arrival is about 7:18am? Is this enough time to reach my destination in downtown LA by 9am on a Friday?
I forget what my options are for BUR, but I believe the earliest arrival is maybe closer to 8am. From what I've been reading, it seems it's easier to travel from this airport. How much time, if any, would one save? How early would I have to arrive to BUR to make it to a 9am event in downtown LA on Fri (via shuttle)?

Also, how about heading back out from the downtown LA area to LAX vs. BUR. How much time would I need to get to the airport? I don't want to book a flight that I can't make.

Thank you in advance for your help!!!

at 7am on a week day, you're just going to get off the plane and go park on the freeway..... if you got in earlier it might help.... a bit..... sorry, but its just a long time to anywhere at that time of day :(. that said, it shouldn't take two hours...

Hi,

I want to attend an event in downtown LA, a block away from the Miyako Hotel. My event starts at 9am on Friday, Jan 4. I am trying to make my trip cheaper by shaving off a night's stay and just fly into LA and head straight to the event.

However, I am unfamiliar with LA do not know how long it would take for a shuttle van to reach this location next to the Miyako Hotel.

I have more options flying into LAX, earliest arrival is about 7:18am? Is this enough time to reach my destination in downtown LA by 9am on a Friday?
I forget what my options are for BUR, but I believe the earliest arrival is maybe closer to 8am. From what I've been reading, it seems it's easier to travel from this airport. How much time, if any, would one save? How early would I have to arrive to BUR to make it to a 9am event in downtown LA on Fri (via shuttle)?

Also, how about heading back out from the downtown LA area to LAX vs. BUR. How much time would I need to get to the airport? I don't want to book a flight that I can't make.

Thank you in advance for your help!!!

Spend the night. You are trying to get into downtown LA by 9 am. You and about 1 million people have the same general idea.

Welcome to Flyertalk, kameleon. I am going to move this thread over to the FT Los Angeles Forum. Please read the "sticky" at the top of the forum as it is loaded with lots of useful information re: LAX.
Thanks...
Obscure2k
TravelBuzz Moderator

One hour is realistic, my brother used to commute from Culver City (10 min to LAX) to Hollywood (10 min to downtown LA) and it took him about that every AM. The distance and the streets really are the same so that's a realstic guess.

If it's raining, add another half hour. BUR is technically the same distance, give or take 2 miles, but the routes are much more congested.

LAX will be a safer bet, 105 -> 110 will be alright, 110 will be pretty bad but that's a pretty wide freeway until it bottlenecks just south of downtown LA, that's going to be the best option me thinks.

I would take the UNION STATION FLYAWAY BUS (http://www.lawa.org/FlyAway/) from LAX and then take a cab for the 1/2 mile to your event.

7:18 into LAX will be tight to the Miyako Hotel (Little Toyko) area by 9:00....

If *I* were doing this, I'd grab the Union Station FlyAway bus from the green "FlyAway, Buses and Long Distance Vans" signs on the lower level. They run every 30 minutes on the hour and half hour. It should take you from 45-70 minutes to get to downtown (depending on traffic) from there, I'd grab a cab for the mile or so to your specific address...although there are plenty of downtown DASH buses running on 5-15 minute schedules in the downtown area that might get you there as quick....for $0.25

Interestingly, if you could get a flight into Burbank for the same hour, you could actually be much better assured of making your meeting... Why? Because the Metrolink commuter rail station is simply across the street from Burbank's terminal...and the trains into Union Station are NOT subject to the same sort of gridlock delays. I note that there's a 07:54AM train from Burbank to Downtown arriving at Union Station at 08:16AM Giving you 40 minutes to grab a cab and travel the mile or so to your meeting.

Thank you everyone who responded. I really appreciate the information you gave me!

for the BUR option, you can take metrolink to union station. but check the metrolink schedule; you'll probably need 15-20 minutes to walk from the gate to the station. driving from BUR to downtown can be very unpredictable.

I need to get from LAX to BUR on a Wed morning and was wondering if SuperShuttle or some other public transport option is the best way to get there?

thx

Rental car will be most convenient and will take 45 minutes to an hour (possibly more if traffic is bad), but SuperShuttle is certainly an option. Plan on it taking 2-3 hours to get there, though, and costing about what a one day car rental would. Many car rental companies will allow a one-way rental between LAX-BUR IME without charging a fee for the privilege.

Rental car is the easiest as kef0913 stated. In the morning, the 405 past I-10 is quite good, but once you leave it towards BUR (no matter what route) it will get worse. I would think it's do-able in 1 hour.

I drive the 405 N from LAx area every day, I would estimate if you are taking the 405 N from LAX that time of morning:

20 min from LAX to I-10
another 10 min from I-10 to 101 junction

After that I'm not sure.

A public transport alternative is the Union Station Flyaway bus to Union Station, and the Metrolink Antelope line to (very near) BUR.

Traffic on the 101 east (technically south) until about 9:30 is pretty heavy heading into Hollywood but doesn't really back up until you pass the 134 split (which the OP would take to get to BUR). After around 9:30 or 10 am the traffic evaporates going that way.

I need to get from LAX to BUR on a Wed morning and was wondering if SuperShuttle or some other public transport option is the best way to get there?


If you are JUST looking for LAX to BUR, I might seriously consider public transit rather than the hassle & cost of rental.

Take the Union Station FlyAway bus (http://www.lacity.org/ita/urldoc2630.pdf) to LA Union Station ($4), which departs every 30 minutes in front of every terminal under green “FlyAway, Buses and Long Distance Vans” signs, dropping you off at Patsouris bus plaza on the East side of Union station.

Go West into the station and catch the Metrolink (http://www.metrolinktrains.com/)train to BUR (Ventura County trains), which drops you off just South & across the street from the BUR Terminal. ($5.25) There are 8 morning trains departing from Union station to BUR between 6:50 and 9:50... (schedule (http://www.metrolinktrains.com/schedules/html.php?id=201)) And more in the afternoon.

Total time should be no more than about 2 hours, and could be as little as one.

I have a training session coming up and the classes are held in Monrovia. I would be flying in on a Sunday evening and leaving on a Friday afternoon (4PM flights out of BUR or ONT, or 6PM out of LAX).
Which airport should I fly into? I thought about BUR or ONT.
Are there also any recommended hotels in the area? I was thinking either SPG or HH.

I think BUR is a better choice as the baggage claim area is small and relatively quick and the rental car agencies are litterally adjacent to the terminals. That being said, ONT is pretty good as well. ONT may be a tad closer to Monrovia, but no more than five to ten min. driving time.

Arcadia is adjacent to Monrovia and has a few midrange hotels. The nicer properties are in Pasadena, about 8 miles away on the 210, which can get pretty bad during rush hours.

As long as your Friday return was not on a long weekend, I'd give a vote for ONT. I find BUR a little more congested whereas ONT is more spacious in the approach and airport terminal area.

However, you are traveling eastbound on the 210 on a Friday which may be fraught with some congestion issues.

However, you are traveling eastbound on the 210 on a Friday which may be fraught with some congestion issues.

I'd change that "may" to "will" :) Anything eastbound on the 210, 10 or 60 towards ONT in the afternoon is b-a-d.

I'd change that "may" to "will" :) Anything eastbound on the 210, 10 or 60 towards ONT in the afternoon is b-a-d.

So, BUR would be the lesser of two evils in the afternoon?

I'd change that "may" to "will" :) Anything eastbound on the 210, 10 or 60 towards ONT in the afternoon is b-a-d.

Yes, especially on Fridays. Everyone is heading home and/or going to Las Vegas.


So, BUR would be the lesser of two evils in the afternoon?

Yes, you would be heading against traffic for the most part, 210 to 134 freeways.

ONT may be a tad closer to Monrovia, but no more than five to ten min. driving time.Actually, it isn't. I just went to Mapquest to check this out, as I wasn't sure myself. BUR is ~5 miles closer.

The nicer properties are in Pasadena, about 8 miles away on the 210, which can get pretty bad during rush hours.Yeah, but you'd at least be heading against traffic. Still, I'd recommend not even dealing with that.


Yes, you would be heading against traffic for the most part, 210 to 134 freeways.Of course, gettng to BUR will involve a little traffic, too. There's sure to be some traffic heading north on I-5 at that time of day. I'd also recommend flying home through BUR, but, as always, make sure you leave time for traffic.

I have a 10:00am flight on a Friday in May from LAX. I will be turning in a rental car. I will have been visiting in Orange in the afternoon and early evening of the night before.

The question: I need a Hilton HHonors credit, so these are the three possibilities in my price range with their rates:

$107 Buena Park
$110 Carson
$129 LAX

What will the traffic be like from Buena Park or Carson on a Friday morning? How long would you think it would take from each?

Or do you think it's worth the extra money to be at LAX and not deal with any morning traffic?

TIA.

I have a 10:00am flight on a Friday in May from LAX. I will be turning in a rental car. I will have been visiting in Orange in the afternoon and early evening of the night before.

The question: I need a Hilton HHonors credit, so these are the three possibilities in my price range with their rates:

$107 Buena Park
$110 Carson
$129 LAX

What will the traffic be like from Buena Park or Carson on a Friday morning? How long would you think it would take from each?

Or do you think it's worth the extra money to be at LAX and not deal with any morning traffic?

TIA.

IMHO, the closer you are the better. That said, Carson would be closer than Buena Park. However, if you're not finishing up very late on Thursday, I'd just as soon get to LAX and be right at the airport and not have to worry about any traffic the next day (and maybe sleep in a little).

Thanks.

Any ballpark of time from either Carson or Buena Park to LAX on a Friday morning?

I wouldn't even consider Buena Park. It's about 30-miles from LAX and you'll have to traverse 3 different freeways. Basically, that means if there are no problems on any of the FWs, and there's a usual Friday morning light, you're talking 60-90 minutes.

Carson's about 15-miles due south, but your going with the traffic commute so, with the same caveats, you're probably looking at 45-60 mins. I don't know where the Hilton is, but Carson has some very dicey areas.

So, the question you need to ask yourself is . . . do you want an extra hour of sleep and a stress-less trip to LAX by staying close to the airport?

Thanks.

Any ballpark of time from either Carson or Buena Park to LAX on a Friday morning?

About 70 minutes from Buena Park and 40 minutes from Carson.

I think you guys have convinced me! :D

I assume in the evening, traveling from Orange to LAX would only be about 45 minutes?

I think you guys have convinced me! :D

I assume in the evening, traveling from Orange to LAX would only be about 45 minutes?

Depends what you mean by "evening". On the 405 SNA-LAX from ~4 PM - ~7 PM count on 1.5 hours.

I would say any later than 2 or 3 pm will be pushing it.....

OK. Noted. Thank you. Would likely be heading out of Orange ~7:30 or 8pm

OK. Noted. Thank you. Would likely be heading out of Orange ~7:30 or 8pm

At that time it should be lighter traffic, though for us, lighter means doubling your speed from 15 to 30 mph on freeway :p. Once you get on the 105 freeway it should be much better ride. Still you're looking at a minimum 50 minute drive from Orange County.

OK. Noted. Thank you. Would likely be heading out of Orange ~7:30 or 8pm

You should be fine at that point. If you are coming from the City of Orange (and not just the "greater Orange County" area), you have a few options in getting to LAX depending on traffic.

If you are near the "Crush" which is where the 22/57/5 freeways meet, you can consider taking 22 to the 405 or the 5 to the 91. If either those encounter difficulty along the way, you have the options of going north on the 605, 710 or 110 to the 105 and you would still be making forward progress.

A great website if you have internet access before you leave is: www.sigalert.com

It shows the freeway map with speeds and incidents to help you plan your route.

BTW - the Hilton (I think it's now a DB if we are talking about the same place) in Carson is a dump. The only redeeming thing is that it's on the other side of the freeway from an IKEA. But, the overall area/neighborhood is not too nice.

Good luck!

Good stuff. Thank you.

As to where I'm coming from, not too far from the Doubletree on near Chapman Ave. (?) and I5

In the past I've usually done CA-22 to I-405.

I make the commute from the LGB area to past LAX to the ocean. I work 430AM to 2PM. At 6AM in the Carson area, the 405 freeway is already packed. (it only moves 30-40 mph even at 6AM--at 415AM, full speed 99% of the time). I would estimate 45 min drive from Carson to LAX at approx 730AM. I usually avoid driving to LAX at that time 7-10AM, if possible.

What about the Doubletree or HGI in El Segundo? Maybe it prices out too high. I have stayed in the LAX Hilton & it's OK if you don't get one of the tiny corner rooms that given to people not in the "know" or to opaque online bidders.

I will be in downtown L.A. next weekend, and on Saturday I'll need to go to Long Beach (downtown area). Will not have a car, so am considering what appears to be the easiest route - the Metro Blue Line. I will leave L.A. for Long Beach in the early afternoon, and return sometime early evening.

Insofar as the route travels through some scary parts of L.A., is this trip presumed to be reasonably safe? Any advice from regular riders?

Are there any other transit alternatives? If perhaps the return journey in the early evening is questionable, I presume I could do a Super Shuttle to LAX, and another one to downtown. Much more costly and cumbersome, unless anyone has any other ideas.

Any comments and suggestions will be deeply appreciated.

is this trip presumed to be reasonably safe?

Yes. The line is patrolled by the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department.

While some of the MTA's bus routes through bad neighborhoods can be scary, the Metro lines are generally well patrolled by Sheriffs and have video monitoring and emergency calls for all stations. My college freshman niece regularly rides the blue line at late night *by herself* end to end. Her comment: "I had way more problems in Italian train stations..."

Insofar as the route travels through some scary parts of L.A., is this trip presumed to be reasonably safe? Any advice from regular riders?


I realize I'm just echoing others here, but you shouldn't worry about it at all. The people who have to worry are those dumb souls who drive over the tracks and get hit on rare occasion. The train itself is safe. I live in LGB and have taken it several times to go downtown without feeling unsafe once. I only wish I worked downtown so I could ride it everyday. Instead, I sit on the 405 driving all the way up to Westwood. Ugh.

http://www.pantrycafe.com/ You can usually park for free on the street by the pantry if it is not during the business day.Very interesting. I would not have thought you could find free street parking near Staples. We are going this weekend, so I will see if it works for us ^

You can take the bus down Wilshire and transfer to the subway (at Western?) which will take you to Staples. The subway is fast, the bus depends on traffic.

Ummm...

That's TWO subways, since you'd have to change from the purple line (Wilshire/Western) to the Blue line to get to Staples.

If I were looking for transit routing, I'd go to www.metro.net....

(...and most of their fastest routes seem to be one or two bus routes at first glance...)

That's TWO subways, since you'd have to change from the purple line (Wilshire/Western) to the Blue line to get to Staples.True 'cause the Staples Center is at the Pico Street Station, which is a blue line stop.

But, couldn't one just walk from the red/purple line stop at 7th Street Metro Center (where one would transfer from the red or purple to the blue) to the Staples Center? I didn't think it was that far of a walk. According to metro.net (http://www.metro.net), it's just ~0.15 miles.

But, couldn't one just walk from the red/purple line stop at 7th Street Metro Center (where one would transfer from the red or purple to the blue) to the Staples Center? I didn't think it was that far of a walk. According to metro.net (http://www.metro.net), it's just ~0.15 miles.

Well, metro's pulling your leg on their mileage estimate...

The nearest 7th street metro station exit is 7th and Figueroa

The Northeast corner of Staples center is 11th and Figueroa

Mapquest calls it 0.5 miles, Delome calls it 0.6 miles.
YMMV, but four LA blocks sure isn't 0.15 miles in my estimation.

(and the Original Pantry is at 9th and Figueroa)

Very interesting. I would not have thought you could find free street parking near Staples. We are going this weekend, so I will see if it works for usbe sure to have an open mind as to what "near" means, especially if you're going in the evening.

I'm buying something on Ebay from someone in Pasadena. I want to pick it up during a 7.5 hr layover at LAX (on a Friday afternoon). What's the realistic time to get from LAX to Pasadena and back on a Friday? We should arrive 3p, get the car (at the Radisson) by 330-345. Anyway we can get to Pasadena by 5?

I'm buying something on Ebay from someone in Pasadena. I want to pick it up during a 7.5 hr layover at LAX (on a Friday afternoon). What's the realistic time to get from LAX to Pasadena and back on a Friday? We should arrive 3p, get the car (at the Radisson) by 330-345. Anyway we can get to Pasadena by 5?

If you get the car by 3:30, you should be able to get to Pasadena by 5 or 5:15. Take the 105 to the 110 and come straight up--you'll be in HOV lanes much of the way. (You may know all this already.)

If you're heading back for a 10:30pm flight, you should be able to have a decent dinner and have no trouble getting back (at 9:00 or so, it's 26 minutes from where I live in Pasadena to LAX, assuming no traffic abnormalities and doing 75-80 in the HOV lanes).

I'm buying something on Ebay from someone in Pasadena. I want to pick it up during a 7.5 hr layover at LAX (on a Friday afternoon). What's the realistic time to get from LAX to Pasadena and back on a Friday? We should arrive 3p, get the car (at the Radisson) by 330-345. Anyway we can get to Pasadena by 5?Fuhgeddaboutit.

30 mins for baggage. 30 mins to get the shuttle to the Radisson. 30 mins to rent the car. Now it is maybe 5 PM. 2 hours more to get to Pasadena. But you ought to be able to do it within 7.5 hrs if your seller will agree to meet you later in the evening.

Realistically you are not going to get to the Radisson until at least 4:15-4:30 w/out luggage, or 4:45-5:00 with luggage. Figure 1:15-1:30 to get to Pasadena from LAX at that time of day.

So you get there in the 6:30-7:00 range, pick up your item, have a nice dinner in Old Town and then get back to the LAX area around 9:00 when traffic is light. Hopefully you are not connecting international. It's a lot of driving but doable, and possibly even enjoyable. All bets are off if you are flying out international.

I'm buying something on Ebay from someone in Pasadena. I want to pick it up during a 7.5 hr layover at LAX (on a Friday afternoon). What's the realistic time to get from LAX to Pasadena and back on a Friday? We should arrive 3p, get the car (at the Radisson) by 330-345. Anyway we can get to Pasadena by 5?

I'm an LA native, but I live in San Diego County now. I have traveled enough in LA recently to think that you are not likely to be able to leave LAX by rental at 3:30pm on a Friday and arrive in Pasadena by 5:00pm. Might be possible with luck for someone who knew all of the alternative routes around freeway jams. Still possible for you with luck dependin