JBD

Just saw this article in today's Hollywood Reporter:

The Agony of LAX (and What's Being Done About It)

JBD

Just wanted to point out that at the end of the article you'll see:

Curious what you LAX experts think of those suggestions.

chrisl137

I don't watch traffic maps of LAX at that level, but do keep an eye on sigalert.com on the way to the airport. I'm usually driving myself and taking a shuttle, so if the loop is really packed and I'm getting off at 7 or 8, I'll get off the bus at 1 and cut across on foot. It can be done at street level or through the garages. It's a little easier to figure out at street level (and potentially faster), but you can have to wait for traffic lights to get across. The route through the upper levels is more consistent in time.

I've done this for decades at other airports, too. It works at LAX, and it works at DTW at the holidays.

I don't use Uber much, so I can't really comment on that, but if you have to get picked up at at one of the second half terminals it might be better to walk out of the airport and get picked up somewhere on the street if traffic is slow in the loop.

(edit: even though I don't use uber, I do pick up and drop off friends and family at LAX. These days I'm more inclined to tell them to take a C bus to the cellphone lot or otherwise walk out of the loop, because that can be a significant fraction of the drive time on a bad day, even from the distance I'm driving)

I always time my departures and arrivals anyway - I live a little under an hour away, which can stretch to 2 hours in commute traffic. Times when it's easiest to get through the airport and security (early morning, mid day) are also easiest to get to the airport.

I'm always flying O/D at LAX, but the distance between terminals isn't all that much if you're used to walking at all, and it's almost certainly faster than waiting for an A bus and riding around the loop to do something like get from 7 to 4, especially if you just have a carry on. But I even walk to Lot C when the buses aren't coming very frequently or are going past because they're full. I haven't tried the airside route between TBIT and 8, but it sounds like an interesting hike.

JBD

Just wanted to say thanks to chrisl137 for her/his comprehensive reply!

VickiSoCal

I'm also about an hour out.

Husband usually comes in/leaves out of Terminal 4.

I always pick up on the upper level. IF the loop is bad he walks down to 6 and I take the cutover.

If Sepevuleda tunnel is backed up, I go in to the left lane, go past the airport exit, and take the entrance up by the cell phone lot.

Eastbay1K

I always walk. I rarely have O/D at LAX. My connections involve TBIT one way or the other. I sometimes have luggage on these connections. T1 to TBIT, walk on lower level. T3 to TBIT, walk (lower level w/luggage, upper w/o) then elevator up if necessary.

TBIT to 4 through 8 - if I don't need to re-check luggage (i.e., already tagged and could use a TBIT drop point), I now check the T4 pre line to see how it is and enter there, and do the entire thing airside. It is a maze and a trek depending on how far you're going, but it avoids downline surprises. I've walked outside both upper and lower in the past, and upper is so congested that it is difficult to get through the skycap and other crowds. Besides, the lower level gets a nice buildup of exhaust that smells like no place other than LAX.

chrisl137

My first time flying into LA in 1996 for the job interview that brought me here, my first thought when I walked out to the sidewalk on the lower level was the opening scene of Blade Runner.

bzcat

Meh, the article didn't really mention any good "hacks", just common sense. Here are my personal hacks which I will selflessly share with the forum...

1. You don't need to go all the way around the ring to exit LAX. If you are on the lower level, there is actually a service road right in front of TBIT that takes you back to Sepulveda Blvd via the theme building. It will save you 20 minutes easily during really busy times at LAX if you are picking up or dropping off at T2/T3/TBIT. The trick is to use the lower level for drop off so you can use this exit.

2. If you are coming from the north, and it is morning peak departure time, don't use the Sepulveda ramp to Vicksburg AVe, which is going to be really backed up (T1 is a real cluster F). Keep going south past the urgent care building and turn into LAX ring road from the lower (arrival) level of Century Blvd. It is going to be empty that way and you just saved yourself 10+ minutes avoiding T1 departure jam.

3. If you are coming from the south and the entrance to LAX on the right (after you pass thru the Sepulveda tunnel) is backed up, just keep going straight towards In-N-Out. During peak departure time, turn right on 98th street (first street after Century), and right on Vicksburg, and right again on Century and use the arrival level. During peak arrival time, turn right on 96th street (2nd street after Century), the left on Vicksburg, and then go up over the overpass to use the departure level.

4. If you absolutely has to go to LAX during peak hours, try picking up and dropping people off at the cell phone waiting lot. Drop off is super easy... the Bus Depot is right next door so there is always a shuttle bus waiting to take you (or the person you are dropping off) to the terminals. The time in traffic is virtually the same as you driving into the terminal ring road. Pickup is a hit or miss depending on how bad the traffic situation is inside the ring road but my experience is that if you take a shuttle from TBIT/4/5/6/7 to the cell phone waiting lot, it is about the same amount of time as waiting for someone the drive in from the cell phone waiting lot. The difference is it is a lot easier to get back to Sepulveda/Lincoln Blvd or I-405 from the cell phone waiting lot vs. getting picked up at T4 (for example).

5. Walk is almost always faster than land side shuttle bus for terminal transfers due to the traffic. The only exception is probably T7 to T2, which is likely a push.