Los Angeles celebrates new era of transit as regional connector opens

Gone is the C-shaped Gold Line. In its wake, the 50-mile north-south A line, running from the foothills of Azusa down to Long Beach, and the 23-mile east-west E Line, running from East LA to Santa Monica.

That reshuffle is a result of the much anticipated regional connector, the 2-mile, $2 billion underground rail project that streamlines transit ridership through downtown, saving riders up to 20 minutes for some trips.

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LA's rail network now includes the six lines: the A, B, C, D, E and K lines (no prizes for guessing why there's no F line). The B and D lines are subways, starting at Union Station and heading east. The the others are light rail lines, operating largely above ground. Much of that new rail system was paid for by a pair of ballot initiatives — Measure R, a half-cent sales tax passed in 2008, and Measure M, passed in 2016, which added another half-cent sales tax and made Measure R permanent.

Seven years later, LA has more than 100 rail stations — more than in Washington, D.C. And the network is still expanding. The 6.4-mile D line is currently being extended out to West Los Angeles, while the still fairly new K line is being built down to the airport, or at least a short shuttle bus away.

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Even as Metro continues to build, there are complaints about what it's finished. Ridership remains fairly anemic, a problem that persists in most U.S. transit systems. Parts of the E line run at the same grade as cars, and stop at red lights, reducing the train to little more than an expensive bus.