LA Regional Connector is now open. My first ride on the new A and E lines under Downtown LA

[@holzman00]

NYer here. It's great to see LA making significant progress with its public transit systems.

[@mehdinaghavi685]

They are learning from NY.

[@sw8741]

Well, the homeless and druggies do need a place to sleep and travel.

[@LucasDimoveo]

@@sw8741 This is an issue that needs to be solved at a national level

[@sw8741]

@@LucasDimoveo You mean the homeless? Yeah, that will never be solved. Too much money to be made by "homeless advocates". Billions and billions, free money being given away to "fix" the problem. Take away their meal ticket? 🤣🤣🤣

[@antoniahamilton3201]

@@sw8741 You must be a lot of fun to be around.

[@heven729]

In 1993 when I was 11 years old, I stood in line for about an hour with my grandmother to ride the new red (b) line on its grand opening from McArthur Park to Union Station. I was so excited to ride on a subway, I remember my grandmother commenting on how wonderful it was to be able to reach downtown LA without taking a bus. I feel the same excitement with the opening of the regional connector and the recent K line. It’s going to be a real game changer when the K line connects to LAX next year.

[@mediaxpuppet]

I begged my dad to take me to LA just after the riots. We took the 10 to Santa Monica and took Wilshire back to Downtown LA. I remember Wishire being completely tore up with massive construction for the new stations expanding through Koreatown. A few years later I begged my grandparents to take me to ride the new "Subway". It was immaculate, modern and completely empty. I believe the fare was 25 cents. We rode to Macarthur Park, and it seemed like the train was going super fast in the stretch between 7th and the park. I always envisioned a bustling metro system and it's amazing to see it develop in my lifetime. It's fun to have been there for the different openings. Hollywood to Downtown was a very exciting connection.

[@dng2000]

Although 30 years is a long, long time, I'm so happy for LA opening more new subway stations. I'm always a fan of subways as long as they transport people to where they need to go effectively and efficiently.

[@TohaBgood2]

I gotta say, love the fact that both LA and SF got brand new subways this year! Good job, us! Never thought that I would say this, but California has really stepped up its game when it comes to transit. We're doing good things that no one else in North America is doing. Thank you all for all your transit advocacy! Now we just need to keep this pace up and we're golden!

[@vistaxp2600]

meanwhile san diego’s transit is on strike. we need to catch up with LA and SF

[@jarheadmstr]

@@vistaxp2600UCSD train is nice tho

[@lastswordfighter]

Cali can shove it.

[@angelmendez2211]

@@lastswordfighter Shove it way past other states leaving them in the dust.

[@theonlyalecazam2947]

Us and Seattle

[@mrxman581]

I rode the new E line from East LA to Santa Monica and it was fantastic! We got off each of the new stations and checked them out. They all have great artwork, but especially at the Grand/Bunker Hill station. We then took the train all the way to Santa Monica. We spent the day at the beach and had a bite to eat on the pier. We then rode the train without getting off until we got back to East LA. I only took one hour and 5 minutes and this was around 5:30pm. Had I driven back in my car it would gave taken at least 1.5 hours. Metro finally feels like a true transit system. BTW, I was around the bunker hill station around the same time as you today. Did you notice how much natural light comes into the stations even though they are underground? Even the bunker hill station gets natural light through the huge transparent elevator shafts. Amazing!

[@mediaxpuppet]

That atrium with the skylight is stunning. The combination of natural light and the shadows casted from the elevators made it such an interesting place. They knocked it out of the park.

[@no_name5002]

You've done a very nice job to showcase what it's like to experience it without actually been there. I like how you show the surrounding area and approaching the station. Other youtube videos I've seen just show the station without the surrounding areas.

[@Nouvellecosse]

"I have my own commentary; I don't need yours" I can't even ... 😂

[@julianofpaignton6202]

It was great seeing this Metro footage of new stations and subways. It’s exciting to see this progress. It’ll be amazing when the purple line is completed to Westwood and when the K Line connects with the LAX transit center. I miss living in L. A so much. When I move back down there I’m going to ride all of L.A’s rail lines and check out the stations too.

[@mrxman581]

That's sounds really cool. I recommend eating at the Santa Monica Pier at some point in your LA Metro Station Crawl.😊

[@robinrussell7965]

It is so nice to see LA people so talkative and excited. Sometimes it seems like nobody talks to each other in LA.

[@portcybertryx222]

I like how you dissed the guy commenting on homelessness. Like does it mean we cannot have great transit just cause some homeless people will exist😅. What ridiculousness. Also with the Metros new cleanliness, ambassador program and more police deployment things seem to be trending in the right direction. Also looks like they followed in NYC’s footsteps with the architecture

[@cunningham-code]

The premise of his comment is so bizarre, should we keep or make transit so bad that even the most vulnerable among us don’t want to ride it?

[@portcybertryx222]

@@cunningham-code exactly. We treat public transit as a secondary option unlike in other countries where public transit is encouraged. This leads to a perception that using public transit means you are from a lower strata of society and hence even when funding and designing transit with that outlook we don’t put our full effort into it. Luckily that’s changing and we should ride more transit so people appreciate and utilize it more.

[@highlymedicated2438]

And you're part of the problem. Like we need more police around the General Public. If we have to have police to protect us in the Subways then I'm not riding the transit

[@portcybertryx222]

@@highlymedicated2438 we shouldn’t need police but most subways around the world do have some form of law enforcement authority. People need to feel safe especially in large crowds. Once they have enough confidence then maybe law enforcement won’t be necessary.

[@mosesagabon7152]

Ambassadors are probably the last thing the system needs right now. Most of them socialize with each other and do nothing. I have seen some smoking vape inside a closed terminal.

[@davidlang1125]

Great video. Felt like I was there to experience the new stations in person. Look forward to the airport connection to be opened. Then and only then will LA have the real foundations of a regional transit system. Yeah, homelessness is a problem - the world over. It’s not unique to LA or California. Thanks for a terrific tour!

[@antoniahamilton3201]

Well said.

[@SoyiNoodles]

Great video, great job dealing with the weirdo. Love the enthusiasm.

[@Red1Revival]

love how you end it at La Cita lmaooo nice

[@alessandroortiz]

When I first moved to LA, the Culver City station was still a year away from opening. When the Palms station finally opened up right next to me, it was great being able to go downtown or out to Santa Monica, but the connection to little Tokyo needed too many transfers. I was really hoping for the connector to finish before I moved to the bay, but I'm super excited to ride it, and in a few years, be able to ride all the way from LAX. That'll be a game changer (I hope).

[@albertasafu-adjaye4254]

Excellent video man! We've meet earlier at Grand Av/Bunker Hill on the elevators, and I saw you for a moment once I was making my way towards The Broad. So I was all like, was that Erik? Not knowing it was you! So glad to meet and talk with you! (I do apologize for stuttering just a little bit)😄

[@mediaxpuppet]

Pleasure meeting you dude! That was a great ride. Glad we were able to make it out to opening day.

[@RPowell-eq1xu]

Excellent videography. It feels like I'm really there. And your narration is informative and interesting. Well done.

[@RGE_Music]

I love how you shut up that fool. Some people always find problems

[@3catowner]

Thanks for the great video, Erik. I wanted to go today to check it out but you gave me a great idea of all the new stations and getting around, it was like being there. Seems like there were more Metro personnel in the stations than there were riders. Like you said, it's the excitement and PR of opening day, but many of the vested Metro people will be there regularly from now on.

[@daikon711]

probably the 100th time I hear "the homeless can sleep there" when something new is built

[@danielkelly2210]

Americans have some kind of weird fixation on homeless people. Do they form the majority of the population in California or something?

[@partylivesforever]

@@danielkelly2210 Yes.

[@antoniahamilton3201]

This is really well done. As a native Angelino, this new Metro is unreal. I love LA but I didn't think I would experience this in my lifetime. You made a subscriber out of me. Thank you..........P.S. I liked how you flawlessly handled that negative Nelly. It really made me feel good. Keep up the good work.

[@ES-hr6vg]

The Bunker Hill station is easily the nicest station on the entire network. I worry that taggers will try to scratch the glass railings on the bridge to the Broad though.

[@manilowmaniak]

What took you so long. The Blue Line has been operating for 33 years, the Gold Line for 23 years and the Expo Line for 11 years.

[@samsimasingh2728]

Thanks for your video. It's excellent, exactly what I would like to see before going in person. 😊

[@amlesion9142]

Tried out a ride on the system on Saturday from Downtown to Azusa. My experience: Con: one cool/rebel teen decided to make one cab his personal night club by blasting expletive-filled rap music. Pro: I took too much delight watching people waiting in traffic in their cars when the train rode along the freeways.

[@makingnewdreamscometrue]

Thank you for this video. You did a nice job showing the stations and the street view into them. It’s making more sense to me now.

[@grif13]

Really appreciate your vid, nihilist and all. Lots of great spots to explore and great people watching. Secret tip-del Mar stop in Pasadena has a stone brewery tasting room. 10q again.

[@amlesion9142]

I would like LA to set up a trial period of continuing free fare for the public to see if that can increase ridership numbers. But also promote/encourage a donation system for people who are able to pay and want to support the service.

[@themoviedealers]

They are starting fare capping July 1. You pay $20 and any rides over that amount are free.😊

[@manilowmaniak]

Why? It's a business and it costs money to operate.

[@thastayapongsak4422]

@@manilowmaniak Should be a tax-funded service not a for-profit company. Nobody expects the waterworks authority to be profitable, except you, maybe.

[@manilowmaniak]

@@thastayapongsak4422 You are just looking to get something for free. We as citizens pay for the gas that heats our homes, the electricity that keeps our lights on. If you want free transportation you are delusional.

[@thastayapongsak4422]

@@manilowmaniak I said tax-funded. Is that free? call me delusional but it's you who do not understand what I said at all. Free is free at the point of use. Nothing in this world is ever free.

[@stevenjohnson6532]

Why does the station intercom say 'customers' and not 'passengers?'

[@mediaxpuppet]

I noticed that too when I was editing. Seems like it was thought out and very intentionally phrased that way.

[@anthonysnyder1152]

I’m not sure I like “customers”. It implied we leave with an item. Passengers or riders work better in my opinion.

[@mrxman581]

Maybe to more clearly define themselves as a service. A service serves a customer. It's not just about being a passenger.

[@danielh437]

very happy to see the Little Tokyo construction finally complete and now an easier way to get to the broad museum as well

[@shahiskandar8717]

Damn...still no safety platform doors. They should have installed it.

[@franki3Ru550]

Announcement is very professional

[@Risky2k9]

Bunker Hill Station is the best one.

[@troysierra5228]

I think most of greater Los Angeles has got some mass transit through either subway, lightrail, or an express bus transit. With the extention to Pomona happening next year, 2024. Living in the Southbay. I think we're the last section of the county without a planned mass transit. I think the greenline at one point was going to go to Torrance, Lomita, San Pedro.

[@themoviedealers]

Extension to Torrance IS happening, eventually.

[@troysierra5228]

@@themoviedealers that's an open question. When??? Otherwise... you don't sound informed.

[@Hotters9060]

@@troysierra5228 The Purple Line Extension opens next year in 2024 and there will be new trains on that line.

[@titob.yotokojr.9337]

San Francisco used to be my favorite city in the U.S. and Europe. But not anymore. The homeless people ruined it for me. And they have even infested the BART stations in downton San Francisco. As a tourist I never liked L.A. because of its poor public transportation system. I'm glad they finally decided to build that underground Light Rail Transit System. I hope they will eventually connect LAX with the Light Rail Transit to downtown L.A. for the convenience of tourists and locals alike.

[@anthonysnyder1152]

Interesting that the platforms are built for 3 car train. And I can see that there are very little wiggle room on either end. SFs central subway was built for “2-car trains” but I did the math and the stations technically can fit 3-cars but it would be similar to LA’s new stations that would have the platforms right up to the ends of the trains.

[@thastayapongsak4422]

That guy... now the homeless can sleep all the way to long beach. And you can also now ride all the way to long beach! The USA is the only place that I know where people talk about homeless people first (not in the good sense of first) and how convenient it is last.

[@pixpusher]

Really glad it finally goes to Little Tokyo

[@MostlyBrenda]

Platform doors would be a good addition.

[@jorgecgonzalez9976]

I do believe LA needs Transit Police Officers separate from LAPD. Amazing to see the changes in LA Transit, I left in 1998 and remember the Blue Line being built and go into operation. So to see this and how it has grown in 26 yrs in truly amazing. i have a question when my sister lived in LA around 1994 she had to take 3 buses to get from Huntington Park to Wilshire District now it should be a huge improvement.

[@jamesarias4451]

does this train go to any big attraction centers?

[@sayimjustadreamer]

All three stations are in the heart of attractions. The Bunker Hill station stops right in the middle of the city's cultural center.

[@mrxman581]

​@@sayimjustadreamerIt also goes to Santa Monica Pier and beach. And the subway B line goes to Universal Studios and City Walk.

[@atlanticrblx7784]

Regional connector was the train under construction in GTA V

[@bulbanap]

Los Angeles tickles me, good stuff

[@JulianGrayMedia]

Great video! I was there as well

[@lamond6355]

Those elevator will be pissy soon. Hopefully not though.

[@dwdwone]

Why did they build such a low capacity system?

[@danielkelly2210]

A few reasons, subway construction in the US is extremely expensive (5-10x the developed world average), our governments hate spending money on transportation that isn't highways and roads, and the LA transit agency probably figures ridership won't grow very much anyway (which can be a self-fulfilling prophecy).

[@dwdwone]

@Daniel Kelly Here in Dallas, they did something similar. They've become victims of their own success. First came the longer platforms. And as the system expanded, now comes a second downtown line, in subway. All light rail.

[@mediaxpuppet]

The way that funding is dispersed and the way measure M was pitched, the funds continually roll in via sales tax. Orange county started with a sales tax that they put to use on widening their freeways. Los Angeles did a similar measure that was focused on mass transit. There have been federal boosts in funds here and there but after the Red Line (which is almost over-built) had a series of expensive blunders, the focus later on has been on cheaper remedies, such as this.

[@mrxman581]

The capacity will be more than fine for decades. LA Metro has other plans to deal with increasing demand like signal prioritization and grade separating a problematic wye on this route. Also, i want to make it clear that the 3 car format is inly being used foe the light rail lines. LA also has heavy rail subway lines and those are high capacity with longer platforms and trainsets since they are all underground. BTW, the two subway lines (B&D) are getting new trainsets with open gangways. 64 trainsets have already been delivered. Very exciting.

[@mrxman581]

​@@mediaxpuppetNot completely true. The two heavy rail subway lines do have longer trainsets and platforms. The Regional Connector stations are light rail.

[@Lucrativecris]

I’m curious to see the junction

[@UnnDunn]

LA Metro stations have trash cans now? I thought they removed them all to discourage bringing food and drink into the system.

[@allanegleston4931]

wish we could have been able to keep the old pe subway and run this out to the san Fernando valley. someday.

[@stevenjohnson6532]

Sure are a lot of employees on their cell phones.

[@antoineone1391]

Looks great, but the station has no future proofing due to its small size!

[@mediaxpuppet]

Yeah the more I think about it, the more of a problem it will be if/when ridership picks up. They really should have made the stations big enough for 4 car trains since frequency is so limited by the street-level sections. No such issues on the B/red subway since that was designed to be super high capacity.

[@mrxman581]

​​​@@mediaxpuppetThese underground light rail stations don't need to be longer than 3 cars for another 50 years because LA Metro will decrease the frequency to 5 minutes or less by upgrading the infrastructure. They will grade separate the wye at Florance and Washington, and then will install signal prioritization on most lines. LA Metro already announced that the frequency will be reduced from 10 minutes to 8 minutes for the A&E lines starting in September.

[@rambleron5720]

such bull ' now the homeless can blah blah.' you can go be homeless to pal.

[@TohaBgood2]

This is in reality a very easy issue to fix. Most of the homeless riders don't pay their fare. Many are disruptive and are not following Metro's rules. They could just do more (a lot more) fare inspections and the vast majority of the homeless would find a different place to sleep during the day. It is true that this would do zero to solve the underlying issue. Homelessness, especially the drug induced kind, is solved via housing and treatment, not by shuffling the homeless population around the city. The problem is that by pushing the homeless into the transit systems an underused downtown areas, the politicians are being let off the hook to do anything. Out of sight and out of mind. By having the homeless population live on Metro trains not only is the issue not solved, but it is also actively being hidden away to not be solved in the future. And if Metro goes under due to no paying riders using it, then neither the homeless would be able to use it nor the riders! Metro needs to focus on transportation and pressure the city to deal with its problem!

[@partylivesforever]

@@TohaBgood2 Could just adopt the European system of having ticket officers at the turnstiles to ensure only paying customers are getting on

[@denniszenanywhere]

Well, if more people rode the subway, there would be less of them. In NY, there were not too many homeless people on the trains before the pandemic. It's when there's no one around that they take over. More people in trains, the safer it gets.

[@partylivesforever]

@@denniszenanywhere But who’s gonna get on a train if they feel really unsafe? It’s why they’re not using it in the first place, the reckless behaviour needs to be stamped out first, only then you can really move forward

[@denniszenanywhere]

@@partylivesforever I heard the new regional connector rail system is free this weekend. If they offer that longer, say, a month or two plus have local government officials riding them like what then-NY Mayor Mike Bloomberg did during his time (he rode it every day going to his office in NY with some videos of him getting reported in media), then we could see a deluge of people trying it out until they get used to it. There's an interesting article in WSJ today about how some pandemic habits have stayed -- like ordering food online. It was a niche thing to do but is now more mainstream, as it is borne from the fact that people were forced to change a habit. But I digress. A crowded rail system is not to the homeless person's advantage, because they think of it as place to sleep and rest but with crowds, they'll get overrun and take shelter somewhere else. It may be outside the rail system for one and not inside of it. I lived in NY for 17 years and I didn't need a car, and felt safe and secure on it because it was full all the time. I'd say my encounter with a homeless person then was very minimal -- less than 10 incidents where I encountered a homeless person but I don't know now though. The pandemic drove people away from subway trains and the homeless found that they could ride them without people. It's good to stamp homeless people first but it has to be combined with people coming out to ride it.

[@jamesarias4451]

🚫 Bathroom, right?🤦‍♂

[@anthonysnyder1152]

I’m not sure it’s common to have public restroom in public transit. That being said I think BART in SF does have a few bathrooms on the concourse level. SF Central subway does too but it’s restricted for use by Muni operators only.

[@mrxman581]

LA Metro decided decades ago against bathrooma due to additional ongoing maintenance, safety, and security costs

[@cmunoz810]

23:40 why you get upset? That guy was absolutely right!! In a few weeks all those new stations will smell like urine and the homeless will take over. It's not being negative it's being realistic. Welcome to Los Angeles the homeless capital of the world!!!

[@mediaxpuppet]

There's a thing called mind your own business. Not afraid of the topic but wrong place and wrong time. He was not a commuter. He came on opening day just like me and we had different objectives that day

[@antoniahamilton3201]

Two men were in prison. One looked out the window and saw its bars. The other man looked out and saw the stars.

[@JohnWSmartNow]

no escalators is a huge draw back.

[@mrxman581]

That's only on one station that is too deep and in a tight physical area so there was no room to install escalators. However, unlike other stations that have two elevators, the Bunker Hill station has SIX quick large elevators which works very well for this station that has both a street level and then a higher bridge level which is easier and faster to reach via an elevator.

[@3506Dodge]

Mexico City has never looked lovelier. It's truly one of the great cities of the world.

[@mediaxpuppet]

Never been there but LA would probably kill for system like Mexico City.

[@trainrover]

:brrrRrr: fuckingly obsessive gating your station hutch like that

[@carlosroman2905]

Why do they have so many ambassadors instead of security guards within a month will see homeless taking over the stations and train 😑😑😑😑

[@fredm.7145]

If you think that is a museum you should see the stations in St. Peterburg, Russia. Those station look like palaces.

[@mafp22w]

The issue that proponents of all of this fail to understand: they are enjoying something that someone else, who gets no benefit from it, paid for. This is the same issue with every government or college town. They are beautiful because someone else subsidized them. My son and I were recently in Washington DC. He noticed that as soon as we passed the barricades around the mall, everything got more beautiful. I understand that most people are ignorant of these subsidies of their standard of living. But, I find it immoral to live better off the back of someone else’s efforts. At the root, this is the immoral issue surrounding slavery.

[@jamesarias4451]

WHAT A WASTE OF SPACE!

[@antoniahamilton3201]

SIMPLE SOLUTION: Colostomy drainage bag.

[@jamesarias4451]

Bathrooms are a basic Necessity! Fu L.A. Metro!