It’s no secret that the 10 Freeway fire has caused a traffic nightmare in Los Angeles, especially in downtown.
Now, with nearly 300,000 commuters being affected by the detours while the highway is repaired, city officials – including Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass herself – are taking it upon themselves to promote public transportation.
Bass rode the Metro’s E line to work on Wednesday morning, hopping on at the Expo/Western station and hopping off in Little Tokyo, her office said in a release.
“This morning, I didn’t sit in any traffic on my way to work thanks to Metro,” said Bass, who also serves as chair of Metro’s board of directors. “My ride was fast and easy, thanks in part to the partnership between the city and Metro to speed up the E line trains while the freeway closure is ongoing.”
In addition to speeding up E line trains, Metrolink trains are also being sped up, and trains from West Covina to Union Station have had one more car installed on them to allow for more passengers.
The mayor has directed the Department of Transportation to make CommuterExpress and LADOT Dash buses free. In addition, she has also directed Metro to add more buses to line 66 (Olympic Boulevard) and line 251 (Soto Street), as those two lines saw the most delays on Tuesday.
An increased number of white-glove traffic officers will be dispatched to congested areas downtown to assist commuters during this week’s wet weather as well, the mayor’s office said.
More information can be found by visiting www.emergency.lacity.gov