Metro Blue Line passengers will experience travel delays of up to 40 minutes for the next three weekends beginning tonight, November 5, due to construction of the Expo light rail line, which will connect with the Metro Blue Line in downtown Los Angeles.

Metro will provide bus shuttle service between the Washington Station and the 7^th St./Metro Center Station.

Work will begin at 9 p.m. on Friday and continue until Monday early morning, November 8. Metro expects to have the Metro Blue Line service restored on Monday before rush hours between Washington and 7^th St/Metro Center Stations. Should any unforeseen delay occur, the bus shuttle service will continue in operation with buses running between Washington and 7^th St./Metro Center stations.

The same plan also is schedule for the weekends of November 12 and November 19 and will continuing until the early hours of Monday, November 15 and November 22.

The Metro Blue stations affected will be San Pedro, Grand Avenue, Pico/Chick Hearn and 7^th/Metro Center. Rail service from Washington Station to Long Beach Transit Mall will not be affected. There also will be Metro personnel at Washington and 7^th/Metro Center stations to help direct patrons.

The bus shuttle service will operate every 15 to 20 minutes on Friday night. On Saturday and Sunday buses will run every 5 to 10 minutes and after 8 p.m. every 15 to 20 minutes.

The temporary bus stops will be located near the stations. Those passengers coming from Long Beach to downtown Los Angeles will have to transfer from the train to the bus at the Washington Station, on Long Beach Avenue just south of Washington Boulevard. The buses will have stops at San Pedro Station on Washington Boulevard just east of San Pedro Street, at Grand Avenue Station on Washington Boulevard east of Olive Avenue, at Pico/ Chick Hearn Station on Pico Boulevard, east of Flower Street and at 7^th/Metro Center at the Figueroa Street entrance to the Metro Rail station.

Metro Blue Line customers traveling to Long Beach can board buses at the Hope Street entrance to the 7^th St./Metro Center. Buses will make stops at Pico/Chick Hearn station on Pico Boulevard, east of Flower Street, at Grand Avenue Station on Washington Boulevard east of Grand Avenue, at San Pedro Station on Washington Boulevard just east of San Pedro Street, and at  Washington Station will be on Washington Boulevard just east of Long Beach Boulevard.

Metro patrons are advised to allow extra time for their trips and check television monitors in train stations or call Metro’s hot line number 213- 922-4999 for the latest information on the construction work and service impacts or go online to www.metro.net. All work is subject to weather delays.

Metro apologizes for this inconvenience and appreciates the public understanding and cooperation during this construction period. For schedule information, contact Metro Customer Relations at (213) 922-6235.

The Expo Line is a new 8.5 mile light rail line under construction from downtown Los Angeles to Culver City. It will share tracks and two stations with the Metro Blue Line along the Flower Street portion of the alignment. For Expo Line Construction information contact (213) 922-3976.

The Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (Metro) Board of Directors today approved the Draft Environmental Impact Statement/Report (EIS/R) for the Westside Subway Extension and Regional Connector projects, clearing the way for both projects to enter final environmental review and preliminary engineering.

In approving the environmental drafts, the Board also approved Metro staff recommendations for the Locally Preferred Alternatives (LPA) – the routes the projects would take through their respective project areas. For the Westside Subway Project, the recommended route is a subway extension running between the Wilshire/Western Metro Purple Line Terminus to Westwood/VA Hospital, a distance of approximately nine miles.  For the Regional Connector Project, the recommended route is a nearly two-mile, fully underground light rail line connecting the Metro Gold Line, Metro Blue Line, and future Expo Line through Downtown Los Angeles.  The LPA recommendation to eliminate the 5^th/Flower Station was approved.  The Board, however, requested Metro staff to report back at the December Board meeting whether there was private sector interest in funding a further study of the 5^th/Flower Station.

In the Final EIS/R phase, agency planners will further analyze environmental issues for route and station options that were carried forward from the draft.  At the end of the approximately one-year final environmental review process, the Metro Board will decide the project that will ultimately be built utilizing local Measure R transportation sales tax monies.  Metro is also currently seeking matching funds through the federal New Starts Program for these projects.

Both projects are expected to fill two major gaps in the Los Angeles area rail system, providing faster, more reliable travel times for transit commuters while increasing project trips throughout the Metro Rail system.

“Today’s Board decision to move both of these projects forward simultaneously is a major milestone in the history of transit in Los Angeles County,” said L.A. County Supervisor and Metro Board Chair Don Knabe.   “What’s more, the Board’s action is a vote of confidence that these projects will best compete for immediate federal funding as our agency moves aggressively to fulfill the promise of Measure R and the accelerated timeline of 30/10.”

Click here to learn more about the Westside Subway Extension and the Regional Connector Transit Corridor