UPDATE, JUNE 28: The Metro Board discussed the item at their meeting and asked staff to come back to the Board this fall with more options to consider.

The earlier post:

Metro has released a staff report and presentation that explains how the agency plans to operate the Crenshaw/LAX Line and the Green Line after the Crenshaw/LAX opens in fall 2019.

First, some important background: As part of the Crenshaw/LAX Line project, the tracks for the new rail line were joined with the Green Line tracks just west of the Green Line’s Aviation Station. That gives Metro the opportunity to move trains between the two lines, meaning there are several options for running rail service in the future.

Metro staff looked at a variety of operating scenarios and determined that two — see above — would provide the best service in terms of ridership, minimizing transfers, improving access to LAX, safely operating the new rail junction and offering frequent and consistent train service.

Of those two, Metro staff say the optimal plan (alternative 1 above) would be to run one set of trains between the Green Line’s Norwalk Station and the Crenshaw/LAX Line’s Expo/Crenshaw Station. The other set of trains would run between the Green Line’s Redondo Beach Station and the new Century/Aviation Station being built as part of the Crenshaw/LAX Line. Century/Aviation Station would be the transfer point between the two lines.

The Redondo Beach-to-Century/Aviation line would later extend north to the future Aviation/96th Station. This is station that will be the transfer point to the LAX Automated People Mover that will serve airport terminals. The station and people mover are forecast to open by 2023. (Metro is funding/building the station and Los Angeles World Airports is funding/building the people mover).

Key statistic: about 75 percent of the Green Line’s ridership is between Aviation and Norwalk stations. This isn’t surprising. This segment includes Norwalk’s huge park-and-ride lot and transfers to popular north-south bus lines on Vermont Avenue, Hawthorne Boulevard and Crenshaw Boulevard, as well as the Silver Line and Blue Line.

The big change, of course, will be for those who currently travel between Green Line stations west of the Crenshaw/LAX Line and stations to the east. Under the new operating plan, those riders would need to transfer at Century/Aviation to continue to the rest of the Green Line.

The transfer itself would be easy — all trains will use the same platform at Century/Aviation. Metro plans to adjust the schedules of both lines so that transfers would take no more than three minutes during peak hours. Peak hour service on both lines would be every six minutes.

The plan also lays out proposals to modify bus service in the area around the Crenshaw/LAX and Green Lines to reduce duplicative service and make transfers easier. As a result, Metro staff are proposing some changes to bus service. Metro will be holding public hearings for the bus service changes and will seek approvals by the appropriate Service Councils.

One big change is that the G Shuttle between LAX and the Green Line will move to the new Century/Aviation Station after the Crenshaw/LAX Line opens — placing it closer to the airport.

The plan is scheduled to be discussed in the Metro Board’s Operations Committee at 9 a.m. on Thursday. A link to the live webstream will appear here when the meeting begins.

What do you think of the draft operating plan, riders and readers? Comment please.

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