Today was a huge day for Los Angeles's expanding transit network and a handy reminder to people who fall asleep on the train that you have got to stop doing that before you wake up way farther away than you wanted to go. The Regional Connector—the 1.9-mile train tunnel that will connect the Gold, Blue, and Expo Lines—broke ground in Little Tokyo this morning. When it's finished, it'll provide one-seat rides between Santa Monica/East LA and Long Beach/Azusa, and add new train stops at Second/Hope in Bunker Hill, Second/Broadway in the Historic Core, and First/Central in Little Tokyo. (Pre-construction work started nearly two years ago.)

The Regional Connector stops should be pretty fancy. The Little Tokyo station is set to get $11.8 million from the US Department of Transportation for bike lanes and sidewalks around the stop; on Bunker Hill, the station will have an elevator and pedestrian bridge to provide access up to Grand Avenue. The $1.4-billion Regional Connector is expected to be finished in 2020 and open in May 2021.

· Ground is broken for Regional Connector project to link Blue, Expo and Gold Lines [The Source]

·

· Regional Connector [Curbed LA]