Commuting in LA without a car? Has the transit improved? (Los Angeles: neighborhoods, university)

[ras124685]

Thinking about moving to LA without a car (I know you guys heard the car vs transit battle) Has the transportation improved lately to commute faster bus-wise and rail-wise? Or do people still need cars?

LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- The Metro Board of Directors approved a draft environmental study Thursday for the planned Subway to the Sea project.
The project will be a nine-mile extension, extending the subway from Koreatown, through the Miracle Mile, to Westwood. There will be stops at Fairfax, La Cienega, Century City and the University of California, Los Angeles.

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[Charles]

Originally Posted by ras124685

Has the transportation improved lately to commute faster bus-wise and rail-wise? Or do people still need cars?

What do you mean by lately?

Probably 95% percent of adults who work full time own a car.

[wrcousert]

It depends on where you live and work. Some people get along great without a car.

[Matt Kim]

You'll be retired before the Subway to Sea line is operational.

The only thing more impossible than mass transit in California are environmental impact studies.

[nslander]

Originally Posted by Matt Kim

You'll be retired before the Subway to Sea line is operational.

The only thing more impossible than mass transit in California are environmental impact studies.

Way too cynical. Which is something, coming from a somebody like me.

The MTA has made most of its timelines. The first leg of the Expo lines opens before the end of this year; many would have lost betting against that. The first Red Line subway was completed within a reasonable time (however over-budget)

[Tasksgirl]

I did it from 2004 to 2008. I commuted many different places but the 2 worst ones were from Glendale to Inglewood, and from Glendale to Santa Monica. It was bad but not THAT bad and I handled it. I never took any rails just buses.

[uptown_urbanist]

Originally Posted by ras124685

Thinking about moving to LA without a car (I know you guys heard the car vs transit battle) Has the transportation improved lately to commute faster bus-wise and rail-wise? Or do people still need cars?



Moderator cut: when posting articles, a snippet and a link is enough

We lived there for more than three years, and I was dependent on public transportation. My commute to and from work was easy and efficient, not to mention cheap! (I had the option of rail or bus, but usually ended up taking advantage of Rapid bus routes, as it was a straight shot.) Since then the transit options have only gotten better. Whether or not you will need a car depends on where you work and where you choose to live. Like any city, public transportation doesn't work for everyone. I was very pleasantly surprised to discover that it worked very well for us, though.

[HarryKerry]

Where you work will dictate where you live. On the other hand, my aunt was a legal secretary for over 35 years and because she hated driving during the rush-hours, she always took jobs in downtown L.A. There are tons of law firms there. Anyway, work commute was always a breeze during the bus only years and even better when Metrolink commuter trains started operation in 1992. She had made a few moves and her last move what in what is now Rancho Cucamonga. My point is, downtown L.A. offers the best transit option with the easiest work commute. It opens up far more housing possibilities in more parts of southern California than any other location to work.

However, if you are planning on being 100% transit dependent, then you need to live where transit, especially rail, is available or abundant. Such locations include Downtown L.A., Wilshire Center/Koreatown, Hancock Park, Hollywood, Pasadena area near Gold Line. You could also consider cities outside of Los Angeles that offer village like living with some local transit that is near a Metrolink commuter train station.

Investigate at mta dot net and metrolinktrains dot com for more info.

You could get a really cheap car to use on the weekends and transit during the week. That is what another aunt of mine did. The service levels are not as high as during the week.

[Aram Arakelyan]

I have lived in LA since 1979. And I can not imagine the life in LA without a car.


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[munchitup]

I feel like an exact copy of this thread exists somewhere...

Here's my experience in the one year I have lived here:

Choose to live where you work. We can't always choose where we work, but we can (for the most part) choose where we live.

Check walkscore for the most walkable neighborhoods (hollywood, wilshire, around fairfax, koreatown and downtown immediately come to mind, but are certainly not the only areas).

Check the metro web site to make sure you are on at least a rapid bus line or near a light rail / subway station.

Another option is cycling, LA has the perfect weather for year round bike commuting, and the bike master plan is being put into effect, so cycling only going to get better in the city. But, I will warn you it is a little dangerous to cycle here and wouldn't do it if I didn't know what I was doing or had urban cycling experience.

Living car free in LA is totally doable, but unlike Boston, NY, Chicago, etc. you have to actually seek out the lifestyle, it doesn't come to you as easily (if that makes any sense at all )