IS the LA subway system up the to point where I can go anywhere to the city with it? (Los Angeles: rent, high school)

[Dangerous-Boy]

Originally Posted by CESpeed

You have obviously never driven down Wilshire at midnight and seen the high number of people busboys, janitors, waiting for the bus. You've never been there waiting for bus that passed you up (at 11:00) because there are not enough buses because they are building the rails. Do you know how cold it is that late at night? I'm sure the low wage workers are very grateful that MTA is building a rail system that will allow East Coast transplants to continue to use public transportation.

I know i'll be greatful when i vist. i live in the burbs now and I miss public transportation. It beats driving and paying for soaring gas prices.

[CESpeed]

When you get lost and have no assistance from the rude drivers, the buses don't show up when they are suppose to and you are late getting everywhere, you'll be begging for a rental car.

[nickdahammer]

Originally Posted by Dangerous-Boy

I know i'll be greatful when i vist. i live in the burbs now and I miss public transportation. It beats driving and paying for soaring gas prices.

Stick to the rail system- you'll be fine. And the 720 Rapid Busses are great for getting from East to West.

[calipoppy]

Quite honestly I will never get those "few" LA people who take public transportation telling those not-in-the-know about LA that they will be OK taking public transportation to get around the city because it just simply is not convenient for the majority of people in greater LA...or else more people would use it.

If you are planning to visit LA...plan on renting a car or else you will feel "stuck" wherever you are. If you ask the average Angeleno "what bus to take to get where" most people are going to look at you like you have three heads and shrug their shoulders in confusion at the possibility of even trying to answer the question.

Originally Posted by nickdahammer

Stick to the rail system- you'll be fine. And the 720 Rapid Busses are great for getting from East to West.

[LASam]

Originally Posted by calipoppy

Quite honestly I will never get those "few" LA people who take public transportation telling those not-in-the-know about LA that they will be OK taking public transportation to get around the city because it just simply is not convenient for the majority of people in greater LA...or else more people would use it.

If you are planning to visit LA...plan on renting a car or else you will feel "stuck" wherever you are. If you ask the average Angeleno "what bus to take to get where" most people are going to look at you like you have three heads and shrug their shoulders in confusion at the possibility of even trying to answer the question.

On the whole, I agree with you. If you are visiting LA as a tourist and want to see a bunch of different parts of the city... you should definately rent a car. However, if you are visiting family or friends and will just be sticking to a specific area, like Hollywood, Santa Monica, or Los Feliz, you may be OK using the public transit. All depends on how much flexibility you want/need.

[angelenomoreno]

Depending on what you want to do, you could visit LA and not rent a car. You would definitely get to see a different side of the city than most do. The basics would be Hollywood and Downtown. You could get a hotel room in either place and have some of the best attractions within walking distance or a short ride and the subway that connects the two -- Walk of Fame, Hollywood nightspots, Olvera Street, Chinatown, Universal City, etc.

Alternatively, you could get a place on the beach in Santa Monica and Venice and spend your whole vacation just soaking in the beach and the tons of artists, vendors, street theatre, shops, restaurants, etc., that can be found within a couple of blocks of the beach in those towns -- and getting between them is an easy 10-minute ride on the Blue Bus.

On the other hand, from a public transit perspective those are practically either/or options -- it's over an hour on public transit from Hollywood or Downtown to the beach, so that would be a pain in the ass if you were going to do that regularly. Another thing, there's now red "Metro Rapid" buses traversing many of the major streets in LA that offer a much-improved experience over the standard local buses. Stick to those if at all possible.

[waccamatt]

Originally Posted by CESpeed

You have obviously never driven down Wilshire at midnight and seen the high number of people busboys, janitors, waiting for the bus. You've never been there waiting for bus that passed you up (at 11:00) because there are not enough buses because they are building the rails. Do you know how cold it is that late at night? I'm sure the low wage workers are very grateful that MTA is building a rail system that will allow East Coast transplants to continue to use public transportation.

Cold? In LA? It rarely even gets below freezing there.

[ffknight918]

Originally Posted by waccamatt

Cold? In LA? It rarely even gets below freezing there.

A HUGE reason that I want to move to LA. haha Cold for me was when it got to -30 with the windshield this past winter. I went to LA in January and February. In Feb, is got down to the low 60s one day. People outside looked like they were freezing while I was loving it. haha



I visited LA the second time without a car. However, I just went to and from downtown from the airport. The places that I needed to be were over there. I went to Huntington Beach and Burbank though with a friend who drove. The first time I was there we drove everywhere though because I had more free time so we went to the Beach and up by the Hollywood sign.

[CESpeed]

Originally Posted by waccamatt

Cold? In LA? It rarely even gets below freezing there.

So you think it's fun to stand on a curb in 40 degree weather for over half an hour? How cold does it have to be to justify not wanting stand outside waiting for a bus?

[EscapeCalifornia]

Originally Posted by CESpeed

So you think it's fun to stand on a curb in 40 degree weather for over half an hour? How cold does it have to be to justify not wanting stand outside waiting for a bus?

Especially when most people in LA are unlikely to own much more than a light jacket or sweatshirt.