Getting There on the K Line: Great New Way to Access LAX!
One of the biggest bugaboos of living in Downtown LA has been remedied: getting to and from LAX is now immeasurably simplified.
I paid little attention to the recently completed Metro K line between Expo/Crenshaw and Redondo Beach, stopping at LAX along the way. Then I realized that I could now reach the shiny new LAX Metro Transit center by boarding the Metro E Line train at Pico Station, jumping off the E Line at Expo/Crenshaw, making a quick transfer to the K Line, and finding myself at LAX in amazingly little time and at a ridiculously low price!
Today, I decided to test out this new round-trip opportunity. Just after lunch I set my iPhone timer as I walked out the door of my condo on 11th and Grand. A quick walk to Pico Station and a five-minute wait for the E Line train toward Santa Monica found me comfortably riding to the Expo/Crenshaw station. There I exited the platform to the west, crossed the tracks and walked half a block south following excellent signage, and entered the brand-new K Line platform two escalator (or elevator) flights below the street. The K Line train was waiting because it is the end of the K Line so, from here, any train will take you directly to the LAX Metro Transit Center in less than 15 minutes.
Upon arriving at the LAX Transit Center, it was easy to follow the signs up the escalator (or elevator if you are schlepping baggage), to the Transit Center Lobby, and then back down to the ground level to Bus Stops 1 and 2. Here a bright new bright blue bus was waiting to take me to the International Terminal which I had selected as my test destination because of its location half way around the LAX “terminal horseshoe.” The bus stopped at all the terminals, dropping off and picking up travelers at well-marked pink signposts. At the International Terminal I hit the stopwatch: 1 hour and 20 minutes.
It is well worth noting that when the much vaunted “People Mover” connection between the LAX Transit Center and the airline gates is operational in early 2026, total transit time from your door to your terminal will decrease at least 20 minutes.
This is exciting! Previous options to LAX from downtown were: (1) We could drive and pay an arm and a leg for long-term parking after sitting in a dangerous and frustrating traffic jam. (2) We could take the Airport Bus from Union Station both ways costing $15 each way. This was a challenge as it was always complicated to make the final trek from Union Station to home. (3) Uncle Harry could drop you off or pick you up but then you’d be beholden to Uncle Harry the next time he had to fly out. (4) Or, we could Uber -- $40 to $60 each way plus tip -- which could take an hour in traffic each way (but thankfully, you didn’t have to drive).
Now you can choose a reliable, comfortable, non-driving, and non-challenging experience from start to finish, all for $1.75 each way! (If you are old, like me with an over-65 Metro Pass, it’s 35 cents non-rush hour and 75 cents during rush hour!) Things do get better.
By John Nilsson