Location Transport

How is the public transport like in LA?

Is it good and safe? I am going to go to college there and I will be living in Studio City or West Hollywood something like that. How long would it take me approximately to like Santa Monica or downtown LA? Just so I get the idea, if it's easy to move around LA using public transport because I don't want to get a car just yet, I am 18 and it's useless for me, I always use public transport. Also, can you get like a monthly pass so you can use both buses/metros ?? And how much does it cost? Like for example here in London it's an oyster card and you pay 116 pounds, which is like 182 dollars per month. And what areas should I avoid? Thanks!

Public Comments

1. LA has a plethora of buses and a handful of trains and subways to get you where you want to go. They are fairly safe unless you are going into a dangerous area like most areas south of downtown. They do have monthly passes. Public transportation can be very inconvenient and I think once you live there for a while you will be looking for your own wheels. Cheers. http://www.metro.net/
2. Los Angeles County has many transit agencies, but the main one is LACMTA or Metro. They provide local bus, Bus Rapid Transit , commuter bus, & light rail service. You can buy a TAP card which can be used in most transit agencies in L.A. County. You add money to the card, like you would to a prepaid debit card. Metrolink is a commuter rail service that links downtown L.A. with Orange County, the Antelope Valley, southwest San Bernardino, northwest Riverside, & east Ventura County. Your valid Metrolink ticket/pass can be used for one free boarding to a connecting bus or light rail line.
3. LA public transit stinks on ice. How long will it take? You need to give us a specific place. You can go to metro.net (or even maps.google.com) and enter two points, and it will give you a time. Studio City and Hollywood are separated by a mountain range, so the times would differ significantly. But I would extimate that it would take about 2.5-3 hours to get from Studio City to Santa Monica. Yeah, it's that bad here. You'll quickly find out that LA is not London. We have some of the worst public transit anywhere, mainly due to the large size of the area. Prices for monthly passes can also be obtained at metro.net. Check out lalife.com for safe and unsafe areas.