The Brief

Metrolink has approved funding to reshuffle its schedule in an effort to reduce wait times and increase off-peak service as the agency seeks to boost ridership numbers, with the changes expected later this year.

How this will work

A major component of the plan is shortening wait times between departing and arriving trains — especially at Metrolink's main transfer hub at Union Station — to allow for shorter trips across Southern California.

Currently, about 70 trains connect at Union Station in weekday mornings with a wait time of less than 20 minutes. Under the new schedule, that number of shorter connections would more than triple to 240 — meaning that people making transfers will likely have shorter waits (and potentially less time to grab coffee or a pretzel in the meantime).

The agency also plans to offer additional trains during midday and off-peak hours in an effort to expand its ridership to include more non-work trips.

As part of the reshuffling of train schedules, Metrolink will actually reduce the number of train sets in operation while increasing the number of departure times, said Metrolink spokesperson Scott Johnson.

"One thing that we are really looking forward to is offering more transfers at L.A. Union Station — nearly four times as many, connecting respective lines from, say, the San Bernardino line to the Ventura County line at L.A. Union Station," Johnson said.

About the pilot program it's based on

Johnson said this follows a successful pilot program with the agency's Antelope Valley line, where the agency saw increased ridership after it implemented schedule changes in October 2023.

"With that as a blueprint, we are trying to emulate that system-wide to benefit the entire Southern California region," Johnson said.

The changes come as Metrolink looks for ways to attract more riders and a different customer base after the pandemic.

While Metrolink has traditionally been a commuter rail line, the agency is trying to boost its ridership by attracting more people taking leisure trips around Southern California. Currently, Metrolink's riders are split nearly evenly between work and non-work trips, according to the agency's data.

"Metrolink is really trying to create this transformation from a traditional commuter railroad to a true regional passenger railroad," Johnson said. "We recognize that the number of individuals using our service only for morning and afternoon commutes has diminished, while others are looking to take our service for more recreational purposes throughout the day."

This story was originally published by The LA Local on Jan. 28, 2026.

The hottest concert in Koreatown this past weekend may have been an impromptu, after-hours, one-man show at a closed shopping mall.

As the clock approached 10 p.m. last Friday, City Center on Sixth was bustling.

Scores of people — along with their families, friends and pets — flooded into the three-story building for a “uniquely LA” experience.

The crowds didn’t gather for Korean eats at H Mart. They came to catch viral saxophonist Nathanial Young.

Sandwiched between a post office and a pharmacy on the ground floor of City Center, Young performed an hour of original music for free to hundreds of people packed around three levels of atriums dotted with blind box stores and skincare shops.

Hundreds gathered at City Center mall in Koreatown to see Nathanial Young, Jan. 25, 2026.

(

Andrew Lopez

/

The LA Local

)

A 27-year-old Los Angeles resident, Young is no stranger to performing in spaces uncommon for jazz musicians — tunnels in Norway, the foot of Teotihuacán’s Pyramid of the Sun in Mexico, deserted parking structures and empty churches across LA.

He’s racked up millions of views on his social media videos. As his Instagram handle @NathanialPOV suggests, his posts are often recorded from the perspective of the built-in camera in his Ray-Ban Meta glasses.

Young typically announces upcoming performances to his combined 1.1 million social media followers a day or two — and sometimes just hours — beforehand.

For the City Center performance, the announcement drew people from around Los Angeles County, including Will Baker, who told The LA Local he made the drive from North Hollywood.

Before the show began, Baker, 25, leaned on the banister of the mall’s third floor, peering down at a lone microphone stand on the ground floor surrounded by a growing crowd.

“I think it’s awesome that the mall is letting him do this and letting him get a crowd in here and perform for it,” Baker said. “It’s such a cool way to use spaces because we have so many spaces like this in cities all over the place that’d be so fun to hear musicians play in — and they should do it more.”

Hundreds gathered at City Center mall in Koreatown to see Nathanial Young, Jan. 25, 2026.

(

Andrew Lopez

/

The LA Local

)

Hundreds gathered at City Center mall in Koreatown to see Nathanial Young, Jan. 25, 2026. (Andrew Lopez / For The LA Local) Young began his set promptly at 10 p.m., without an introduction or opening act.

He quickly commanded the boisterous crowd of hundreds around him, quieting them with the croons of his saxophone.

Many listeners sat with their eyes closed, allowing the notes to overtake their senses.

For Geraldine Lonsdale and her friends Nicole Carre and Paulina Paredes, the soulful tones of Young’s sax drew the trio of Koreatown residents into the mall after grabbing dinner and drinks nearby.

“We couldn’t see him because everyone’s so tall… so we went up the escalator and were like, ‘Okay, this is cool.’ But then we’re like, ‘Is he famous?’” Lonsdale laughed.

Paredes said the sound echoing off the walls and glass added a nice touch to an otherwise unassuming mall.

“I feel like this also grants greater access to this type of music because usually, to listen to this kind of music, you have to be at a jazz club or symphony — not at a mall in the middle of K-town,” Carre added.

In a second-floor corner away from the crowds, Edmond Smith of Chatsworth closed his eyes and listened to Young’s last few songs.

The 35-year-old has seen Young and his collaborators perform across LA before — most recently at a church in downtown.

While shopping malls may represent a bygone era of American consumerism, where young people of decades past would congregate, Smith told The LA Local that Friday night’s performance reminded him of the power of community engagement in such a setting.

“It’s wonderful to see live music, and it’s even more beautiful to see everybody participating in that space that we can all share and experience together,” Smith said.

Temperatures are on the rise these next few days and breezy Santa Ana winds are back, triggering wind advisories for some L.A. County mountains.

The warming spreads from the coasts to valleys to the low desert where temperatures will reach the mid-70s up to the low 80s. Downtown Los Angeles, for example, will reach up to 82 degrees.

The Antelope Valley, meanwhile, will stay cooler with max temperatures from 64 to 67 degrees.

And there's a wind advisory out for the Santa Susana, West San Gabriel and the Highway 14 corridor, where wind gusts could reach up to 50 mph. Those conditions are expected to last until 2 p.m.

The U.S. Senate has until Friday night to approve a package of funding measures or else risk another government shutdown. That package includes funding for child care subsidies, Head Start, and other services for young kids.

Senate Democrats have said they oppose the spending measure because it also includes funding the Department of Homeland Security. They want new restrictions on immigration enforcement, and to split it off from the other funding bills in the package in the wake of the killing of Alex Pretti by federal officers.

In addition to Head Start and child care, the bills in the six-part package include funding for infant and early childhood mental health, maternal health, and home-heating assistance,

“There is no reason that funding for children, for babies, for meeting their very basic needs should be contingent on whether or not ICE gets funding,” said Melissa Boteach, the chief policy officer at Zero to Three, an advocacy organization for babies and young kids. “[Young kids] are in the most rapid stage of brain development. They have immediate needs that need to be met.”

Head Start disruption: What could happen?

The last government shutdown in the fall lasted 43 days, and several Head Start programs in California nearly closed; at least one temporarily shut its doors. Boteach said there may be a few centers that are immediately affected, and others later on if a shutdown drags on, depending on when the center’s grant cycles starts.

Those most at risk are programs that have a Feb. 1 start date, said Melanee Cottrill, executive director of Head Start California, of which she estimated there are around 6-10.

Head Start is a federally-funded program that provides early education and other services to children in low-income families. “ For many of these children, these are also the most nutritious meals that they get every day [at Head Start],” Cottrill said.

“It's not guaranteed that they'll close their doors if there is a government shutdown. It really depends on whether they have other funding sources,” she added.

Federal funding for childcare subsidies for low-income children (which is administered through the state) is also part of the funding package. Earlier this month, President Trump said he would freeze that funding to California, though that action has been tied up in court.

“There's already been a good deal of instability in these programs and for families who rely on them and are just hopeful that the Congress can finish this off and, uh, be able to move forward,” said Donna Sneeringer, president of the Child Care Resource Center, which runs Head Starts and child care subsidy programs in the Los Angeles area.

“[Parents] feel very insecure — these temporary pauses… the family's lives don't pause,” said Mary Ignatius, who heads Parent Voices. “ Real harm happens to the child care providers, the families, and the children who cannot afford any delays."