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Don't get stuck: Your guide to ride-sharing and public transit during the holidays
Lyft is one of many services available throughout Los Angeles this holiday season.
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Photo by Tribute/ Homenaje via Flickr Creative Commons
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The holidays can be a dangerous time to be on the road. Play it safe this year by taking public transportation, a ride-share, or a taxi.
LA Metro
L.A. Metro’s holiday gift to you is free rides! From 9pm to 2am on Christmas Eve and New Year’s Eve, you can skip the turnstile and get a safe, free ride wherever the bus or metro train will take you.
- New Year's Eve Dec. 31: Normal weekday schedule. 9pm-2am free rides, fare gates will be unlatched during this time. Metro Red, Purple, Blue, Expo, Green, Gold, Orange & Silver* Lines will then run special overnight 24-hour service every 20 minutes until beginning of service on New Year's Day Jan. 1 (*Silver Line will run every 60 minutes). Bus lines will run late night owl service.
- New Year's Day Jan. 1: Sunday/holiday schedules
Metro is also offering some deals and discounts on dining and entertainment around the city over the holidays. See their Holiday Hotpicks.
Orange county transportation authority
OCTA is offering free bus rides on all fixed-route buses on New Year’s eve from 6 p.m. until 2:30 a.m. on Wednesday, Jan. 1, 2014.
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RELATED: List of DUI checkpoints in Orange County
Ride-share services
Popular ride-share app, Lyft just expanded its coverage area in L.A. The service now extends as far as Northridge, Pasadena, and Long Beach. Starting Dec. 27, Lyft will be available 24-hours-a-day. Lyft also has a new base rate of $1.55 per mile which will increase during high-demand hours. “Prime Time” rates are expected on New Year’s Eve. Download Lyft
Uber also has a rate that adjusts according to demand. “Surge Pricing” is expected on New Year’s Eve. The service is available 24-hours-a-day in most parts of the greater Los Angeles area. Sign up for Uber
Sidecar is another ride-share service which works on a similar model as Uber and Lyft. Download Sidecar
Taxis
Los Angeles has several taxi companies serving most of the metropolitan area. The holidays are a busy time for taxi companies. Don't head out without noting the information of a few different companies to call. See a map of taxi services in L.A.
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Calculate your taxi fare with World Taxi Meter or Taxi Fare Finder.
A few of LA's cab companies:
- Bell Cab 888-481-2345
- Beverly Hills Cab 800-398-5221
- City Cab 888-248-9222
- Independent Taxi Company 800-521-8294
- L.A. Checker Cab Company 800-300-5007
- United Checker Cab Company 877-201-8294
- United Independent Taxi 800-822-8294
- Yellow Cab 877-733-3305
Other information
- Keep an eye on L.A.'s scheduled DUI checkpoints by following ChekpointsDUI on Twitter.
- Watch out for freeway traffic around L.A. on SigAlert Traffic, or download the SigAlert app.
- AAA members can take advantage of the AAA Safe Ride Program for New Year's Eve.
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