One year ago, Congress defunded public media. Now that we're 100% community funded, please become a sustaining member or increase your existing membership today.
This is an archival story that predates current editorial management.
This archival content was written, edited, and published prior to LAist's acquisition by its current owner, Southern California Public Radio ("SCPR"). Content, such as language choice and subject matter, in archival articles therefore may not align with SCPR's current editorial standards. To learn more about those standards and why we make this distinction, please click here.
Union Station's Bus Hub To Close For Three Months Of Repairs
In majorly inconvenient news, Union Station's giant bus plaza will be closing for three months for some much needed repairs starting Monday. Located on the east side of Union Station, Patsaouras Transit Plaza serves as a hub for a long list of Metro and municipal buses, along with the LAX Flyaway and a number of private shuttles, all of which will be rerouted until early October. KPCC reports that the bus plaza plays host to a whopping thousand buses a day.
Metro spokesperson Paul Gonzales tells KPCC that the "the accumulated wear and tear of millions of bus trips on the bus plaza has just caused it to wear out [over the past twenty years]," and that ruts caused by the heavily traffic could eventually compromise the entire structure. Crews will resurface the plaza during the closure, replace the waterproofing and draining system and install pedestrian safety fencing, according to Metro.
These repairs are actually the second phase of renovations on Patsaouras. The recently completed first phase created a new passenger pick-up and drop-off area for private vehicles separate from the bus plaza, with direct access to Union Station. Metro reports that having a shared space for cars and transit had previously caused delays for all parties, so this will hopefully provide a smoother experience for everyone.
The buses that currently stop at Union Station will be rerouted to temporary stops on the corner of Cesar Chavez/Vignes or Cesar Chavez/Alameda. Flyaway shuttles will now pick-up and drop-off on the west side of Union Station (right by the Mozaic apartments, if that helps you picture it). For a full list of the relocations, check out this annotated map.
One year ago, Congress voted to defund public media, eliminating a critical $1.7 million from our budget every year going forward. But they couldn’t silence us, and we’re not going anywhere. LAist is now 100% community funded and that means we’re taking our future into our own hands and turning to you to keep local reporting strong.
You come to LAist because you want independent reporting and trustworthy local information. Our nonprofit newsroom doesn’t answer to shareholders looking to turn a profit. Instead, we answer to you and our communities. We are free to follow facts wherever they lead and to hold power to account without fear or favor. Our only loyalty is to our readers and listeners and our mission: to inform, engage, and strengthen Southern California’s communities.
If this story helped you, please become a monthly member today to help sustain this mission. It just takes 1 minute to donate below.
You come to LAist because you want independent reporting and trustworthy local information. Our nonprofit newsroom doesn’t answer to shareholders looking to turn a profit. Instead, we answer to you and our communities. We are free to follow facts wherever they lead and to hold power to account without fear or favor. Our only loyalty is to our readers and listeners and our mission: to inform, engage, and strengthen Southern California’s communities.
If this story helped you, please become a monthly member today to help sustain this mission. It just takes 1 minute to donate below.
Senior Vice President News, Editor in Chief
