Metro transit has been making renovation and system adjustments and repairs to its Crenshaw/LAX (K-line) transit project for a while now. Recently representatives from the transit line held a zoom conference to explain and inform the community about the upgrades.
Anet Cortez, community relations manager for Crenshaw and the LAX transit system, gave a brief overview of the project and explained that contractor Walsh Shea Corridor Constructors have completed the stations.
The new light rail is 8.5 miles long and will serve the cities of LA, El Segundo, and Inglewood. The new line will extend from the Expo line down Crenshaw Boulevard to the city of Inglewood, and connect to the C-line at the Aviation station.
“The opening date for this line is fall 2022 if our contractor meets their current schedule,” Cortez said. “Earlier this month, K-line achieved substantial completion. This mean’s the contractor has finished most of the alignment, and the metro can begin its pre-revenue train testing activities. This includes training operators and maintenance staff to start riding between the C-line to 48th street and Crenshaw Blvd.”
The K-line will begin in operational segments that will serve seven stations, between the Expo Crenshaw station and the Westchester veteran station. A bus bridge or bus service will link the K-line at Westchester veteran station to C-line at Aviation to LAX station. The new Aviation Century station will not be serviced by train or bus until the full line operators begin in 2024.
“Heading northward up to the underground station at the Leimert Park, this area is still under construction but will be done soon,” explained Metro’s Ron Dickerson. “There are still some remaining activities left at the Leimert Park, Martin Luther King Jr. station, and Expo Crenshaw station. These stations are connected by an underground tunnel starting from the Leimert Park area to the Expo Crenshaw Station. The work crew has completed a great deal of work and is testing electrical equipment and power delivery systems.”
Raymond Acevedo, a representative of Metro’s photo enforcement program, explained that the photo enforcement at-grade train crossings along Crenshaw Boulevard between 59th Street and 48th Street is designed to help stop motorists from violating the left-hand turn traffic signal.
“This program aims to improve vehicular and pedestrian safety and prevent any potential train or bodily accidents,” he said. “With the help of engineering and enforcement, the metro has reduced left turn accidents by 60 percent. This program has been implemented on the A-line, G-line, E-line. and L-line and will be on all lines as time goes on.”
