Passengers 'Ride the D' and other Metro lines in droves as World Cup mania sweeps SoCal
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May was a great month for L.A.Metro.
And then came the World Cup, with droves of fans making their way to local stadiums and watch parties.After the leap in ridership last month, early numbers in June show that game-day ridership is high for Metro.As for the experience of taking public transit in L.A.
amid the crush, the reviews are mixed.“The transit is impossible,” said Ignacio Santa Cruz, who had traveled to Los Angeles from Asuncion, Paraguay, to see his country’s national team play the U.S.on Friday.“I mean, to go everywhere, you can expect at least 45 minutes of rides.”Gary Mackenzie, on the other hand, told The Times on Saturday during the FIFA Fan Festival at L.A.
Memorial Coliseum that “the roads here compared to back home are pretty crazy, man.” Mackenzie is from Scotland, where you drive on the left side of the road.He had thought about “hiring a car” but decided against it, and “I’m pretty glad I did....
I’m really using public transport, which has been fine.” California Against a backdrop of anxiety heading into the World Cup, fans from a kaleidoscope of cultural backgrounds have come together to act out the kind of world — and Los Angeles — they want to live in.Last month, the opening of the long-awaited D Line extension along Wilshire Boulevard combined with the L.A.County Fair, Kia Forum concerts and events at the L.A.
County Museum of Art to send ridership numbers shooting to the highest Metro had seen in six years.The D Line extension added about 8,000 to 10,000 additional riders per day.
Year-over-year, ridership was up 9.5%, Metro said.It’s not clear what the effect of the World Cup will be for the transportation agency, an official partner of FIFA.But the agency shared positive news.
Metro has seen an increase in total ridership for the World Cup and near certain watch parties for the U.S.-Paraguay match last week.At the ...