Exclusive | Meet the transit baddies on a mission to make LA Metro cool again

Forget Erewhon, LA’s influencer set has found a new hotspot: the bus stop. With gas prices spiking and parking a never-ending headache, hip Angelenos are ditching their cars for the city’s beleaguered Metro transit system, and encouraging others to do the same. “I almost feel like I’m rediscovering LA,” Julianna, who posts under the handle “Hot Girl Transit” on social media, says of her recent foray into the city’s public transit system.  The biggest news, opinion and culture shaping California right now.Please provide a valid email.

By clicking above you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.Never miss a story While Metro does set aside funds for influencer marketing, both the influencers quoted in this story confirmed they are not on the Metro’s payroll.The influencer has lived in Los Angeles for 18 years, but she took the city’s public transit system for the time ever in June after her car’s engine died.

“It’s incredible where the train and the bus can take you.It really can take you all over town.

I just started discovering new communities, new art spaces, third spaces, new places to eat, and it’s been really awesome,” says Julianna.She excitedly shared her journey taking public transit on TikTok, where her videos now net thousands of views and hundreds of comments.“I filmed one video, and it was me going to K-Town, and it kind of did well, and I got some really nice comments, and people were giving me recommendations, like ‘Oh, next time try this place or try this line.'”Now, she takes the bus and train from her home in West Hollywood to places all over the city.

After surviving in LA for four months without a car, she says there’s no turning back.“Could I get another car right now? Sure, but I would be stressed out,” says Julianna.

“I don’t want to deal with the gas prices.I don’t want to deal with the lease,” she continued.

“There’s n...