The western portion of the E line was originally named the Expo Line after Exposition Boulevard, along which it runs for most of its route,[2][3] the line was renamed the E Line in late 2019, while retaining the aqua-colored line and icons used to designate it on maps.[4] After the Regional Connector opened on June 16, 2023, the original E Line was joined with the Eastside portion of the L Line to create the current extended E Line, which is colored gold on maps.[5][6]
Service description
Hours and frequency
E Line trains run every day between approximately 4:30 a.m. and 11:30 p.m. Trains operate every 10 minutes during peak hours Monday through Friday, and every twelve minutes during the daytime on weekdays and all day on the weekends. Evening service (after 7 p.m.) is every 20 minutes.[7]
Time
4A
5A
6-7A
8A-1P
2-6P
7P
8-11P
Weekdays
20
10-12
10
12
10
12-20
20
Weekends/Holidays
20
12
12-20
12
14-20
20
Speed
Short segments of the E Line are certified for speeds of up to 55 miles per hour (89 km/h), but service speeds are much slower.[8] All trips on the 22-mile (35 km) mile line[1] are scheduled at 69 minutes end-to-end,[9] an average speed of 19 miles per hour (31 km/h).
The E Line has drawn criticism for its slow speed, especially on its western segment. To improve reliability, LADOT continues to work with Metro to adjust traffic signals on Exposition Boulevard in favor of trains, and proposals have been made to reconstruct the junction of the A Line and E Line to speed up trains.[10]
Station listing
The following is the complete list of stations, from west to east:
Tunnel boring machine used to dig two subway stations on the LA Metro Gold Line Eastside Extension, now part of the E Line.
The oldest portion of today's E Line is the Gold Line Eastside Extension, the southern branch of the former Gold Line, and the first phase of the Eastside Transit Corridor. The Eastside Extension runs from Union Station east to Atlantic station in East Los Angeles, in a new right-of-way following 1st St and 3rd St.[14]
Service on the line began on November 15, 2009, with Gold Line trains running through Union Station northeast to Pasadena. This through service was in effect through 2020, extending to Azusa in 2016. The Gold Line was renamed the L Line in 2020, and split in two to prepare for construction of the Regional Connector. The Eastside Extension portion of the L Line then operated as an independent line until 2023, when it was merged into the E Line.[14][6]
Air Line becomes the Expo Line
Steam train and horsecar in Santa Monica, 1894April 2012 opening weekend celebration of the initial operating segment of the Expo Line (now E Line).
Local advocacy groups including Friends 4 Expo Transit[18] supported the successful passage of Proposition C in 1990, which allowed the purchase of the entire right-of-way from Southern Pacific by Metro. In 2000, an urban art group called Heavy Trash placed signs advertising a fictional "Aqua Line." The signs, with the text "Coming Soon," showed a subway route extending along Wilshire to the ocean, with 10 station stops. Although the campaign was a hoax, it demonstrated newfound support and revealed the frustrations surrounding the lack of rail service connecting Santa Monica and the Westside with Downtown Los Angeles.[19][20] Metro released a Major Investment Study in 2000 which compared bus rapid transit and light rail transit options along what was now known as the "Mid-City/Exposition Corridor".[21]
Completed E line track passing through a residential area
An independent agency, the Exposition Metro Line Construction Authority, was given the authority to plan, design, and construct the line by state law in 2003. After construction of the second phase was completed, the line was handed over on January 15, 2016, to the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority.[22]
The line was built in two phases; the first phase comprised the 8.6-mile (13.8 km)[23][24] section between Downtown Los Angeles and Culver City. Construction began in early 2006, and most stations opened to the public on April 28, 2012.[24][25] The Culver City and Farmdale stations opened on June 20, 2012.[24][26]
Design and construction on the 6.6-mile (10.6 km)[23] portion between Culver City and Santa Monica started in September 2011. Testing along the phase 2 segment began on April 6, 2015,[27] and the segment opened on May 20, 2016.[28]
The Regional Connector Transit Project constructed a 1.9-mile (3.1 km) light rail tunnel through Downtown Los Angeles that connected the preexisting A and E Lines to the former L Line to allow for a seamless one-seat ride between the A and E Lines' previous terminus at 7th Street/Metro Center station to Union Station and the Eastside.[29]
Once the Regional Connector was completed, the alignment of the L (formerly Gold) Line was split into two parts at Little Tokyo/Arts District station, with the portion north of this station joined to the A Line, extending it to connect Long Beach with Azusa. The alignment east of Little Tokyo/Arts District station was assigned to the E Line, extending it to connect Santa Monica and East Los Angeles directly. At this time, the L Line ceased to exist as a separate line.
In 2019, Metro began using a renaming system where each rail and bus rapid transit line was rebranded with a letter name and an associated color to be used on maps and other wayfinding signs. As a result, the Expo Line became the E Line in 2019, and was recolored from aqua to gold upon completion of the Regional Connector Transit Project.[30][31][5]
The groundbreaking for the project took place on September 30, 2014, and it opened on June 16, 2023.[6]
Interior of a westbound train, first day of operation to Culver City
On Metro Rail's internal timetables, the E Line is called line 804. Prior to the opening of the Regional Connector, it was line 806.
Maintenance facilities
The E Line is operated out of two divisions, Metro’s term for train maintenance and storage facilities.[33]
Division 14 is located east of Stewart Street and north of Exposition Boulevard in Santa Monica between 26th Street/Bergamot and Expo/Bundy stations. The facility opened in 2016 with the completion of Phase 2.[34]
Division 21 is located at 1800 Baker Street between Elysian Park and the Los Angeles River in Chinatown between Lincoln/Cypress and Chinatown stations on the A Line. The facility opened in 2003 for the first phase of the Gold Line.
Rolling stock
The E Line operates trains with three light rail vehicles on weekdays and two on weekends, except for weekend days with major events in Expo Park.[33] The line currently uses three different types of light rail vehicles: the Siemens P2000, the Kinki Sharyo P3010 and the AnsaldoBreda P2550.
Metro says that it takes 47 light rail vehicles to provide the maximum service on the E Line with 3-car trains running at 6-minute headways.
The Expo Line Bikeway parallels the route of the light rail line between 17th Street/SMC and Expo/Vermont stations. The bikeway includes a mixture of bike lanes on Exposition Boulevard and off-street paths alongside the rail tracks.[35]
Incidents
On November 29, 2018, a pedestrian was struck and killed. The man had been attempting to cross the tracks.[36]
On January 15, 2019, a passenger fell from the platform between the cars and was dragged to death. They "have not yet been able to identify the individual as pieces of the victim's body are spread out."[37]
On May 2, 2019, a man climbed a nearby construction crane and jumped to his death at the Expo/Sepulveda station, landing on the tracks and temporarily halting transportation. Graphic footage of the incident was spread on social media websites, most notably Reddit.[38]
^Hymon, Steve (November 22, 2011). "Our first ride on the Expo Line". The Source. Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority. Archived from the original on September 19, 2015. Retrieved March 31, 2015.
^"Santa Monica Air Line". Electric Railway Historical Association of Southern California. Archived from the original on February 26, 2015. Retrieved October 27, 2006.
^Morgenthaler, Anne (March 14, 1988). "End of the Line: The last train out of SM blows a final whistle". Santa Monica Outlook.
^ ab"Expo Line project fact sheet"(PDF). Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority. 2012. Archived(PDF) from the original on July 8, 2013. Retrieved October 6, 2013.
^Hymon, Steve (March 21, 2012). "Expo Line Maintenance Facility". The Source. Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (Metro). Archived from the original on August 20, 2019. Retrieved August 19, 2019.
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