Los Angeles Department of Transportation

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Los Angeles Department of Transportation
Logo ladot 159.png
HeadquartersCaltrans District 7 Headquarters
LocaleLos Angeles, California, United States
Service typeBus Services, Paratransit, Transportation Planning, Signal Construction, Traffic Operations
Routes36 DASH, 16 Commuter Express, 2 shuttles
WebsiteOfficial website
Birds-eye view of the Caltrans District 7 Headquarters building, where the department is housed.

The Los Angeles Department of Transportation, commonly referred to as LADOT, is a municipal agency that oversees transportation planning, design, construction, maintenance and operations within the city of Los Angeles. LADOT was created by city ordinance, and is run by a general manager appointed by the Mayor of Los Angeles, under the oversight of a citizens' commission also appointed by the mayor. LADOT is best known for providing public transportation to the City of Los Angeles. It currently operates the second-largest fleet in Los Angeles County next to Metro. It consist of over 300 vehicles, serving nearly 30 million passengers a year and operating over 800,000 hours.

LADOT also develops the traffic signal timing and transportation planning for the city. Actual road maintenance and construction is provided by the . LADOT performs many transportation related duties, with six main operating groups: Parking Enforcement & Traffic Control, Operations, Project Delivery, Parking Management & Regulations, Transit Services, and Administration.[1]

Current LADOT transit services[]

DASH[]

Dash logo2.gif

The DASH (Downtown Area Short Hop) is a transit bus that currently operates 30 routes covering Downtown Los Angeles and many outlying communities within the city. Its primary function is to provide localized service, and is a feeder into the countywide MTA Metro service.

A typical DASH bus.

DASH Community Routes include:

  • Beachwood Canyon (connects with the Metro B Line) (LADOT community connection #208)
  • Boyle Heights/East LA (EX LACMTA #255, connects with Metro L Line)
  • Chesterfield Square (connects with the Metro A Line)
  • Crenshaw (connects with Metro E Line and soon K Line)
  • Downtown A: Little Tokyo/City West (connects with Metro B Line, Metro D Line, Metro L Line, Metro A Line and Metro E Line)
  • Downtown B: Chinatown/Financial District (connects with the Metro B Line, Metro L Line, Metro A Line, Metrolink Lines: Ventura County, Antelope Valley, San Bernardino, 91, Riverside, and Orange County, and Amtrak lines: Pacific Surfliner, Coast Starlight, Sunset Limited, Southwest Chief, and Texas Eagle
  • Downtown D: Union Station/South Park (connects with the Metro B Line, Metro L Line, Metro A Line, Metro E Line, Metrolink Lines: Ventura County, Antelope Valley, San Bernardino, 91, Riverside, and Orange County, and Amtrak lines: Pacific Surfliner, Coast Starlight, Sunset Limited, Southwest Chief, and Texas Eagle
  • Downtown E: City West/Financial District (connects with the Metro B Line, Metro A Line, Metro D Line, and Metro E Line)
  • Downtown F: Financial District Exposition Park, L.A. Coliseum/LAFC Stadium/USC (connects with the Metro B Line Metro A Line, Metro D Line and Metro E Line)
  • El Sereno/City Terrace
  • Fairfax
  • Highland Park/Eagle Rock (connects with Metro L Line)
  • Hollywood (connects with the Metro B Line)
  • Hollywood/Wilshire (Larchmont Shuttle) (connects with the Metro B Line, Metro D Line)
  • King-East (connects with Metro A Line and Metro E Line)
  • Leimert Park/Slauson
  • Lincoln Heights /Chinatown (connects with the Metro L Line)
  • Los Feliz (weekdays)/Weekend Observatory Shuttle (connects with the Metro B Line) (LADOT community connection #203)
  • Midtown (connects with the Metro E Line)
  • Northridge (connects with Metrolink Line: Ventura County)
  • Observatory (connects with the Metro B Line)
  • Panorama City/Van Nuys (connects with the Metro G Line, Metrolink Line: Ventura County)
  • Pico Union/Echo Park (connects with the Metro B Line, Metro D Line and Metro A Line)
  • San Pedro (LADOT community connection #147)
  • Southeast/Pueblo Del Rio (connects with the Metro A Line)
  • Sylmar (Ex-LACMTA Line 634, connects with Metrolink Antelope Valley Line)
  • Van Nuys/Studio City (connects with the Metro G Line)
  • Vermont/Main
  • Watts (connects with the Metro A Line, Metro C Line)
  • Wilmington
  • Wilshire Center/Koreatown (connects with the Metro B Line, Metro DLine )

Most DASH buses are El Dorado EZ-Rider vehicles powered by propane, although CNG Gillig BRTs have since been introduced. The first two digits of DASH bus numbers denote which year the bus came into service. For instance, 98001 denotes 1998 and 06301 denotes 2006. All DASH buses are 30 feet (9.1 m) long, making it easier to navigate in dense neighborhoods where there are narrower streets and tighter turns.

Commuter Express[]

Commuter Express is an express bus service, consisting of 15 routes, all but one running during rush hours only. Service started in 1985.[2] Routes 419, 423, 431, 437, 438, and 448 are former Metro lines that were cancelled;[3] Route 142 was previously operated by Long Beach Transit.[4] Fares are based on a flat rate for travel on streets plus an extra charge based on the distance traveled on freeways.

Unless otherwise noted, all services operates towards Downtown LA during the morning rush and from Downtown LA during the afternoon rush. For the purposes of this chart, closed-door means that customers are not allowed to use buses for local trips and open-door means that customers are allowed to use buses for local trips.

Route Terminals via Notes
142
[5]
San Pedro
LA Waterfront
Long Beach Transit Gallery 7th Street, Ocean Boulevard
  • Daily service
  • Open-door along the entire route
409
[6]
Sylmar
Foothill Boulevard and Glenoaks Boulevard
Downtown LA
Hill Street and 12th Street
San Fernando Valley: Foothill Boulevard
Downtown LA: Flower & Figueroa Streets, 7th Street
  • Closed-door along the entire route, except at Glendale Park & Ride
419
[7]
Chatsworth Station Downtown LA
University of Southern California
San Fernando Valley: Devonshire Street
Downtown LA: Hill Street, Figueroa Street
  • Closed-door along the entire route, except at Devonshire St & Balboa Blvd
422
[8]
Downtown LA
University of Southern California
Thousand Oaks
The Oaks Shopping Center
Downtown LA: Figueroa & Flower Streets

Ventura County: Thousand Oaks Boulevard, Agora Road

  • Service operates towards Thousand Oaks in the AM rush and towards Downtown LA in the PM rush
  • Closed-door within Downtown LA, open-door elsewhere
423
[9]
Thousand Oaks
Thousand Oaks Transit Center
Downtown LA
University of Southern California
Ventura County: Agora Road, Ventura Boulevard
Downtown LA: Figueroa & Flower Streets
  • Closed-door along the entire route, except at Ventura Blvd & Topanga Canyon Blvd and Encino Park & Ride
431
[10]
Westwood
Sepulveda Boulevard and Ohio Avenue
Downtown LA
Union Station
Westside: Wilshire Boulevard, Beverly Glen Boulevard
Downtown LA: Venice Boulevard, Figueroa & Flower Streets, Grand & Olive Streets
  • Closed-door along the entire route
437
[11]
Venice
Pacific Avenue and Washington Boulevard

Playa Vista Lincoln Boulevard and Manchester Avenue

Downtown LA
Temple Street and Vignes Street
Westside: Culver Boulevard, Jefferson Boulevard
Downtown LA: Figueroa & Flower Streets, Grand & Olive Streets
  • Closed-door along the entire route
438
[12]
Redondo Beach
Palos Verdes Boulevard and Via Valencia

&
Marine Park & Ride

Downtown LA
Union Station
Beach Cities: Highland Avenue, Hermosa Avenue
Downtown LA Figueroa & Flower Streets
  • Closed-door along the entire route, except at 37th St Transitway Station
439
[13]
Downtown LA
Union Station
El Segundo
El Segundo Boulevard & Nash Street
Downtown LA: Figueroa & Flower Streets
El Segundo: Imperial Highway, Douglas Street
  • Closed-door within El Segundo, open-door elsewhere
  • A reversal of the CE 438, where it heads to El Segundo during the A.M. rush hour & Downtown Los Angeles during the P.M. rush hour
448
[14]
Rancho Palos Verdes
Crest Road and Crenshaw Boulevard
Downtown LA
Temple Street and Los Angeles Street
South Bay: Hawthorne Boulevard, Pacific Coast Highway
Downtown LA: Figueroa & Flower Streets
  • Closed-door along the entire route, except at Harbor/Century Transitway Station and 37th St Transitway Station
534
[15]
Downtown LA
Union Station
Westwood
Wilshire Boulevard and Veteran Avenue
Downtown LA: Figueroa & Flower Streets, 1st Street
Westside: Wilshire Boulevard, Olympic Boulevard
  • Operates towards Westwood in the AM rush and towards Downtown in the PM rush
  • Closed-door along the entire route
549
[16]
Encino
Encino Park and Ride
Pasadena
Lake L Line station
Burbank Boulevard, Ventura Freeway
  • Service is provided in both directions during peak hours.
  • This is a service with only designated pick up points between cities operating as a limited stop service.
  • Open-door along the entire route
573
[17]
Mission Hills
Chatsworth Street and Orion Street
Century City
Constellation Boulevard and Century Park West
San Fernando Valley: Balboa Boulevard
Westwood: Gayley Avenue, Wilshire Boulevard
  • Service is provided in both directions during peak hours.
  • Closed-door along the entire route, except at Balboa Blvd & Devonshire St and Encino Park & Ride
574
[18]
Sylmar Metrolink station El Segundo
Space Park Drive and Aviation Boulevard
San Fernando Valley: Balboa Boulevard, Chatsworth Street
South Bay: Sepulveda Boulevard, Aviation Boulevard
  • Service operates towards the South Bay in the AM rush and towards Sylmar in the PM rush
  • Closed-door along the entire route, except at Balboa Blvd & Devonshire St, Encino Park & Ride, and Sepulveda Blvd & Century Blvd (LAX)
Union Station/Bunker Hill Shuttle
[19]
Downtown LA
Union Station
Bunker Hill
Hope Street and 4th Street
Grand Avenue
  • Operates towards Bunker Hill in the AM rush and towards Union Station in the PM rush
  • Open-door along the entire route

Commuter Express services are provided by a variety of suburban vehicles, including Gillig Phantoms, , and Stewart & Stevenson . Also part of the fleet are a small number of CNG powered Orion V coaches.

CityRide[]

Cityridelogo.png

CityRide is a program for individuals in the city of Los Angeles, aged 65 or older and for qualified disabled persons.

In popular culture[]

The transit agency makes a cameo appearance in the Animaniacs episode "Hooray for North Hollywood Part 2", where Dot Warner spots an LADOT bus, thinking it was named in her honor.[20] She then sings gleefully about it, but Yakko corrects his sister, telling her what LADOT actually means. Realizing her mistake, Dot nevertheless finishes her song on a positive note.

References[]

  1. ^ "Operating Groups : Department of Transportation : City of Los Angeles". LADOT. 29 September 2013. Archived from the original on 2013-09-29. Retrieved 2017-07-22.
  2. ^ LADOT Short Range Transit Plan FY 2011-12, Retrieved 2014-09-20
  3. ^ 1985 RTD Bus Map, Retrieved 2014-09-20
  4. ^ 1989 RTD Bus System Map, Retrieved 2014-09-20
  5. ^ Commuter Express 142
  6. ^ Commuter Express409
  7. ^ Commuter Express 419
  8. ^ Commuter Express 422
  9. ^ Commuter Express 423
  10. ^ Commuter Express 431
  11. ^ Commuter Express 437
  12. ^ Commuter Express 438
  13. ^ Commuter Express 439
  14. ^ Commuter Express 448
  15. ^ Commuter Express 534
  16. ^ Commuter Express 549
  17. ^ Commuter Express 573
  18. ^ Commuter Express 574
  19. ^ Union station/bunker Hill Shuttle
  20. ^ "96- Discussing Animaniacs Episode 96 "Hooray for North Hollywood" Part Two". Listen Notes. Retrieved 2019-08-14.

External links[]

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