Getting Around Los Angeles

While there is some public transportation available, the reality of getting around in Los Angeles is to travel by car, either personal or rental car. Rental cars are readily available throughout the city.

The sheer scale of LA - its detractors call it "nineteen suburbs in search of a city" - means that it really is difficult to get around without a car. Even though the traffic is often bumper-to-bumper, the freeways are the only way to cover long distances quickly. If you're driving yourself, avoid traveling at rush hours and phone ahead for directions whenever possible. Otherwise, try to relax on the fastest alternative, express buses .

Some people are surprised to find sidewalks in LA, let alone pedestrians, but within districts such as downtown, Santa Monica, Pasadena, Beverly Hills and central Hollywood, walking is the best way to explore.

Hampered by construction scandals and budget cuts, LA's long-anticipated Metrorail train system was envisioned to cover the whole of Los Angeles County, but is currently made up of only three lines, each distinguished by color. Centering on the Seventh Street Metro Center Station, the Red Line stretches from Union Station through Hollywood to North Hollywood in the San Fernando Valley. The Green Line goes from Hawthorne to Norwalk along the Century Freeway, and the most complete route, the Blue Line , connects downtown through Watts to the Pacific Transit Mall in Long Beach. Tickets cost $1.35, or 75¢ at night from 9pm-5am, and trains run every five to fifteen minutes (and more infrequently at night).

Car-less Angelenos are still most well served, however, with buses , most of which are run by the LA County Metropolitan Transit Authority (MTA or "Metro"; ), still sometimes abbreviated to its old name, the RTD.