Los Angeles Metro is expecting to significantly grow its system over the next few years. Several stations are set to open this year, including three stations of the D Line Subway Expansion Project into the Westside as well as the long-awaited LAX station.
This growth comes as the agency is reexamining public safety on its system after a handful of high-profile violent crimes on its rail and bus lines last spring. The agency says it’s expanding its unarmed Transit Ambassador program while establishing its own in-house police department by 2029.
All this is happening while the LA Metro prepares to welcome 1 million new riders during the World Cup next year and the 2028 Summer Olympic and Paralympic Games.
KCRW talks to LA Metro CEO Stephanie Wiggins about the transit ambassador program, law enforcement on the system, and federal funding.
The following interview has been edited for length and clarity.
KCRW: Standing on the precipice of some really big additions to Metro’s transit system, tell us what’s running through your mind.
Stephanie Wiggins: We are in the middle of a rail revolution. Between now and 2028, we are expanding our rail network all over the county. Whether it's this transformational project of extending our subway from Koreatown, ultimately all the way to the UCLA and the VA hospital, or whether it's extending our light rail service from Azusa to Pomona in the San Gabriel Valley, it is amazing.
Read: Wilshire/La Brea: Tour a new LA Metro D Line station
We're adding more Bus Rapid Transit throughout the region. It's all to get us out of the soul-crushing traffic, and to get people back the most precious thing they have, which is time. Plus, every year we have more and more extreme heat days. We've got to see this rail revolution happen to really protect our climate.
Last spring, we saw a series of high-profile crimes on the systems’ buses and trains. Since then, what actions have you taken to address public safety?
The county and the cities have stepped up in providing regional support for the homeless, those suffering from mental illness, and those suffering from drug abuse on our system.
Read: More high-profile crimes on LA Metro: What will city leaders do?
We also, since that time, have started investing in improving the station experience for our older stations: better lighting, closing off areas where illicit activity was occurring. We're installing more modern fare gates, taller fare gates.
So, we have been really focusing on safety you can see – whether it's a more visible presence – as well as safety you can feel. And we know it's beginning to work.
Just got in our latest crime figures for all of last calendar year, they're 15% down in the most violent crimes. That continued in January of this year, where we had their lowest crime numbers since February of 2020. So we know we're headed in the right direction, and one of the best ways to know that is that we are on the 28th consecutive month of year-over-year ridership. So, we have the most ridership we've ever had since before the pandemic. Annually, I think we clocked in over 311 million boardings.
The last time that you and I spoke was actually at the debut of the Transit Ambassador program. You mentioned that there was a lot that you all have learned [from this program]. Can you talk to me about that?
Wow, the ambassadors have been transformative for both improving the customer experience for our riders, but also improving Metro internally, and how we think about putting people first.
Foundationally, the ambassadors have exceeded expectations. They've recorded over 200 lives that they've saved, whether it's through Narcan revival, helping deescalate someone who was trying to commit suicide, or CPR.
Read: Will ‘Ambassadors’ help LA metro riders feel safer?
What they've done for us internally is they were really filling a gap. [They] helped us understand internally that we had invested a lot in technology, alarms that would go off on our system. But those alarms are not effective without a human touch.
[The ambassadors] have actually quickened our response time on dealing with any maintenance, as well as faster response times. So, as we continue our rail revolution and we open new stations, they'll all open with ambassadors as being part of that welcome.
Lastly on public safety, how do you envision making an in-house police department a reality? What does that look like to you?
Well, the opportunity to stand up our own in-house, care-based public safety department is really part of the transformation, and it's really in alignment with the growth that we're seeing on our system.
The practical reality is when we have our law enforcement partners responding to a request on our system, they may get a more serious call, and they have to pivot to that.
What we want is [a department] that is care-based and really reflects the types of issues that we see. Predominantly, those are quality of life issues, drug use, and graffiti issues.
So, this transition will happen. We have it on a five-year trajectory, but we are close to being able to announce hiring our first chief of police, and that will be key to advancing and moving us forward.
Our public safety department won't just be sworn officers, but it will also have a strong complement of crisis intervention specialists, more ambassadors than we have today, and more homeless outreach than we have today. So it's going to be a really nice ecosystem.
Next year we have the World Cup, and we have the Olympics in 2028. LA Metro has requested $3.2 billion from the federal government for Olympic-related projects. What's the latest on that?
What we know is for ticketed spectators, for now, you will not be able to drive your car to a venue as a ticketed spectator. For security reasons, you have to take transit, walk, bicycle, or get dropped off.
Read: LA Mayor Karen Bass on ‘no-car’ 2028 Olympics, homelessness
Given the tickets that are projected to be sold and the amount of visitors that are anticipated for those games, we can expect a million additional people a day.
Well, we're carrying a million people a day today on the Metro system with 2,000+ buses. So essentially, to handle the level of demand for the Olympics and Paralympics, that’s like a whole other system.
The $3.2 billion ask is largely driven by the need to borrow about 2,700 buses from across the country. That means you're paying for their mechanics, the bus operators, their wages, and all the supporting infrastructure; as well as making some improvements on mobility hubs that doesn't degrade the experience of the million essential riders that we're carrying today. Our ask has been submitted, and we expect it to be favorably received.
These are America's games. We want to make sure they're spectacular for everyone. Fundamentally, I'm sure no one wants a degraded experience for the existing folks who ride our system. This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. The whole world will be watching. Given the $17 billion that we're already investing in our rail revolution, this is definitely something that the federal government will have a return on investment on. Yes, we will be ready. With the support of the federal government and our local and state partners, yes, we will be ready.