1976: The Southern California Rapid Transit District launches the Santa Monica Freeway Diamond Lane Express project.
The project, administered by the California Department of Transportation and funded by a grant from the federal government, reserves the inside, or “fast,” lane for use of high-occupancy vehicles including buses, carpools and vans.
As part of the project, three SCRTD park/ride lots are established in Santa Monica, Fox Hills, and Century City.
More information can be found in the March 22, 1976 issue of Headway, the Southern California Rapid Transit District employee news magazine.
2006: FlyAway Airport Shuttle service between Los Angeles’ Union Station and Los Angeles International Airport is launched.
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Service begins with buses running both ways every 30 minutes on the hour and half-hour between 5:00 a.m. and 1:00 a.m. on weekdays and weekends.
The buses will make the trip in 45 minutes or less by using high-occupancy vehicle lanes on the 110 and 105 freeways.
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For the first two weeks of service, passengers presenting tickets or passes from public transit operators, including taxi receipts, receive a free FlyAway roundtrip ticket.
At the ceremonies, Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa explains that “The FlyAway is a great concept. Because, while it gets people out of their cars, it also cuts air pollution and provides LAX passengers with a high-quality, dependable and low-cost ground transportation service.”
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Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority CEO Roger Snoble states that “the introduction of FlyAway Airport shuttle service at Union Station, L.A.’s major transportation hub, provides an invaluable new service option for Metro’s transit customers. The multitude of bus and rail connections at Union Station make the convenience of FlyAway service available to tens of thousands of daily transit riders.”
More information can be found in the March 15, 2006 issue of the MyMetro employee news digest.
2009: Metro’s reusable TAP fare cards officially replace paper day passes for daily transit use on Metro buses and rail.
More information can be found in the February 17, 2009 Metro Press Release and the March 10, 2009 MyMetro employee news digest.
