Metro K Line, connecting Crenshaw District to Westchester, opens to the public today

The Metro K Line opens today, connecting the Crenshaw District to Westchester, giving South Los Angeles the first extensive rail service since the 1950s.

The K Line opens at noon to passengers. Fare on the K Line, as well as across the Metro system, is free through Sunday to celebrate the new line.

The northern-most point of the line is the Expo/Crenshaw station at the intersection of Crenshaw and Exposition boulevards. The line heads south along Crenshaw Boulevard, with stations at Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard, in Leimert Park and Hyde Park. The southern half of the line uses the Harbor Subdivision right-of-way, with stations in Fairview Heights and downtown Inglewood, ending at the Westchester/Veterans Station, near La Cienega Boulevard and Florence Avenue.

Anthony Smith, who works at a daycare center nearby, brought the children along for the momentous occasion. 

"It definitely represents the community and what's going on - the vibe," he said. "It gives the opportunity to get the kids in different areas of the city. To the museum, to the beach, to the airport, and give them different exposure as time goes on."

Smith, along with many of the other travelers heading through the station on Friday were taking in the artwork covering the walls, contributed by local artists. 

"It makes us feel home again, our culture welcomed," said Dr. Shawne Reddic, a resident in the area. "Because these are the arts that we continue to have around our own environments."

The line fulfills a dream that began when Tom Bradley was mayor from 1973-93 and wanted to provide world-class transportation in South Los Angeles, LA Mayor Eric Garcetti said.

"The K Line is integral to Los Angeles' transportation future," he said. "It will open doors of opportunity for riders across our region and help make Los Angeles a more accessible, sustainable, and inclusive city."

Garcetti, along with many other city officials, was joined by Grammy winning artist Jody Watley, who emceed the ribbon-cutting and smoothly sang, "I'm lookin' for a new line baby, the K Line."

Still, the opening was not met with full support, as groups of protestors stood outside of the Leimert Park station on Friday, holding some signs that read, "Safety of Black seniors + children does not matter to Metros' killer line thru Hyde Park."

"We have strongly mixed emotions about this," said Damien Goodman, who formed the Crenshaw Subway Coalition back in 2008, in hopes that the subway was constructed in a way that the community suggested. "We got more than we signed up for. We didn't ask to be displaced along the way. We didn't ask for real estate speculation both in the commercial and the residential market to go crazy."

Garcetti, however, said that nearly 500 units of low-income housing were recently opened on Metro-owned land, built by Black developers. 

"We had thousands of jobs that were part of this," he said. "Probably about 3,000 direct construction jobs and many more connected to it."

A station at Aviation and Century boulevards is set to open in fall 2023 and the LAX/Metro Transit Center Station in late 2024.

In honor of the grand opening, the K Line is free to ride until late Sunday evening.