Local News

Metro K Line, connecting Crenshaw to LAX, opens to the public on Oct. 7

By Darleene Powells

Updated on: September 22, 2022 / 12:27 PM PDT / KCAL News

CBS News Los Angeles: The Rundown (Sept. 22 AM Edition)

The Metro K Line, formerly known as the Crenshaw/LAX line, is finally finished and will open to the public on Oct. 7, Metro officials announced Thursday.

LOS ANGELES, CA -AUGUST 22, 2022:A metro train, traveling on the new K Line, makes its way along Crenshaw Blvd. in Los Angeles, during a test run. Metros K Line (Crenshaw/LAX Transit Project) will extend light rail from the existing Metro E Line (Expo) at Crenshaw and Exposition Boulevards to the Metro C Line. While the rail line includes 8 new stations, only 7 will be open in the fall of 2022. The train will travel 8.5 miles and will serve the cities of Los Angeles, Inglewood, and El Segundo and portions of unincorporated Los Angeles County. (Mel Melcon / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images) Mel Melcon

The K Line starts at the E Line at the Expo/Crenshaw Station and will eventually merge with the C Line (Green) at Aviation/LAX Station. The line connecting the Crenshaw Corridor, Inglewood, and El Segundo was hailed as "a new era of equitable transportation investment" giving residents access to fast, reliable, and low-cost rail transit that has not been seen since the Los Angeles Railway's Yellow Cars shut down in the 1950s.

"The K Line will have a solid presence in the heart of the Crenshaw Corridor and Inglewood; it represents a new gateway to jobs, education and healthcare," Jacquelyn Dupont-Walker, Metro Board First Vice Chair, said in a statement. "The K Line will provide riders with easy access to high density housing, popular restaurants, shopping and entertainment venues ranging from Leimert Park Village to SoFi Stadium."

When the K Line opens, Metro riders will be able to visit cultural events and venues in the historic Crenshaw Corridor, public parks, and major venues in Inglewood, such as SoFi Stadium, the Kia Forum, and soon, the Intuit Dome, the future home of the Los Angeles Clippers. Riders will also have easier access to medical facilities and job and commerce centers throughout Los Angeles.

Metro says many of the key destinations along the K Line are within walking distance of the stations. The K Line's Expo/Crenshaw, Martin Luther King Jr., Leimert Park, Hyde Park, Fairview Heights, Downtown Inglewood, and Westchester/Veterans stations will open first. The K Line's Aviation/Century station is scheduled to open in late 2023, providing Metro access to LAX. The LAX/Metro Transit Center Station along the new K Line tracks is projected to open in late 2024, giving riders easy transfers between Metro and the LAX Automated People Mover that's currently under construction.

When the K Line opens to the public shortly after noon on Oct. 7, passengers can ride free on the entire Metro bus and rail system, including Metro Bike Share, for its opening weekend.