Metro Rail stations: Not so great for local neighborhoods

Publication Date
Author
Debbie L. Sklar
Source
My News LA

Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority rail stations received an overall grade of C in a statewide study released of how transit rail stations encourage ridership and impact the quality of life in surrounding neighborhoods.

The report by the UC Berkeley School of Law’s Center for Law, Energy and the Environment studied the stations and neighborhoods within a half-mile radius of 489 stops in the six rail transit systems in California.

As the C grade suggests, Metro Rail stations finished in the middle of the pack of the transit systems studied. The best overall grade went to the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency, which received a B. Bay Area Rapid Transit, or BART, received a B-minus. Sacramento Regional Transit received a C, while the San Diego Metropolitan Transit System and Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority both received a C-minus.

According to the study, the best-performing local Metro station is the Westlake/MacArthur Park station that serves the Red and Purple subway lines. The Red Line’s Hollywood/Western station and the Wilshire/Vermont station, which serves the Red and Purple lines, also received high marks.

The Wardlow Station on the Metro Blue Line was deemed the worst in the Metro system, scoring poorly in nearly all areas. The report’s authors noted that the area around the station is “auto-dominated,” with little pedestrian activity and no concentrations of housing or jobs nearby.

Amtrak and Metrolink were not included in the study.

According to the report’s authors, light rail lines are so expensive that attention needs to be paid to surrounding areas, which will determine how effective the systems will be. Studies show that the most effective rail lines serve job centers, retail and service areas and residential neighborhoods.

The letter grades were based on 11 factors, among them transit use by residents and workers, the number of jobs or homes near a station, walkability, crime, change in real estate values between 2009-13, transit affordability and greenhouse gas emissions.