What forms of public transportation are there in the city?
Lakewood is served by a variety of transit options.
The Bus
Let's start with the basics - riding the bus. Today's modern fleets of local and intercity buses are spacious, comfortable, and air conditioned and they run on time.
Lakewood residents have access to three bus systems with local connections: the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA), Long Beach Transit (LBT) and the Orange County Transit District (OCTD).
MTA also operates the Blue Line and Green Line light rail systems. Long Beach and MTA buses make connections to both systems. At the transit mall off Pine Avenue in downtown Long Beach, riders can transfer to MTA buses and the Blue Line, Torrance Transit buses to southbay locations, and the free Runabouts that serve tourist destinations in Long Beach.
LBT operates sixteen bus routes in Lakewood. All connect with service to downtown Long Beach; most have connections to MTA service to neighboring cities. Ten of these routes serve Lakewood Center Mall.
LBT lines 191, 192, 193, and 194 make connections to the Del Amo Station of the Blue Line for rail service to downtown Los Angeles and Long Beach.
MTA buses 266 and 256 make connections at Lakewood Center; line 462 crosses Centralia Street and Del Amo Boulevard in eastern Lakewood. Bellflower, Cerritos, and Downey operate city bus services that link to regional LBT and MTA lines. The numbers to call for information about city bus lines are on page four of this section.
Using the bus
Before you hop aboard a bus:
- Check the latest bus schedule. You can get a copy of the Long Beach bus schedule from a Lakewood library or by calling Long Beach Transit at 562-591-8753. MTA schedules for the Lakewood area are also available at Lakewood libraries or by calling 213-626-4455.
- Plan ahead. Before you take the bus, check the route map in the schedule, and plan your stops and transfers, or call the customer service number of the bus services you'll be riding. They'll tell you where to board the bus, the cost, whether you need a transfer, and other basic information. If you call, be ready to give the exact address of both your start and your destination points, as well as the times of day you want to leave and arrive.
- Learn the ropes. When you're on board, drivers will call out the main cross streets, most of which are bus stops. You can ask the driver to flag your particular stop or get advice from another passenger. Remember to signal a block ahead of your stop by touching the stop request strip near your seat or pulling the stop request wire over the window.
- Carry the exact fare. Not having the right combination of bills and coins required for each stop or transfer in your round trip can be frustrating. Monthly prepaid bus passes simplify life and yield a nice savings for frequent riders. The basic fare for LBT buses is 90 cents. Senior and disabled passenger fares are just 45 cents. Local transfers to another LBT bus are 10 cents; one-way transfers to other transit systems are 35 cents. The MTA base fare is currently $1.35. Seniors pay 45 cents. Transfers are 25 cents.
Rail options
Not so long ago, Angelenos could ride The Big Red Cars across the sprawling Los Angeles basin from the desert to the sea. With the coming of freeways, postwar Southern Californians abandoned trolley cars for their own family cars. That was then.
Today, the commuter railway system is back, sporting red, blue, and green trains in a system that is still expanding. Some 400 miles of rail lines are planned for Los Angeles County by 2020. Already more than 63,000 commuters each day take Blue Line and Green Line trains to work.
With its connection to the Red Line subway to Union Station, the Blue Line links Los Angeles with Amtrak passenger rail service and the commuter trains of the MTA's Metrolink lines to the Inland Empire in Riverside and San Bernardino counties.
The Green Line takes commuters from Norwalk, down the center of the I-105 Freeway, to the LAX area and El Segundo.
The next time you need to commute to downtown L.A., the Blue Line will put you at 7th and Flower streets in less than 45 non-freeway minutes. Or, if you want to explore the art galleries, coffee houses, and attractions of Long Beach, the southern end of the Blue Line terminates in a loop that serves the Long Beach Convention Center, Long Beach Marina, and the Pine Avenue shopping district.
Green Line to LAX A direct rail connection to LAX won't be realized until well into the 21st century. In the meantime, MTA operates a shuttle at the Green Line's Aviation Station (about 15 minutes from the Lakewood Boulevard station). The shuttle - which is free - takes passengers and their baggage directly to all the airport terminals. The LAX shuttle operates on the same schedule as the Green Line trains.
Light rail access is close to Lakewood.
The elevated Blue Line station at Del Amo Boulevard and Santa Fe Street has a 302-space park-and-ride lot.
The Del Amo Station is also a transfer point for MTA and LBT buses.
The Wardlow station has direct access from the 405 Freeway at the Wardlow Road exit in Long Beach.
The Willow station is across from Long Beach Memorial Medical Center, near Long Beach Boulevard.
The Lakewood Station of the Green Line to LAX and El Segundo (at Lakewood Boulevard and the I-105 Freeway) has MTA bus connections from Lakewood.
The Blue Line and the Green Line connect at the Imperial Station. Convenient, daily Blue Line rail service operates from 5:00 a.m. until 11:00 p.m. During peak hours, trains pick up passengers every 10 minutes. For non-rush hours, weekends, and holidays, expect 20 minutes between trains.
Green Line trains run from 4:30 a.m. to 11:00 p.m. Computerized, self-service ticket machines - which accept tokens, coins, $1 and $5 bills for rail or combination rail and bus trip tickets - are located in each station. The base fare is $1.25 or 45 cents for seniors. Kids, under the age of five, ride free.
Comfortable. Air conditioning, smooth acceleration and breaking, and no SigAlerts make riding the Blue Line and Green Line a breeze.
Accessible. Each rail car has 76 seats. Seniors and the disabled will find that elevators, flat platforms, ramps, and train floors level with platforms make Blue Line and Green Line trains easy to board.
Secure. On-board intercoms and uniformed police on trains give riders a feeling of security. There are emergency phones at each station to directly contact transit police, who also patrol the stations and parking lots.
Bikes are an option
Bikes are in . . . just ask the increasing number of riders who enjoy bikes for commuting to work, for short trips around town, or for longer excursions on weekends. Because Lakewood's terrain is fairly flat, it's easier to pedal to shopping, parks or service destinations which are grouped at nearby major intersections.
East/west bike arteries along Del Amo Boulevard and South Street, as well as north/south roads like Woodruff Avenue, connect with city parks, pools, and commercial centers. Lakewood's 38 miles of bike lanes and paths make it easy to link to the Los Angeles and Orange County bike systems.
On two wheels America's first bikestation is at the end of the Metro Blue Line just off the Transit Mall on First Street in downtown Long Beach. It's a great resource for both recreational and commuter biking where bikers can get help with repairs, facilities for bike storage, and trip planning information. The bikestation also offers valet bike parking, a coffee bar and patio, bike rentals, restrooms, a bike shop, and changing areas.
Call: 562-436-BIKE. MTA offers free permits to take bikes on Blue Line, Green Line, and Red Line trains to stretch jaunts to greater distances.
For permit information, call 213-922-7000. For a free guide to biking in Los Angeles County, call 213-244-6539.
Carpools and vanpools
It only takes two to make a carpool (three for a vanpool on some freeways). Pooling lets a vehicle use the freeway diamond lanes. And, diamond lanes are a commuter's best friend! For many L.A. commuters, zipping along in the diamond lane past a three-mile-long traffic clog is a peak experience. Evidently, some 3,000 Lakewood commuters (almost 10% of all city commuters), who presently car and vanpool to work agree. It's not difficult to go with the flow and join a car or vanpool.
Just call 1-800-COMMUTE and Commuter Transportation Services will mail you a free RideGuide with a customized list of neighbors who want to carpool to your work site.
Special transit
Lakewood subsidizes the use of Long Beach Transit's Dial-A-Lift service for disabled adult Lakewood residents. Dial-A-Lift vans are equipped with hydraulic wheelchair lifts, wheelchair tiedowns, and safety belts. You must be at least 18 years old and have a physician's certification of medical need to be eligible to use Dial-A-Lift. Once qualified, you need only call the Dial-A-Lift dispatch office to arrange in advance for curb-to-curb transportation. Each one-way trip costs $1.50. Dial-A-Lift takes riders to any destination in the program's service area which covers all of Lakewood, Long Beach, and Signal Hill.
For a Dial-A-Lift application, call 562-591-8735 between 8:00 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. You and your physician must fill out the form.
DASH in Lakewood
Lakewood's DASH transit service for seniors and disabled adults helps them get around town. DASH takes passengers to shopping, recreation, and medical centers in Lakewood and a limited number of destinations outside the city.
Each of the air conditioned mini-vans holds six ambulatory riders or three wheelchair passengers and three other riders. The service is free for Lakewood residents over age sixty or disabled residents age 18 or older. To utilize DASH, riders must first pre-register and make a reservation.
For DASH information, call 562-920-9701.
Transit Contact Information
Bikestation at the Long Beach transit mall: 562-436-BIKE
Caltrans (recorded freeway conditions) 800-427-7623
Commuter Action Network (car and van pools, alternative commuting) 800-COMMUTE
Lakewood DASH (senior and disabled van service) 562-920-9701
Long Beach Transit (bus service) 562-591-8753
Long Beach Dial-A-Lift (van service) 562-591-8753
Los Angeles County bikeways 213-244-6539
MTA (bus, light rail, subway services) 800-COMMUTE
MetroLink (intercity rail service) 562-808-LINK
Orange County Transit District (bus service) 800-636-RIDE
City lines
Bellflower Bus 562-865-7433
Cerritos COW (van service) 562-928-4269
Downey Link (van service) 562-529-5465
Transit on the Web (real-time freeway conditions)
MTA (bus schedules)
RideGuide (personalized commuter guides by email or fax)
