Serving Larchmont Village, Hancock Park, and the Greater Wilshire neighborhoods of Los Angeles since 2011.

Catching Up with Metro Purple Line & Crenshaw Line Northern Extensions

 

Since tunneling and major station construction for Section 1 of the Purple (D) Line Subway Extension have now moved west of our general Greater Wilshire area, we haven’t had as much big subway news to share as frequently as in the past.  But work in our area is definitely continuing, and thanks to a community update meeting held by Metro on November 2, we were able to find our more about what’s going on these days.  Also, during October, Metro provided a quick update on the status of the Crenshaw Line Northern Extension, which continues to make its way through a lengthy approval process…so we can also pass along some updated timeline information for that project, too.

 

Purple (D) Line Extension Section 1

 

 

Section 1 of the Purple (D) Line Extension runs from Western to La Cienega, and since projected completion dates were altered last year after Metro encountered an underground “anomaly” while tunneling near La Cienega, the project has remained on schedule to meet its adjusted opening date of late 2024.

 

 

At the Wilshire/La Brea station area (stretching from Orange Dr. to Detroit St.), Metro recently finished removing the concrete street decking panels it installed along this section of Wilshire Blvd. several years ago, and restoring the street surface.  And now it’s been working since July to restore the curbs, gutters and bus pads along the north side of the street, as well as adding streetlights, tree wells, and accessibility ramps. And, yes, as we’re sure you’ve noticed, the work does involve ongoing lane closures along Wilshire…though we are almost through the four-month work period.

 

 

Of course that’s just one side of the street, and next up will be the restoration of curbs, gutters and bus pads on the south side of Wilshire in the same area, so the accompanying lane closures will shift to the opposite side of the street for the next few months.

 

 

And here’s a peek at what the work looks like behind the current traffic barriers.

 

 

Meanwhile, about a mile west near the new Fairfax station, Metro is currently about six weeks into its 14-week decking removal sequence along Wilshire Blvd. between Ogden Dr. and San Diego Way.  During this period, Wilshire is fully closed from 9 p.m. every Friday night through 6 a.m. on Mondays, while the temporary decking panels are removed and the permanent street surface is restored.  This weekend will be #5 of the 13 planned closure periods, a little over half way through Phase 1 of the work, shown in yellow below.

 

 

During the Phase 1 closures, Wilshire Blvd. traffic in both directions is being diverted (via Fairfax and La Brea) mostly to 6th Street, as shown below.

 

 

And when Phase 1 is done, Phase 2 of the Fairfax-area decking removal will take place for two weekends at the Wilshire/Fairfax intersection.

 

 

During this phase, traffic will be diverted, depending on direction, to Sixth St., Olympic and/or San Vicente Blvd., as shown below.

 

 

And then the final phase of the Fairfax-area decking removal, for the four sections west of Fairfax, will follow…

 

 

…using the Olympic and San Vicente detours shown below.

 

 

For those who enjoy watching the big construction project, Metro also provided some information about what you’ll be able to see during the decking removal and street restoration, including the kinds of equipment working both above and below ground…

 

 

…and how the work will progress, from decking removal through street reconstruction.

 

 

 

The specific tasks will play out like this during the course of each weekend closure:

 

 

 

For more information, you can watch Metro’s full update presentation here.

Crenshaw Line Northern Extension

 

 

The last time we checked in with the Crenshaw Line Northern Extension Project, which will extend north from Obama Blvd. to the Metro Red (B) Line station at Hollywood and Highland (and maybe also extend to the Hollywood Bowl), was last spring, when Metro was collecting a last round of public input on three potential “alignments” (routes) before beginning work on a Draft Environmental Impact Report for the project.

In October, Metro sent out a brief update to let people know that it is now working on the Draft EIR, which it expects to complete in 2023, followed by a final EIR in 2024.

 

 

In the meantime, though, Metro says it will continue to collect feedback on the three routes under consideration:

 

  • One which would travel north up Crenshaw from Obama Blvd. to San Vicente, west along San Vicente to La Brea, and then north up La Brea to Hollywood (the shortest, cheapest, and most direct route…but the one with the fewest potential riders)
  • One that that would go west on San Vicente to Fairfax, and then north along Fairfax to Hollywood (a bit longer and more expensive, but with more potential riders)
  • And a third “hybrid” alternative that would travel north along Fairfax to Beverly Blvd., then west to West Hollywood, near the Cedars Sinai medical complex, before heading north and east along Santa Monica Blvd. to Hollywood (the longest and most expensive route, but the one with by far the highest ridership potential).  All three routes would run entirely underground.

 

 

In addition, Metro is also now seeking feedback on station designs for the line.  To learn more about each proposed station and to provide comments, see Metro’s Story Map for the project.  You can also contact Metro directly at 213.418.3093 or [email protected], or watch this video:

 

 

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Elizabeth Fuller
Elizabeth Fuller
Elizabeth Fuller was born and raised in Minneapolis, MN but has lived in LA since 1991 - with deep roots in both the Sycamore Square and West Adams Heights-Sugar Hill neighborhoods. She spent 10 years with the Greater Wilshire Neighborhood Council, volunteers at Wilshire Crest Elementary School, and has been writing for the Buzz since 2015.

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