| E Line | |||
|---|---|---|---|
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 An LA MetroKinki Sharyo P3010 train in service on the E Line, 2017 | |||
| Overview | |||
| Other names | Expo Line (2012–2019) Gold Line/L Line (east of Little Tokyo/Arts District) | ||
| Owner | Los Angeles Metro | ||
| Line number | 804 (formerly 806) | ||
| Termini | |||
| Stations | 29 | ||
| Website | metro | ||
| Service | |||
| Type | Light rail | ||
| System | Los Angeles Metro Rail | ||
| Depot(s) | Division 14 (Santa Monica) Division 21 (Elysian Park) | ||
| Rolling stock | Kinki Sharyo P3010 running in 2 or 3 car consists | ||
| Daily ridership | 48,913 (weekday, May 2024) [1] | ||
| Ridership | 15,806,032 (2024) 23.2% | ||
| History | |||
| Opened | April 28, 2012; 13 years ago (2012-04-28) | ||
| Technical | |||
| Line length | 21.9 mi (35.2 km)[2] | ||
| Number of tracks | 2 | ||
| Character | Mostly at-grade in private right of way, with some underground, street-running, elevated, and trench sections | ||
| Track gauge | 4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm)standard gauge | ||
| Electrification | Overhead line, 750 V DC | ||
| Operating speed | 55 mph (89 km/h) (max.) 19 mph (31 km/h) (avg.) | ||
| |||
TheE Line (formerly theExpo Line from 2012 to 2019) is a 21.9-mile (35.2 km)[2]light rail line inLos Angeles County, California. It is one of the six lines of theLos Angeles Metro Rail system, operated byLos Angeles Metro. The E Line runs east–west and serves 29 stations betweenEast Los Angeles andSanta Monica,interlining and sharing five stations with theA Line inDowntown Los Angeles. The line operates for 19 hours per day withheadways of up to 8 minutes duringpeak hours. It is the second-busiest light rail line in the system, carrying more than 12 million total passengers in 2023.
The majority of the E Line's western section from Downtown Los Angeles to Santa Monica follows the originalright of way of theLos Angeles and Independence Railroad steam railroad, built in 1875. Regular train service ended in 1988, and Metro acquired the right of way in the 1990s. Formal studies to convert the corridor into light rail began in 2000, and construction began in 2006. The E Line from Downtown Los Angeles toCulver City opened in 2012 and was extended to Santa Monica in 2016. Originally named the Expo Line due to its route along Exposition Boulevard,[3][4] the line was renamed the E Line in late 2019 while retaining the aqua-colored line and icons designating it for the Expo Line.
Following the completion of theRegional Connector Transit Project in June 2023, the E Line extended east to East Los Angeles using part of theL Line light rail line. The project connected the existing E Line to the L Line via a newly built tunnel through Downtown Los Angeles. With this change, L Line service ended and was replaced with the E Line fromLittle Tokyo/Arts District station toAtlantic station. The line's color designation changed from aqua to gold to reflect its expanded route and integration with the L Line tracks and to also differentiate from the blue of the A Line.
E Line service hours are from approximately 4:30 a.m. and 11:45 p.m daily. Trains operate every 8 minutes during peak hours, Monday to Friday. Trains run every 10 minutes, during midday on weekdays and weekends, from 9:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. Night and early morning service is approximately every 20 minutes every day.[5]
| Time | 4a | 5a | 6–7a | 8a | 9a–1p | 2–6p | 7p | 8p–12a | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weekdays | 20 | 8 | 10 | 8 | 10 | 20 | ||||
| Weekends/Holidays | 20 | 12–20 | 10 | 10–15 | 20 | |||||
Short segments of the E Line are certified for speeds of up to 55 miles per hour (89 km/h), but service speeds are much slower.[6] All trips on the 22-mile (35 km) line[2] are scheduled at 69 minutes end-to-end,[7] an average speed of 19 miles per hour (31 km/h).
The E Line has drawn criticism for its slow speed, especially on the Downtown LA and South LA portions of its western segment. To improve reliability, theLos Angeles Department of Transportation (LADOT) continues to work with Metro to adjust traffic signals on Exposition Boulevard in favor of trains, and proposals have been made to reconstruct the junction of the A Line and E Line to speed up trains.[8]
The following is the complete list of stations, from west to east:
| Station | Date Opened | City/Neighborhood | Major Connections and Notes[9][10] |
|---|---|---|---|
| Downtown Santa Monica | May 20, 2016 | Santa Monica | |
| 17th Street/SMC | Park and ride: 65 spaces | ||
| 26th Street/Bergamot | |||
| Expo/Bundy | Los Angeles (West Los Angeles) | Park and ride: 217 spaces | |
| Expo/Sepulveda | Park and ride: 260 spaces | ||
| Westwood/Rancho Park | Los Angeles (Rancho Park) | ||
| Palms | Los Angeles (Palms) | ||
| Culver City | June 20, 2012 | Culver City | Park and ride: 300 spaces |
| La Cienega/Jefferson | April 28, 2012 | Los Angeles (West Adams) | Park and ride: 494 spaces |
| Expo/La Brea | |||
| Farmdale | June 20, 2012 | ||
| Expo/Crenshaw | April 28, 2012 | Los Angeles (Jefferson Park) |  Park and ride: 450 spaces (closed Sundays) |
| Expo/Western | Los Angeles (Exposition Park) | ||
| Expo/Vermont | |||
| Expo Park/USC | Los Angeles (University Park) | ||
| Jefferson/USC | |||
| LATTC/Ortho Institute | Los Angeles (North University Park) |  | |
| Pico | July 14, 1990 | Los Angeles (Downtown) |   Silver Streak |
| 7th Street/Metro Center | February 15, 1991 |   Silver Streak | |
| Grand Avenue Arts/Bunker Hill | June 16, 2023 | Silver Streak | |
| Historic Broadway | Silver Streak | ||
| Little Tokyo/Arts District | November 15, 2009 | Los Angeles (Little Tokyo/Arts District) | |
| Pico/Aliso | Los Angeles (Boyle Heights) | ||
| Mariachi Plaza | |||
| Soto | |||
| Indiana | Park and ride: 42 spaces | ||
| Maravilla | East Los Angeles | ||
| East LA Civic Center | |||
| Atlantic | Park and ride: 289 spaces |
The E Line had an annual ridership of 15,806,032 in 2024 and averaged 48,913 weekday riders that May. In 2012, the line averaged 19,092 weekday riders when the line opened from Downtown Los Angeles to Culver City. Its ridership increased gradually over the next four years, with an average of 33,264 weekday riders in 2015. When the E Line was extended to Santa Monica in May 2016, ridership rose, carrying an average of 54,073 weekday riders that December. Weekend ridership also increased from an average of 11,000 riders in 2012 to around 30,000 in 2016. The E Line's average weekday ridership peaked at 61,024 in 2018; it began to fall in 2019 due to service reductions and theCOVID-19 pandemic, with a low of 24,930 average weekday riders in 2020.[1][11]
| Year | Ridership | %± |  |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | 4,141,440 | — | |
| 2013 | 8,659,229 | +109.1% | |
| 2014 | 9,818,027 | +13.4% | |
| 2015 | 9,834,541 | +0.2% | |
| 2016 | 13,376,428 | +36.0% | |
| 2017 | 19,030,229 | +42.3% | |
| 2018 | 19,413,884 | +2.0% | |
| 2019 | 18,269,068 | −5.9% | |
| 2020 | 8,308,144 | −54.5% | |
| 2021 | 7,939,241 | −4.4% | |
| 2022 | 11,004,310 | +38.6% | |
| 2023 | 12,831,640 | +16.6% | |
| 2024 | 15,806,032 | +23.2% | |
| Source: Metro[12] | |||
The oldest portion of today's E Line is the Gold Line Eastside Extension, the southern branch of the formerGold Line, and the first phase of the Eastside Transit Corridor. The Eastside Extension runs fromUnion Station east toAtlantic station inEast Los Angeles, in a new median following1st Street and3rd Street.[13]
Construction on the extension began in 2004 and service started on November 15, 2009, with Gold Line trains running through Union Station northeast toPasadena.[14] This service was in effect through 2020, extending toAzusa in 2016. The Gold Line was renamed the L Line in 2020 and split into two segments to prepare for construction of theRegional Connector. The Eastside Extension portion of the L Line (east ofPico/Aliso station) then operated as an independent line until 2023, when it was merged into the E Line.[15][16]
The E Line's western section largely follows the right of way used by theLos Angeles and Independence Railroad steam railroad, built in 1875.[17] ThePacific Electric company converted it toelectric traction. It operated the line as theSanta Monica Air Line by 1920, with both freight and passenger services.[18] Passenger service ended in 1953, and freight service stopped in 1988.[19]
Localadvocacy groups, including Friends 4 Expo Transit[20] supported the successful passage of Proposition C in 1990, which allowed the purchase of the entire right of way fromSouthern Pacific by Metro. In 2000, an urban art group called Heavy Trash placed signs advertising a fictional "Aqua Line." The signs, with the text "Coming Soon," showed a subway route extending alongWilshire Boulevard to the Pacific Ocean, with ten stations. Although the campaign was a hoax, it demonstrated newfound support and revealed the frustrations surrounding the lack of rail service connectingSanta Monica and theWestside withDowntown Los Angeles.[21][22] Metro released a Major Investment Study in 2000 which comparedbus rapid transit andlight rail transit options along what was later known as the "Mid-City/Exposition Corridor."[23]
Ajoint powers authority, the Exposition Metro Line Construction Authority, was formed by theCalifornia State Legislature in 2003 to plan, design, and construct the line. The authority was governed by appointees from Metro,Los Angeles County, and the cities ofLos Angeles, Santa Monica, andCulver City.[24] After construction of the second phase was completed, the line was handed over on January 15, 2016, to Los Angeles Metro.[25]
The line was built in two phases; the first phase comprised the 8.6-mile (13.8 km)[26] section between7th Street/Metro Center station in Downtown Los Angeles and Culver City. Construction began in early 2006, and most stations opened to the public on April 28, 2012.[27]Culver City station opened on June 20, 2012, in conjunction with theinfillFarmdale station betweenExpo/La Brea station andExpo/Crenshaw station.[28][29]
Construction on the 6.6-mile (10.6 km)[26] portion between Culver City and Santa Monica started in September 2011. Testing along the Phase 2 segment began on April 6, 2015,[30] and the segment opened on May 20, 2016.[31]
In 2019, Metro began a process where all Metro Rail and Busway lines would be identified by a letter name rather than the previous system of colors. As a result, the Expo Line became the E Line in 2019, and retained the aqua color until the opening of the Regional Connector Transit Project.[32][33][34]
The Regional Connector Transit Project constructed a 1.9-mile (3.1 km) light railtunnel through Downtown Los Angeles that connected the preexisting A and E Lines to the former L Line to allow for a seamless one-seat ride between the A and E lines' previous terminus at 7th Street/Metro Center station to Union Station and theEastside.[35] Two new stations were also constructed in the tunnel, providing more service to destinations and communities in Downtown Los Angeles.[36]
Formal studies and planning for the Regional Connector began in 2004 and was approved in 2012. A groundbreaking ceremony was held on September 30, 2014, marking the start of major construction.[37] To accommodate the new tunnel, the existing at-grade L LineLittle Tokyo/Arts District station was demolished in 2020 and rebuilt as a subway station approximately 500 feet (150 m) south and on the opposite side ofAlameda Street from its former location. Starting on April 9, 2023, the A, E, and L Line trains ran through the Regional Connector tunnel for final testing.[38] The project officially opened for revenue service on June 16, 2023.[39]
Once the Regional Connector was completed, the alignment of the L Line was split into two parts atLittle Tokyo/Arts District station, with the portion north of the station joined to the A Line, extending it to connectLong Beach withAzusa. The alignment east of Little Tokyo/Arts District station was assigned to the E Line, extending it to connect Santa Monica and East Los Angeles directly. The new east–west line kept the E Line name but uses the L Line's gold color.[40] At this time, the L Line ceased to exist as a separate line.[16]
The Eastside Transit Corridor is a project to extend the line in two phases from its eastern terminus atAtlantic station to Lambert station inWhittier. Partially funded byMeasure M, construction is programmed to start in 2029 with service beginning in 2035,[41] though the project maybe accelerated through theTwenty-eight by '28 initiative as a part of Metro's plans to prepare for the upcoming2028 Summer Olympics.
On Metro Rail's internal timetables, the E Line is called line804. Before the opening of the Regional Connector, it was line 806.
The E Line is operated out of two divisions, Metro's term for train maintenance and storage facilities.[42]
Division 14 is located east of Stewart Street and north of Exposition Boulevard in Santa Monica between26th Street/Bergamot andExpo/Bundy stations. The facility opened in 2016 with the completion of Phase 2.[43]
Division 21 is located at 1800 Baker Street between Elysian Park and the Los Angeles River in Chinatown betweenLincoln/Cypress andChinatown stations on the A Line. The facility opened in 2003 for the first phase of the Gold Line.
The E Line operates trains with three cars on weekdays and two on weekends, except for weekend days with major events in Expo Park.[42] The line currently uses one type of light rail vehicle; theKinki Sharyo P3010.
Metro says that it takes 47 light rail vehicles to provide the maximum service on the E Line with 3-car trains running at 6-minute headways.[citation needed]
The Expo Bike Path parallels the route of the light rail line between17th Street/SMC andExpo/Vermont stations. The bikeway includes a mixture of bike lanes on Exposition Boulevard and off-street paths alongside the rail tracks.[44]
| A Line |
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| B Line | |
 C Line | |
| D Line | |
 E Line |
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 G Line | |
| J Line | |
| K Line | |
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