What is not disputed is that, beginning in the mid-1940s, powerful social forces transformed Los Angeles so that commuters had only two options: drive or take a public bus. As a result, Los Angeles became so congested with traffic that it often took hours to get across the city.
In 1990, the Los Angeles Times reported that people were… Putting refrigerators, desks and televisions in their cars to cope with being stuck in terrible traffic. A series of films, from Falling to No idea to La La Landhave presented the next level challenge of driving in Los Angeles.
Traffic was also a concern when Los Angeles hosted the 1984 Summer Games, but The games went off without a hitchThe organizers persuaded more than a million people to travel by bus, and… I have plenty of trucks to drive during off-peak hours hours. The 2028 games, however, will have approximately 50 percent more Athletes competingwhich means thousands more coaches, family, friends and spectators. So simply dusting off plans from 40 years ago won’t do.
Transport plans for the Olympic Games
Today, Los Angeles is slowly rebuilding a more robust public transportation system. In addition to buses, it now has four light rail lines—the new name for electric trams— and two subways. Many continue The same routes that electric trams once traveledRebuilding this network is costing the public billionssince the old system was completely dismantled.
Three key improvements are planned for the Olympics. First, the Los Angeles airport terminals will be upgraded to a new level. Connected to the railway systemSecondly, the Los Angeles organizing committee is planning to largely use buses to transport people. It will do this by reallocating some lanes for cars and Making them available to 3,000 more buseswhich will be borrowed from other places.
Finally, there are plans to permanently increase bike lanes in the city. However, one important initiative, A bike path along the Los Angeles RiverIt is still under an environmental review that may not be completed until 2028.
17 days without a car
I hope that Organizers to stage car-free Olympicssimply making driving and parking conditions so terrible during the Games that people are forced to take public transportation to sports stadiums across the city. After the Games are over, however, most of Los Angeles will likely quickly return to its car-centric habits.
As Casey WassermanPresident of the Los Angeles 2028 The organizing committee recently said: “The unique thing about the Olympics is that over 17 days you can solve a lot of problems when you can set the rules – for traffic, for fans, for commerce – that you can’t on a normal day in Los Angeles.”