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Metro will open the Crenshaw line, When that didn’t happen, it had an encore on our list of “things to look forward to in 2022.” Its opening made our list of “things to look forward to in 2021.” We’re happy to report that the K-Line is keeping its promise to open in 2022, though you’ll still have to wait until then for some of its most revolutionary features, like its connection to LAX.

The K-Line will formally launch passenger service on October 7 at noon. The next light rail line from Metro, formerly known as the Crenshaw Line, will initially serve seven stops between West Adams and Inglewood.

At the Expo/Crenshaw Station, which also serves the E Line (formerly Expo). Which connects Santa Monica and downtown Los Angeles. You can change to the new line. A half-dozen further stops can be found in Baldwin Park, the Crenshaw Corridor, Hyde Park, Jefferson Park, and Westchester to the south of there. Along a route that traces some long-gone mid-century streetcar routes. A bus will run south of Westchester until the K Line’s connection with the C Line (Green) is ready.

From noon on Friday, October 7 to the end of service on Sunday,

From noon on Friday, October 7 to the end of service on Sunday, October 9. The whole Metro bus, train, and bike-sharing system will be free to celebrate the event.

We certainly don’t want to minimize the achievement since it is a major thing whenever a new rail line opens in Los Angeles. But it’s important to note that some of the K Line’s most eye-catching features won’t be completed this year. The LAX-relatively-close Aviation/Century Station ought to open in 2023. While this is the case, the LAX/Metro Transit Center Station won’t open until 2024. The Automated People Mover at LAX, which will start operating between airport terminals next year, is where the K-Line would presumably terminate.

Taking the Metro to LAX

Metro will open the Crenshaw line, In the meanwhile, taking the Metro to LAX is still a somewhat complicated operation. You can take the interim bus between the Westchester/Veterans stop on the K-Line and the Aviation/LAX station on the C Line, and from there, take an LAX shuttle. Alternatively, you could use the K-Line to travel to the Downtown Inglewood station, get on the 111 bus, and then change to another bus close to the metered parking area.

Speaking of shuttles,

Speaking of shuttles, Metro has announced that it will introduce a bus service between the K-Line and SoFi Stadium. Currently, a free shuttle service from the Hawthorne/Lennox stop on the C Line is provided on game days. The Inglewood Transit Connector will eventually run a people mover between the Downtown Inglewood K Line station and the city’s sports and entertainment complexes—possibly/hopefully in time for the 2028 Olympics.

Even further into the future—we’re talking decades—the K-Line may end up serving as the main artery for Metro’s rail network. With a prospective station in West Hollywood and a connection to the B Line (Red) in Hollywood. The agency is now in the early phases of planning to expand the line north to the D Line (Purple) subway expansion. Let’s hope that we can all survive till the year 2040.