Los Angeles Department of Transportation

The Los Angeles Department of Transportation, commonly referred to as LADOT, is a municipal agency that oversees transportation planning, design, construction, maintenance and operations within the city of Los Angeles. LADOT was created by city ordinance, and is run by a general manager appointed by the Mayor of Los Angeles, under the oversight of a citizens' commission also appointed by the mayor. LADOT is best known for providing public transportation to the City of Los Angeles. It currently operates the second-largest fleet in Los Angeles County next to Metro. It consist of over 300 vehicles, serving nearly 30 million passengers a year and operating over 800,000 hours.

Los Angeles Department of Transportation
HeadquartersCaltrans District 7 Headquarters
LocaleLos Angeles, California, United States
Service typeBus Services, Paratransit, Transportation Planning, Signal Construction, Traffic Operations
Routes36 DASH, 16 Commuter Express, 2 shuttles
WebsiteOfficial website
Birds-eye view of the Caltrans District 7 Headquarters building, where the department is housed.

LADOT also develops the traffic signal timing and transportation planning for the city. Actual road maintenance and construction is provided by the Los Angeles City Department of Public Works. LADOT performs many transportation related duties, with six main operating groups: Parking Enforcement & Traffic Control, Operations, Project Delivery, Parking Management & Regulations, Transit Services, and Administration.[1]

Current LADOT Transit Services

DASH

The DASH (Downtown Area Short Hop) is a transit bus currently operates 30 routes covering Downtown Los Angeles and many outlying communities within the city. Its primary function is to provide localized service, and is a feeder into the countywide MTA Metro service.

A typical DASH bus.

DASH Community Routes include:

Most DASH buses are El Dorado EZ-Rider vehicles powered by propane, although CNG Gillig BRTs have since been introduced. The first two digits of DASH bus numbers denote which year the bus came into service. For instance, 98001 denotes 1998 and 06301 denotes 2006. All DASH buses are 30 feet (9.1 m) long, making it easier to navigate in dense neighborhoods where there are narrower streets and tighter turns.

Commuter Express

Commuter Express is an express bus service, consisting of 15 routes, all but one running during rush hours only. Service started in 1985.[2] Routes 419, 423, 431, 437, 438, and 448 are former Metro lines that were cancelled;[3] Route 142 was previously operated by Long Beach Transit.[4] Fares are based on a flat rate for travel on streets plus an extra charge based on the distance traveled on freeways.

Unless otherwise noted, all services operates towards Downtown LA during the morning rush and from Downtown LA during the afternoon rush. For the purposes of this chart, closed-door means that customers are not allowed to use buses for local trips and open-door means that customers are allowed to use buses for local trips.

Route Terminals via Notes
142
[5]
San Pedro
Ports O'Call
Long Beach Transit Mall 7th Street, Ocean Boulevard
  • Daily service
  • Open-door along the entire route
409
[6]
Sylmar
Foothill Boulevard and Glenoaks Boulevard
Downtown LA
Hill Street and 12th Street
San Fernando Valley: Foothill Boulevard
Downtown LA: Flower & Figueroa Streets, 7th Street
  • Closed-door within Sunland, Tujunga and Downtown LA, open-door elsewhere
419
[7]
Chatsworth Station Downtown LA
University of Southern California
San Fernando Valley: Devonshire Street
Downtown LA: Hill Street, Figueroa Street
  • Closed-door between Alpine and 8th Streets in Downtown LA, open-door elsewhere
422
[8]
Thousand Oaks
The Oaks Shopping Center
Downtown LA
University of Southern California
Ventura County: Thousand Oaks Boulevard, Agora Road
Downtown LA: Figueroa & Flower Streets
  • Service operates towards Thousand Oaks in the AM rush and towards Downtown LA in the PM rush
  • Closed-door within Downtown LA, open-door elsewhere
423
[9]
Thousand Oaks
Thousand Oaks Transit Center
Downtown LA
University of Southern California
Ventura County: Agora Road, Ventura Boulevard
Downtown LA: Figueroa & Flower Streets
  • Closed-door within Downtown LA, open-door elsewhere
431
[10]
Westwood
VA Medical Center Park and Ride
Downtown LA
Union Station
Westside: Wilshire Boulevard, Beverly Glen Boulevard
Downtown LA: Venice Boulevard, Figueroa & Flower Streets, Grand & Olive Streets
  • Closed-door along the entire route
437
[11]
Venice
Pacific Avenue and Washington Boulevard
Downtown LA
Temple Street and Los Angeles Street
Westside: Culver Boulevard
Downtown LA: Figueroa & Flower Streets, Grand & Olive Streets
  • Closed-door along the entire route
438
[12]
Downtown LA
Temple Street and Los Angeles Street
Redondo Beach
Palos Verdes Boulevard and Via Valencia
Downtown LA Figueroa & Flower Streets
Beach Cities: Highland Avenue, Hermosa Avenue
  • Closed-door along the entire route
439
[13]
Downtown LA
Temple Street and Los Angeles Street
El Segundo
El Segundo Boulevard & Nash Street
Downtown LA: Figueroa & Flower Streets
El Segundo: Imperial Highway, Douglas Street
  • Closed-door along the entire route
  • A reversal of the CE438, where it heads to El Segundo during the A.M. rush hour & Downtown Los Angeles during the P.M. rush hour
448
[14]
Downtown LA
Temple Street and Los Angeles Street
Rancho Palos Verdes
Crest Road and Crenshaw Boulevard
Downtown LA: Figueroa & Flower Streets
South Bay: Hawthorne Boulevard, Pacific Coast Highway
  • Closed-door along the entire route
534
[15]
Westwood
Wilshire Boulevard and Veteran Avenue
Downtown LA
Union Station
Westside: Wilshire Boulevard, Olympic Boulevard
Downtown LA: Figueroa & Flower Streets, 1st Street
  • Operates towards Westwood in the AM rush and towards Downtown in the PM rush
  • Open-door along the entire route
549
[16]
Encino
Encino Park and Ride
Pasadena
Lake Gold Line station
Burbank Boulevard, Ventura Freeway
  • Service is provided in both directions during peak hours.
  • This is a service with only designated pick up points between cities operating as a limited stop service.
573
[17]
Mission Hills
Chatsworth Street and Orion Street
Century City
Constellation Boulevard and Century Park West
San Fernando Valley: Balboa Boulevard
Westwood: Gayley Avenue, Wilshire Boulevard
  • Service is provided in both directions during peak hours.
  • Closed-door along the entire route, except at the Encino Park and Ride
574
[18]
Sylmar Metrolink station El Segundo
Space Park Drive and Aviation Boulevard
San Fernando Valley: Balboa Boulevard, Chatsworth Street
South Bay: Sepulveda Boulevard, Aviation Boulevard
  • Service operates towards the South Bay in the AM rush and towards Sylmar in the PM rush
  • Closed-door within the San Fernando Valley and south of Century Boulevard
Union Station/Bunker Hill Shuttle
[19]
Downtown LA
Union Station
Bunker Hill
Hope Street and 4th Street
Grand Avenue
  • Operates towards Bunker Hill in the AM rush and towards Union Station in the PM rush
  • Open-door along the entire route

Commuter Express services are provided by a variety of suburban vehicles, including Gillig Phantoms, Neoplan Metroliners, and Stewart & Stevenson Apollo T-40s. Also part of the fleet are a small number of CNG powered Orion V coaches.

CityRide

CityRide is a program for individuals in the city of Los Angeles, aged 65 or older and for qualified disabled persons.

The transit agency makes a cameo appearance in the Animaniacs episode Hooray for North Hollywood Part 2, where Dot Warner spots an LADOT bus, thinking it was named in her honor.[20] She then sings gleefully about it, but Yakko corrects his sister, telling her what LADOT actually means. Realizing her mistake, Dot nevertheless finishes her song on a positive note.

References

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