System maintenance will force the closure of two subway stations in Los Angeles early next month.
According to fliers placed at LA Metro stations, weekend riders along Vermont Avenue will need to navigate closures and temporary bus shuttles on the Metro B Line.
The closures will begin Friday, Oct. 2 at 7 p.m., and will remain in place through 2 a.m. on Monday, Oct. 5.
During the 55-hour service disruption, passenger trains will completely bypass both the Vermont/Beverly station and the Vermont/Santa Monica stations; surface level buses will be put into place to connect the service gap, with riders being required to disembark and/or board at Vermont/Sunset and Wilshire/Vermont stations.
Those shuttles will make intermediate stops near the closed stations to maintain local transit access for local residents.
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The train service will be halted along that portion of the Metro B Line to allow maintenance crews to conduct essential infrastructure upgrades, according to a service notice posted by the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority.
Closure will affect LA Metro B/D line riders
The impacted line represents a major segment of the broader heavy rail network serving Los Angeles County.
The B Line operates across 14.7 miles of fully underground track and serves 14 stations. The subway route originates at Union Station in downtown Los Angeles, travels west through the Westlake neighborhood, turns north along Vermont Avenue, continues west along Hollywood Boulevard and terminates at the North Hollywood station in the San Fernando Valley.
Six of its southernmost stations are shared with the D Line subway, making the Wilshire/Vermont junction one of the busiest rail transit transfer hubs in the entire LA Metro network.
The D Line itself has expanded its overall footprint following a major expansion completed earlier this year. After opening Section 1 of its extension project in May, the D Line currently operates across nine miles of track serving 11 active stations.
The route begins alongside the B Line at Union Station in downtown Los Angeles, shares common stops through 7th Street/Metro Center and Westlake/MacArthur Park, and then splits off at Wilshire/Vermont to run west beneath Wilshire Boulevard.
The D Line currently ends at Wilshire/La Cienega in Beverly Hills, with remaining construction ongoing to push the line further west toward Century City and Westwood.
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Both subway lines serve as critical transit arteries carrying tens of thousands of daily riders; during this closure, weekend riders should budget extra travel time when navigating the region over the weekend.
Some delays will be likely across the LA Metro network due to the closures and replacement bus service.
Riders can get real-time travel updates through LA Metro’s website, or, my personal choice, by downloading the Transit app.
If all goes well, the B Line stations should reopen fully ahead of the Monday morning commute on Oct. 5.
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