Metro Boosts Red Line Security As Ridership Exceeds Pre-Pandemic Levels

LOS ANGELES, CA — Ridership on Metro's B (Red) and D (Purple) lines now exceed pre-pandemic levels, as the agency saw ridership grow year-over-year for a seventh consecutive month in June, the agency revealed Tuesday.

Meantime, Metro officials have detailed how they plan to improve public safety on the subway.

There were more than 5 million trips taken on Metro rail in June, an increase of 14.2 percent compared to the same time last year. Much of the ridership gains were led by growth in B and D line trips. Average weekday ridership on the subway lines was up 15.5 percent year-over-year in June, and up 5.6 percent since January, according to Metro.

Average ridership on the two subway lines is now higher than in June 2019, a year before the pandemic struck.

But adding together bus and rail trips together, ridership is only 81 percent of its 2019 level. Average weekend ridership is 91 percent of pre-pandemic levels, while weekday ridership is 76 percent, a possible reflection of an increase in people working from home.

On Wednesday, Mayor Karen Bass took the gavel as chair of the regional transit agency and delivered an address about the state of the system.

Metro plans to deploy additional officers on the B and D lines, the two lines that experience the most assaults. The agency is also exploring creating its own in-house police agency.

Additionally, officials have launched a campaign focused on drug-related crimes and targeting drug-use hotspots throughout the system and have deployed Metro ambassadors — brightly dressed customer service personnel — across stations.

The increase in rail ridership comes as Metro last month opened the Regional Connector, which stitched together the agency's light-rail lines and added three underground stations in Downtown LA.