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Rendering of the Expo Park/USC Station. |
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| Location | ||||
| City | Los Angeles | |||
| Neighborhood | University Park | |||
| Address | 949 W Exposition Boulevard | |||
| Metro Rail / BRT Services | ||||
| Future | Expo Line | |||
| Station Design | ||||
| Structure |
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| Entrance(s) | Exposition/Trousdale E median | |||
| Fare Gates | no | |||
| Accessible | ||||
| Parking | none | |||
| Bicycle Facilities | TBD | |||
| Miscellaneous | ||||
| Owned by | Metro (LACMTA) | |||
| Former name(s) | University | |||
| Status | under construction | |||
| Date Opened | October 17, 1875 | |||
| Date Closed | September 30, 1953 | |||
| Date Rebuilt | January 2012 (anticipated) | |||
Expo Park/USC Station is a future at-grade light rail station in the Los Angeles County Metro Rail system. It will be located on Exposition Boulevard at Trousdale Parkway, directly between USC and Exposition Park, in the University Park neighborhood of Los Angeles. When it opens, this station will be served by the Expo Line.[1]
This station is currently under construction as part of Expo Phase 1. It is expected to open in January 2012.[2]
Contents |
Note: Expo Line service to this station is anticipated to begin in January 2012.
| Preceding station | Metro Rail | Following station | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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toward
Culver City |
Expo Line
Phase 1
(future) |
Expo Park/USC Station is located in the median of Exposition Boulevard, on the east side of Trousdale/Exposition, midway between Vermont Avenue and Figueroa Street. The station's entrance is on the east side of Trousdale/Exposition. The station's platforms slope down slightly toward the east, in order to accommodate the line's descent into a tunnel which passes under Figueroa Street.
The station's art is being created by artist Robbert Flick. The untitled installation will include sequences of photographs taken on the boulevards near the station, creating a document of the local people and places as they were when the station was built.[3]
The USC main campus occupies the area to the north of the station. To the south is Exposition Park, which includes several popular L.A. attractions, including:
Expo Park/USC Station (originally called "USC/Exposition Park") was proposed by Metro staff, with input from the public, during the Environmental Impact Report (EIR) process. Many stakeholders cited the importance of the station, citing the convenient access it would provide the USC students/employees and Exposition Park guests. Moreover, a station here would be crucial for a future NFL venue in place of the current Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, as well as for future Olympic Games.
The administration of USC opposed at-grade light-rail along Exposition Boulevard, claiming that light-rail would separate the campus from Exposition Park. USC President Steven Sample,[4] in particular, was opposed to the project. Dr. Sample said he feared the line would create physical and psychological barriers between USC, Exposition Park, and the local community, and would be dangerous for pedestrians.[5]
However, general sentiment of students and neighbors was in support of the line. The Coliseum Commission took a strong position in support of this station, and the USC Student Senate [6] also passed a Expo Line USC Student Senate Resolution.pdf. In the end, Metro staff included the possibility of building the Expo Park/USC station by including it as a design option in the Final EIR, that would only be built if funds for the station (estimated at $5 million) could be found and if local support were present. The report also recommended a short tunnel segment under the impacted intersections of Exposition/Figueroa and Exposition/Flower.
Once the FEIR had been approved, Expo (Exposition Metro Line Construction Authority) worked to secure the funds for this station and to negotiate its design. One other issue remaining to be resolved was USC’s request for special architecture for the three stations serving the campus.
Ultimately, USC did not contribute toward the cost of the station. Expo also abandoned any considerations for special architecture requested by USC. On September 19, 2007, the board of Metro approved funding for the cost of the station (which had increased to $7 million).[7] This allowed the station to be built along with the rest of Phase 1.
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