El Monte Station

This article is about the bus station. For the rail station, see El Monte (Metrolink station).
El Monte Station Silver Line 

El Monte Station
Location 3501 Santa Anita Ave., El Monte, CA 91731
Coordinates 34°04′17.94″N 118°02′35.82″W / 34.0716500°N 118.0432833°W / 34.0716500; -118.0432833Coordinates: 34°04′17.94″N 118°02′35.82″W / 34.0716500°N 118.0432833°W / 34.0716500; -118.0432833
Owned by Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority
Line(s) Silver Line Silver Line 
Platforms 2 multi-bay island platforms
Construction
Parking 1,760 park & ride spaces
Bicycle facilities 26 bike rack spaces
16 locker spaces
Disabled access Yes
History
Opened 1973
Rebuilt October 14, 2012
Services
Preceding station   Metro Liner   Following station
Silver LineTerminus

El Monte Station is large regional bus station in the city of El Monte just off the Interstate 10 (San Bernardino Freeway) serving the Metro Silver Line, Foothill Transit, Greyhound and also El Monte Transit. It is the Metro Silver Line's eastern terminus. According to Metro the station is the largest bus-only transit station west of Chicago.[1]

History

The old transit center was opened in 1973 at the eastern end of the El Monte Busway. Due to increasing bus congestion, a separate lower level station for local buses was constructed in 2006. Both stations were demolished in 2010 to create a new terminal, with a temporary terminal on a portion of the old parking lot as an interim improvement.[2] The new terminal opened on October 14, 2012, and at that time the temporary terminal was closed and returned into a parking lot. This 11 mile busway connects the San Gabriel Valley, through the El Monte Transit Center to Downtown Los Angeles. The transit center also provides timed transfer connections for patrons of local bus services.

Services

With 22,000 passengers and 1,200 bus departures daily the station was doubled in size in a renovation which was completed in October 2012. Of all the 9 Metro Silver Line stations, the El Monte Station is the busiest and most served station by the Metro Silver Line. With the "Silver 2 Silver" program, Cal State LA students who have Metro passes can use the Foothill Transit's Silver Streak bus between Downtown Los Angeles and El Monte Station at no additional charge. Similarly, Foothill Transit Silver Streak riders may use their passes on the Metro Silver Line between El Monte Station and Downtown Los Angeles.

Staffed counters are available for Foothill Transit (operated by Veolia Transportation), Metro Expresslanes (operated by Xerox Business Solutions), and Greyhound.

Layout

   Silver Line toward Harbor Gateway Transit Center/Pacific/21st Street (Cal State LA)

The entrance to the station is located at the corner of Santa Anita Ave and Ramona Boulevard. The new layout of El Monte Station features 17 new bus berths on the lower level and 12 additional berths on the upper level. The design of the station is such that there are no at grade crossings of passengers and buses. Although the upper level is at existing grade, passengers are required to descend into the lower level and return to the ground level.

Just west of this station the transitway moves off the separate right of way and moves into the middle of Interstate 10. The station has a 1,760 space park and ride lot. There are additional spaces in Downtown El Monte which can be used by commuters. The station also has a connection to the Rio Hondo bicycle trail via Pioneer Park, which is north of the station. Previously the station had a connection through the parking lot, but that was fenced off when construction of the new terminal began.

The Division 9 bus yard is located next to the bus station, and buses coming into, or going out of service, enter and leave from that yard.

Renovation

A $60 million renovation new El Monte Station opened to the public on Sunday, October 14, 2012. [3]The new facility is designed to meet increasing travel demands in the corridor and to promote increased levels of transit use.[4]

In January 2013, Metro announced that it is in the process of installing four TAP card vending machines for passengers at the El Monte Station, which was completed in June 2013.

Bike Hub

The first bicycle parking facility, called a "Bike Hub", at the station open on September 14, 2015.[5]

Services

The last Metro Silver Line southbound trip towards Downtown Los Angeles & Harbor Gateway Transit departs El Monte Station at 12:44 a.m. on Mondays-Thursdays and Sundays/Holidays. The last Metro Silver Line southbound trip towards Downtown Los Angeles & Harbor Gateway Transit departs El Monte Station at 1:47 a.m. on Fridays & Saturdays.

Nearby Dining and Attractions

Station Photos

References

External links

This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the Saturday, January 30, 2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.