Enhancements

The Metro Silver Line began service on December 13, 2009, connecting the South Bay and San Gabriel Valley to Downtown Los Angeles. The Silver Line runs between the Artesia Transit Center and the El Monte Station via the Harbor Transitway on the Harbor Freeway and the El Monte Busway on the San Bernardino Freeway.

The Silver Line will undergo several service enhancements along with amenity and station improvements, some of which are part of the agency’s Congestion Reduction Demonstration Project that will eventually convert existing carpool lanes on both the San Bernardino Freeway and the Harbor Freeway into ExpressLanes.
Project tasks related to Metro Silver Line include the following:

December 2009 (Completed)

• Simplify existing services. When the Silver Line became operational, it replaced Metro Express Lines 444, 446-447, 484 and 490 which ran on the Harbor Transitway and El Monte Busway. These lines have been rerouted to provide connecting service to the Silver Line and were given new route numbers. The changes are as follows:
  • Line 444 became Line 344, providing local service between the Artesia Transit Center and Palos Verdes Peninsula.
  • Line 446/447 became Lines 246/247, providing local service between the Artesia Transit Center and San Pedro.
  • Line 484 became Line 194, providing local serviced between Cal Poly Pomona and El Monte Station.
  • Line 490 became Line 190, providing service between Cal Poly Pomona and El Monte Station. Connections to all Metro Rail Lines and major destinations in Downtown LA.
  • Metro Silver Line provides connections to all Metro Rail lines, including the Gold and Red/Purple Lines at Union Station, Red/Purple and Blue Lines at 7th/Metro and the Green Line at Harbor Transitway Station.

December 2010 (Completed)

• Improved Artesia Transit Center Security. Installation of CCTVs and bike lockers; new and improved lighting; repurpose existing building as a Sheriff substation.
• Enhanced station lighting at 37th St/USC, Slauson, Manchester and Rosecrans Stations.

June 2011 (Completed)

• Additional service enhancements on the Harbor Transitway, including service frequencies.

August 2011 (Completed)

• New bus stops at Slauson and Manchester Stations. Existing street-level bus stops will be relocated directly below the Transitway stations to allow for more direct connections and transfers to the Silver Line.

June 2012

• Upgrade signage. Digital signs at the Artesia Transit Center will be installed to provide bus stop and schedule information.

July 2012

• Utilize fuel-efficient, environmentally-safe equipment. Metro has ordered 41 CNG (Compressed Natural Gas) – powered 45-foot buses for the Silver Line. The new technologically-advanced buses are being built by North American Bus Industries at the company’s facility in Anniston, Alabama.
• Transit signal priority in Los Angeles. Metro Silver Line will have partial signal priority in Downtown Los Angeles.

August 2012

• El Monte Station Expansion. New, improved, and expanded El Monte Station will open to the public.  Project includes new and improved passenger amenities and wayfinding, an increase in bus berths, a new regional transit store, and a bike station. Project will be constructed to achieve LEED gold certification.
• Upgrade wayfinding signage at Artesia Transit Center.

September 2012

• Install CCTVs and digital message signs at Harbor Transitway stations/parking lots.

June 2014

• Enhance rider access. Metro Silver Line will connect to Union Station’s Patsaouras Transit Plaza in Downtown Los Angeles via an island stop on the El Monte Busway. This provides riders direct access to Metro’s region-wide bus and rail network, as well as Metrolink and Amtrak.