As Metro tracks march westward, Los Angeles gains much-needed transit access to its seaside neighborhoods. The tradeoff, however, is some seriously headache-inducing construction of all that major Metro infrastructure. In the name of public transportation progress, the extension of the Purple Line will be shutting down large portions of Wilshire Boulevard in the Miracle Mile this summer, according to the Los Feliz Ledger.
Starting in June, three phases of construction will close Wilshire Boulevard for a total of 22 weekends. Each weekend closure phase will begin at 9 pm on Friday and last until 6 am on Monday morning. Phase 1, lasting three weekends, will see Wilshire closed from Detroit Street to La Brea Avenue. Phase 2 will close the busy intersection of Wilshire and La Brea for three weekends. Finally, Phase 3, the longest of the construction phases, will have Wilshire Boulevard closed to traffic from La Brea Avenue to Highland Avenue for 16 consecutive weekends.
While this 22-weekend project sounds like a slog for Miracle Mile drivers, the alternative wasn't much better. When the project was announced, Metro gave Councilmember David Ryu a choice of two plans: the 22-weekend closure or seven full weeks of Wilshire Boulevard closure, from La Brea Avenue to Highland Avenue. After six months of deliberations with the community and the creation of a thorough traffic management plan, Ryu chose the former.
· Wilshire Closure: Weekends Only [Los Feliz Ledger]
· The First Piece of the First Purple Line Subway Extension Station Was Just Installed [Curbed LA]
· Watch the Los Angeles Metro Rail Map's Spectacular Growth From 1990 to 2026 [Curbed LA]