At 1:10 p.m. on July 2, the faces of those waiting at the Vermont/Olympic bus stop, just south of the El Pollo Loco in LA’s Koreatown, appeared noticeably more relaxed. Despite the bus stop only having metal chairs and a sign, its location under large street trees provided much-needed shade, making it a preferred spot among Koreatown’s typically sun-exposed bus stops.
“What good are chairs at stops without shade?” an elderly woman waiting for the bus remarked. “It would be better if they planted trees like this.”
Despite LA City’s plan to install 3,000 bus shelters with roofs and seats citywide over the next 20 years, most bus riders in Koreatown, one of the city’s most densely populated areas, still wait under the scorching sun.
On July 2, the daytime high in Koreatown was 84 degrees. An elderly man waiting at the Western/7th Street stop was seen standing under the cloudless sky, shielding his face with his hand while looking out for the bus.
Research conducted by the Korea Daily on the main bus stops within the 2.9-square-mile area of Koreatown, bounded by Hoover Street and Western Avenue to the east and west, and Pico Boulevard and Beverly Boulevard to the north and south, revealed that only 26 bus stops have shade structures. These include approximately five along Western Avenue, four along Vermont Avenue, two along Olympic Boulevard, ten along Wilshire Boulevard, two along Beverly Boulevard, and three along Pico Boulevard.
Considering there are over 155 bus stops in the area, the installation rate of shaded bus stops is just 16%. Excluding Wilshire Boulevard, each major 2-mile stretch of road has only 2 to 4 shaded bus stops. Many bus stops in the area consist only of a sign and two metal chairs.
According to the 2020 U.S. Census, Koreatown’s 2.9-square-mile area has a population of 114,047. With twice the population density of areas like Downtown LA, Koreatown has just one shaded bus stop for every 4,386 residents.
Koreatown residents, particularly seniors, are calling for an expansion of shaded bus stops. In response, LA City installed a new design of bus shelters at the northeast corner of Olympic Boulevard and Western Avenue in April.
Tranzito-Vector has been contracted for 10 years to install the new shelters, which feature metal shade structures and seating, with large monitors on the sides. As part of the Sidewalk Transit Amenities Program (STAP) under the Bureau of Street Services (BSS), 280 out of the planned 3,000 bus shelters are being installed initially.
However, there are concerns about securing the $380 million budget required for the full installation of the 3,000 shaded bus stops. This raises fears that the pilot project might become a mere display without substantive progress.
Meanwhile, on the June 27, councilmembers John Lee (District 12), Bob Blumenfield (District 3), and Nithya Raman (District 4) attended a ribbon-cutting ceremony with BSS officials for new bus shelters in the San Fernando Valley. On this occasion, they announced that the LA County Metropolitan Transportation Authority would provide $53 million to support the installation of the new bus shelters.
BY HYOUNGJAE KIM, YOUNGNAM KIM [kim.ian@koreadaily.com]
