Mayor Karen Bass introduces ambitious public transit plan for LA Olympics; no cars allowed at venues
Just under 4 million people call the City of Los Angeles home, with millions more living in the surrounding metropolitan area. Many of those residents rely on cars to get in and around the region on a daily basis, which has contributed to the city's infamous traffic woes.
The Paris Olympics conclude Sunday. Then, attention will turn to Los Angeles, the host city for the 2028 Summer Games. As the Southern California city gears up for the event, Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass is introducing an ambitious plan that could help ease gridlock.
Bass wants to restrict vehicle access to any venue that hosts a sporting event over the two-week Olympic period.
"A no-car Games," Bass said Saturday.
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An LED screen depicts the LA28 Olympics logo at the LA28 Press Conference Aug. 10, 2024, in Paris. (Luke Hales/Getty Images)
Under the plan, attendees will be required to use public transportation. Bass revealed the city's efforts to expand its public transportation system, which could allow for a car-free Olympics.
Since Los Angeles' current transit system is considerably less robust than other major U.S. cities, the mayor noted that the city intends to borrow more than 3,000 buses from other cities across the country.
"That's a feat in Los Angeles. We've always been in love with our cars," Bass said during a news conference in Paris. "But we’re already working to ensure we can build a greener Los Angeles."
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Bass also said creating a strategic partnership with some of the city's largest employers will be critical when it comes to LA's ability to mitigate traffic jams.
"The way it should work is to meet with the city’s major employers and talk about staggering work hours, which is something that was done 40 years ago, when we had no tech, no cellphones, no personal computers," she said. "There might be some employers that we would say, ‘Could you be remote for 17 days?’"
Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass Feb. 17, 2023. (Robert Gauthier/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)
Bass did acknowledge that essential workers will have to continue to commute to work during the time the Summer Games are in town.
"We also certainly learned from COVID that we do have essential workers, people that must come to work. But if you limit it to that, it’s going to be a lot easier," Bass added. "People will have some reference point in recent history as to how to get to that."
The 2028 Games' organizing committee announced that swimming competitions will take place at SoFi Stadium, the multibillion-dollar home of the Rams and Chargers in Inglewood, California. Downtown Los Angeles' Crypto.com Arena has been selected for gymnastics competitions, while USC’s Memorial Coliseum will host track and field events.
A Metro bus runs on 1st Street in Los Angeles July 23, 2024.
The Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum hosted the opening ceremony of the 1984 Summer Olympics. The opening ceremony for Los Angeles' third Summer Games is scheduled for July 14, 2028.
Elsewhere, multiple venues in Long Beach, California, will handle artistic swimming, marathon swimming, water polo, handball, rowing, the triathlon and other events, according to the recently announced plan.
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While the majority of events will take place within Los Angeles County, Temecula has been tapped for the equestrian competitions. Temecula is located about 85 miles southeast of downtown Los Angeles. However, softball and canoe slalom will happen about 1,500 miles away in Oklahoma City.
Tahiti hosted surfing competition during this year's Games. It is more than 9,000 miles away from Paris.
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