Pico station is an at-grade light rail station on the A Line and E Line of the Los Angeles Metro Rail system. The station is located alongside Flower Street at its intersection with Pico Boulevard, after which the station is named.[3] The station also has nearby stops for the J Line of the Los Angeles Metro Busway system, southbound buses stop on Flower Street, across from the station and northbound buses stop on Figueroa Street, one block to the west. Pico station serves the South Park neighborhood on its east and the Figueroa/Convention District on its west.
Pico    | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 Pico station platform | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| General information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Other names | Pico/Chick Hearn | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Location | 1236 South Flower Street Los Angeles, California | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Coordinates | 34°02′25″N 118°16′00″W / 34.0402°N 118.2667°W | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Owned by | Metro | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Platforms | 1 island platform | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Tracks | 2 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Connections | See Connections section | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Construction | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Structure type | At-grade | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Parking | Paid parking nearby | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Bicycle facilities | Metro Bike Share station[1] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Accessible | Yes | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| History | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Opened | July 14, 1990 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Rebuilt | November 2, 2019[2] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Services | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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It is officially named Pico/Chick Hearn station after Chick Hearn, longtime play-by-play announcer for the Los Angeles Lakers. On April 13, 2016, the station was temporarily renamed "Kobe station" to commemorate professional basketball player Kobe Bryant's last game.[4]
History
Pico station opened along with the Blue (A) Line on July 14, 1990, and was the site of opening day celebrations. Because the underground portion of the line was not yet complete, this station served as the northern terminus for the line until February 1991 when 7th St/Metro Center Station opened.[5]
During the 2028 Summer Olympics, the station will serve spectators traveling to events at the Los Angeles Convention Center, Crypto.com Arena and Microsoft Theater.[6]
Service
Station layout
| Busway stops | Flower St/Pico Bl | Southbound | J Line toward Harbor Gateway or San Pedro (Grand/LATTC) →
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| Figueroa St/Pico Bl | Northbound | ← J Line toward El Monte (Olympic Blvd)
| |
| Rail platform | Platform 1 | Northbound | ← A Line and E Line toward 7th Street/Metro Center (Terminus)
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| Island platform, doors will open on the left | |||
| Platform 2 | Southbound/ Eastbound |
A Line toward Downtown Long Beach (Grand/LATTC) → E Line toward Downtown Santa Monica (LATTC/Ortho Institute) →
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Pico station has an at-grade, island platform station designed to accommodate Metro light rail vehicles. The station's entrance is on the northeast corner of Flower/Pico.
Metro added gates and flashing lights at this station during late December 2011, as part of a set of safety enhancements that were added as part of the Expo Line project.[7] Access upgrades were added in 2018 due to increased use and development of the area.[8] Metro has held discussions regarding placing the station underground or expanding the light rail capacity in time for the 2028 Olympics.[9]
North of this station is the Flower Street Tunnel, which connects Pico station to 7th St/Metro Center Station via Flower Street. The tunnel's portal is just south of 11th Street on Flower Street. The tunnel will be extended when the Regional Connector is completed in 2022.
Hours and frequency
A Line trains run every day between approximately 4:00 a.m. and 12:30 am. Trains operate every ten minutes during peak hours Monday through Friday, every twelve minutes during the daytime on weekdays and all day on the weekends after approximately 8 a.m. (with a 15/20-minute headway early Saturday and Sunday mornings). Night service is every 20 minutes.[10]
E Line trains run every day between approximately 4:30 a.m. and 12:30 am. Trains operate every ten minutes during peak hours Monday through Friday, every twelve minutes during the daytime on weekdays and all day on the weekends after approximately 8 a.m. (with a 15/20-minute headway early Saturday and Sunday mornings). Night service is every 20 minutes.[11]
J Line buses run 24 hours a day between El Monte Station, Downtown Los Angeles, and the Harbor Gateway Transit Center as route 910, with some trips continuing on to San Pedro between 6 a.m. and 8 p.m. and signed as Route 950. On weekdays, buses operate every four to ten minutes during peak hours, with longer headways of 15 minutes during the daytime, 20 minutes during evenings, 40 minutes during nights and every hour overnight. On weekends, buses arrive every 20 minutes most of the day, with longer headways of 40 minutes during nights and every hour overnight.[12]
Connections
- Metro Bus: 30, 81, Express 460
- LADOT Commuter Express: 419*, 422*, 423*, 438*, 448*
- LADOT DASH: F
- OC Bus (Orange County): 701*, 721*
- Torrance Transit: 4X*
Note: * indicates commuter service that operates only during weekday rush hours.
Notable places nearby
The station is within walking distance of the following notable places:
References
- ^ "Station Map". Metro Bike Share. Retrieved November 13, 2021.
- ^ Lozano, Carlos (November 2, 2019). "Metro rail service between Los Angeles and Long Beach reopens". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved March 4, 2022.
- ^ "7th St/Metro Center Connections" (PDF). Metro. Archived from the original (PDF) on February 25, 2012. Retrieved November 18, 2021.
- ^ Hamilton, Matt (April 13, 2016). "Kobe Bryant to get his name on a Metro station -- for one day only". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved June 16, 2016.
- ^ "Blue Line station information". Archived from the original on June 22, 2009. Retrieved June 20, 2009.
- ^ "Games Plan". 2028 Summer Olympics. Retrieved January 9, 2022.
- ^ "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on June 29, 2011. Retrieved September 7, 2010.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - ^ Slayton, Nicholas. "Pico Station Getting an Upgrade". Retrieved August 12, 2018.
- ^ "Draft Details Announced for "28 by 28" Metro Projects for L.A. Olympics". December 2, 2017. Retrieved August 12, 2018.
- ^ "Metro A Line schedule". Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority. September 12, 2021. Retrieved November 13, 2021.
- ^ "Metro E Line schedule". Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority. September 12, 2021. Retrieved November 13, 2021.
- ^ "Metro J Line schedule". Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority. September 12, 2021. Retrieved November 13, 2021.
