How to Ride the Bus in L.A.

The L.A. Metro runs many, many bus lines going East/West from Westwood/Beverly Hills/West L.A. to Downtown (6th/Main) and back, on the big boulevards like Sunset, Santa Monica, Beverly, Olympic, Wilshire, Pico, Venice and Washington, as well as on 3rd Street, 6th Street, and Melrose.  Stops are every block or so, and you can hop on and off at your convenience.

Fares: $1.25 on weekdays and weekends; 75 cents after 9 p.m. There are signs everywhere, just move to the curb when you see the bus coming so they know you want to get on.

YOU MUST HAVE exact change ready (the machine takes dollar bills as well as coins). Drivers don’t carry change. If you overpay, they don’t care and you’re out of luck.

During peak rush hour, buses come by every 3 to 5 minutes; during off-peak hours and weekends, it’s more like every 10 to 25 minutes.

Most East/West buses that I mentioned above run 24 hours, 7 days a week.

Monthly passes: $62

Weekly pass: $17

Day pass: $5

EZ Transit Monthly Passes (Good for any bus on any system): $70 ($35 for students and seniors)

The Culver City Bus (which is green) has 7 lines that encompass the areas from Venice and Washington Blvds to Century City, the Fox Hills Mall, UCLA, Marina del Rey and Blair Hills. Lines 1, 2, 4, 5 and 7 run eastward and westward; Lines 3 and 6 run northward and southward. ONLY Lines 1 (which runs along Washington Blvd.), 3 and 6 (which runs up and down Sepulveda Blvd.) run on the weekends as well as the weekdays.

Culver City base fare: 75 cents (Students 50 cents; seniors 35 cents)

EZ Transit Monthly Passes (Good for any bus on any system): $70 ($35 for students and seniors)

Santa Monica Bus (Big Blue) has 14 lines that overlap much of the same areas as the Metro and Culver City lines, but go further west to include Santa Monica and the 3rd Street Promenade, etc. It is most useful when traveling to and from Santa Monica (duh), and the West Side; to and from UCLA, Venice Beach, 3rd Street Promenade, Century City, West L.A., and Westwood. This is the bus that will drop you right outside Century City Mall. Big Blue even goes all the way out to Pacific Palisades!

(Stick to Metro for Downtown and east of Beverly Hills.)

Base fare: 75 cents (students 50 cents; seniors 25 cents)

Day pass: $2.50 ($1.25 for students and seniors)

EZ Transit Monthly Passes (Good for any bus on any system): $70 ($35 for students and seniors)

Not sure which is the best bus line to take?

Go here and input your starting point and destination. Your trip may require travel on more than one bus. If so, you can purchase a transfer slip on the first bus for a price that’s cheaper than paying for both buses individually. Simply ask the driver for a transfer, pay either 25 cents (for Culver City and Santa Monica) or 30 cents (for Metro) extra, and hold onto the ticket. Give the ticket to the driver of the second bus when you get on.

Once you’re seated, listen to the automated voices that announce the stops and/or watch the electronic screen. When your stop is next, pull the cord along the right or left sides by the windows and wait until you hear “Stop Requested. Please use rear exit.”

That’s all there is to it.

Good luck!