We're empowering cities to envision innovative bus stop improvements in LA County. Safe, comfortable and clean bus stops matter to neighborhoods and contribute to better health.

Bus Stop Resource Hub

The Regional Bus Stop Improvements Initiative is focused on empowering cities to envision bus stops in a new way. This resource hub has tools that will aid in planning and designing bus stop amenities around LA County. Bus stop improvements are both a regional transportation and public health issue.

LA County’s neighborhoods are made up of diverse groups of people that make bus stops the first stop on their transit journey – and each group has unique needs. The hub features research, data and other helpful tools for cities to spark momentum around planning bus stop improvements in their communities and neighborhoods.

Planning for bus stop improvements requires more than just replacing a bus bench or bus shelter – extensive research, needs assessments and community engagement ensure success. Bus stops that are safe, clean and comfortable are a direct community benefit that generates more transit ridership and can improve health outcomes.

Metro serves over 12,000 bus stops in LA County and that number keeps growing. Metro owns and maintains just 30 of those stops.

According to 2023 UCLA and 2024 Metro data analysis of bus stops that Metro serves:

fall within an Equity Focus Community (EFC)
0 %
are in neighborhoods with high proportions of vulnerable populations
0 %
are in neighborhoods with high proportions of elderly people
0 %
have average summer surface temperatures of greater than 97 degrees Fahrenheit
0 %

Funding

Municipalities can explore a number of opportunities to fund bus stop improvements in their jurisdiction:
  • Local, state and federal grants
  • County measures
  • Maintenance opportunities
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Best Practices

See bus stop showcase projects and case studies.

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Resources

Some useful resources needed for bus stop improvements in one place:
  • Plans, guides and reports
  • Maps
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What can you envision by using the tools here?

See bus stop data.

Metro is committed to supporting jurisdictions as they prioritize bus stops in need of improvement. To accomplish this goal, Metro recently conducted an analysis of all 12,000 bus stops it serves in Greater Los Angeles. We developed a series of criteria that allow jurisdictions to explore different methods for identifying priority bus stops in their community.

To support bus stop planning representatives seeking to transform bus stops in their neighborhoods into community assets, Metro has put together a variety of helpful resources.

To support cities, Metro developed an interactive Bus Stop Builder. This builder empowers planners to envision how they could improve bus stops in their cities.

  • The Bus Stop Builder allows planners to select a bus stop location and then pick, drag and drop bus stop amenities onto their creation from a custom library that includes upgrades such as lighting poles, benches and shade structures.
  • Planners can share their creation to showcase and gather support for bus stop improvements from key stakeholders in their city.
  • The builder is just an aid, not a design tool, and any planning for bus stop design should be reviewed by a design professional.
  • ADA compliance, safety, amenity size and dimension should be considered before any final designs are approved.
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Municipal bus stops are gateways to the Metro system and improving these entry points is a priority.

According to Metro’s 2022 Customer Experience Plan:

want to make bus stops easier for people with mobility limitations to navigate
0 %
a majority want to make bus stops easier for people with mobility limitations to navigate
> 0 %
The Bus Stop Builder

The Bus Stop Builder is a one-of-a-kind interactive tool that allows planners to envision bus stop improvements at a bus stop location of their choice. 

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Connect

We bring together city representatives and experts from across the transportation industry to collectively address challenges, share best practices and develop initiatives for enhancing bus stop infrastructure and customer experience in LA. By coordinating in-person events, we catalyze knowledge exchange and actionable plans for improving bus stops.

As an ongoing effort, we engage planners, technical experts, academic partners and community organizations in technical workshops and regional working groups to promote collaboration and drive bus stop improvements in Los Angeles and the region. For more information, please email busstophub@metro.net.

 

This tool is best used on desktops and laptops.

Step 2: Add your amenities to your bus stop

  • Click the “Amenity Library” button to open the Library:
    • Scroll through the Amenity Library on the right to drag and drop your chosen amenities or use the “Add” button.
    • You can add, move, rotate, scale, and delete any amenity. You can also add as many as you like.
    • NOTE: All amenities may not be appropriate for all sidewalk widths. Consider amenities like the Lean Bar for narrower sidewalks, whereas amenities such as Shelters are more appropriate for wider sidewalks.


Step 3: Save your design

  • Choose the “Finalize & Save” button, then fill out the brief Contact Form.
    • You’ll then be taken to a unique link to your design; keep it on file for viewing later at any time.

Using the Builder to design your bus stop

This tool is best used on desktops and laptops, and when the background image you choose below is viewed straight on

Step 1: Find your background image

  • via the map below on the left, you can go to the bus stop you wish to design, then drag the gold Google “Pegman” (in the map below, lower right corner) to where your bus stop is on the map, or
  • via the “Upload Background” button, you can upload an image of the bus stop from your local device (it works best if your image is square), then you’ll be taken to Step 2 right away, or
  • you can type in an address or street corner and city via the search field, then click the “Search” button and then drag the gold Google “Pegman” (in the map below, lower right corner) to the red location Pin.


NOTES: It’s possible Google hasn’t created a Street View for some bus stops. If this is the case for the bus stop you want to add amenities to, you may want to consider taking a smartphone photo of that bus stop and uploading it here via the “Upload Background” button (crop your image square). Per Google Street Map View compliance rules, it is not possible to edit the lighting or shading of a Google Street View background, so choose thoughtfully or upload your own image.

Once you have your chosen bus stop background on the right, select the “Design Bus Stop” button to go to the next screen to then add amenities.