On February 26, 2026, Metro held their monthly regular board meeting at One Gateway Plaza near Union Station, where the public can attend and comment both in person and online.
February’s agenda discussed the first segment of the D Line extension, plans and concerns for Metro’s role in the FIFA World Cup at SoFi Stadium, an eminent domain plan with the East San Fernando Valley Rail project, and Metro CEO Stephanie Wiggins delivered a report on staggering increases in Metro rail ridership.
The board also voted on awarding a contract for World Cup charter buses and increasing access to teleconferencing for Metro meetings and affairs.
D Line Extension Official Opening Date Announced May 8, 2026
Metro Board Chair Fernando Dutra excitedly announced that Section 1 of the D line westward expansion will open on May 8, 2026. With three new stations along Wilshire Boulevard on La Brea, Fairfax, and La Cienega, the D line extension will transform commutes, cultural engagement, and nightlife.
The Board members even did a hand-driven drum roll with fervor on the desk right before Chairman Dutra unveiled the opening date.
The Chairman remarked that with the opening of the La Cienega station, riders can now travel between Beverly Hills and DTLA within 21 minutes. “That’s the kind of word-class transit system Angelinos deserve.”
While the May opening date is later than Metro’s original projection of Winter 2026, the board is pleased that the first segment of the D line extension will be fully operational in time for both the Olympic and Paralympic Games and FIFA World Cup.
Metro CEO Stephanie Wiggins Announces Metro Rail Ridership Significant Year-over-Year Increase
After excitement from the board and the public about the D line extension opening date, Metro CEO Stephanie Wiggins delivered her report on ridership numbers and Metro quality control initiatives.
Wiggins reported that A line ridership is up 11.5% after the opening of the Foothill Extension into Pomona in September 2025 with 14% growth on weekdays for the commuter corridor in the DTLA-Pico segment. Ridership for the southern segment, DTLA to Long Beach, grew 4.6% while the northern segment, Chinatown to Pomona North, grew 12.8%.
Ridership also increased across other Metro rail lines, most notably a 12% increase on the E line and a staggering 45% increase on the K line, largely due to the LAX Transportation Center. However, Wiggins expressed concern that bus boardings reported a 3% year-over-year decrease due to immigration enforcement.
With the A line being the longest light rail line in the world and seeing significant increases in ridership, a new proactive pilot was announced with the intent to make the trains cleaner and safer. More service attendants, HOME Outreach team members for riders experiencing homelessness, and transit security staff will be hired to address riders’ safety concerns. Since Union Station is the midpoint for the A line’s 57.6-mile route, A trains currently stop there for express cleanings and code of conduct checks.
Wiggins reports that this pilot has shown promising results with both Union Station Metro employees and end-of-line staff in Pomona reporting cleaner trains and a 63% decrease in rider incident reports. However, a public commenter expressed frustration with the operator change on the A line saying that it takes too long and Metro should prioritize shortening the process.
Since safety remains the foremost friction point in converting drivers to riders for trips where transit is feasible, Wiggins announced there will be a rollout of a new Metro Online Safety Hub to address riders’ safety concerns.
After CEO Wiggins’ report, Director Jacquelyn Dupont-Walker took the mic. She memorialized a long-time rider whose family told the board that he passed away and that he referred to the Metro bus as his car. “Riders like him are the heart of Metro and we are grateful for the trust he placed in our services for 30+ years.”
Board Approves Resolution of Necessity to Eminent Domain Residential and Commercial Property in Panorama City
The agenda then turned to a hearing to adopt a Resolution of Necessity for the Eastern San Fernando Valley Light Rail project, which will create 9.2 miles of dual-track with 14 at-grade stations. The initial operating segment is 6.7 miles of alignment along Van Nuys Boulevard and construction is currently underway.
The resolution is for a full fee simple and improvements pertaining to realty (IPR) for an acquisition of two billboards, one business, and one residential property on Van Nuys and Plummer Street in Panorama City. Relocation benefits will be offered to the commercial and residential displacees including moving costs, replacement housing payments, advisory services, and reimbursement of incidental expenses. Replacement site and re-establishment benefits are also offered to displaced businesses by Metro resolutions.
However, public comment met the resolution with disfavor. A representative for the commercial tenant, a medical service, spoke. The representative stated that the medical service has very limited options for relocation due to intense regulatory requirements. Building a new site for the service would be cost-prohibitive and take too long, north of $500,000 and several months in order to stay compliant. Given the sensitivity of their patients’ needs to stay consistent with their treatments, they are unable to be fully built out before the resolution would go into effect.
A second public comment came from the attorney of another tenant. The tenant found Metro’s statutory offer and relocation benefits to be insufficient given that they also faced an incredibly cost-prohibitive relocation.
Director Lindsey Horvath expressed concern for the residents impacted by the displacement. Namely, how much assistance would the impacted residents receive and for how long?
Under federal law, the Uniform Relocation Act, residents and businesses must receive a Notice of Eligibility for displacement benefits and replacement property if their home or business will be seized under eminent domain. For displaced businesses, California state law also mandates additional benefits for loss of goodwill as a result of eminent domain. Metro staff elaborated that the agency will cover 42 months of rental assistance or replacement housing costs, which is computed as the difference between the replacement housing and their original housing. However, this form of relocation assistance is paid out in two lump-sum payments, not monthly benefits.
Despite the concerns from businesses and residents, the motion passed unanimously 11-0 with Director Imelda Padilla abstaining. Directors James Butts and Karen Bass were absent.
Contract for Charter Buses Approved for 2026 FIFA World Cup
The agenda moved to the 2026 FIFA World Cup stadium shuttles where the FIFA committee awarded a five-month fixed rate contract to Zum Services for charter buses.
With about 100 days until the FIFA World Cup at the time of writing, implementation of a World Cup Games Enhanced Transit System was proposed and a handful of contractors placed bids for three different transportation zones. The Enhanced Transit System identified 14 shuttle bus routes connecting people from transit hubs and temporary park-and-rides to the stadium, estimated 300 buses needed to transport up to 25,000 spectators for the eight FIFA World Cup games. 11 potential routes across Southern California were identified with three highlighted as charter routes unrelated to regional transit.
Zum’s area of service would include transport to the stadium from El Camino College in Torrance, LAX area hotels and parking zones, and Pierce College in Woodland Hills. The Enhanced Transit System’s temporary charter buses proposed a $1.65 fare, just 10 cents less than current regular fares for bus and rail.
The board expressed concern about equity and accessibility with such a short time to implement these extraneous bus routes plus a multilingual wayfinding plan. Director Hilda Solis showed concern for how the charter buses would interface with areas outside the zones, and connect to light rail and other bus services. How would people reach SoFi Stadium from areas like Pomona and the San Fernando Valley?
The committee stated that there will be a major bus line to SoFi Stadium departing Union Station. They are also establishing a partnership with Uber to offer significant discounts for FIFA ticketholders coming from certain areas like Expo-Crenshaw. With time being of the essence, the FIFA committee is also coordinating with Riverside Transit Authority, Norwalk Transit, Montebello Transit, OCTA, Anaheim ARCTIC, and other regional transit authorities to temporarily increase service frequency during the World Cup.
A public commenter expressed disgust with the World Cup Games Enhanced Transit System, stating “The city doesn’t have resources for FIFA buses when fire recovery needs to be done, people need to be housed, and shuttles running around for rich people while the buses for Angelinos aren’t reliable and frequent enough.”
With Director Karen Bass absent, the motion unanimously passed to award Zum Services the charter bus contract.
After the major agenda items were voted on, a brief motion was passed to uphold SB 707, a state bill that would expand remote teleconferencing access to eligible subsidiaries like the Metro board. A closed session was then held with Metro’s legal counsel regarding existing and anticipated litigation against LACMTA, a labor negotiator for multiple unions, a real estate negotiator, and public employee performance evaluation. After the closed session, the public session resumed and public comments were given on a variety of Metro issues ranging from small contractor bids to fare enforcement and the actual conduct of Metro meetings.
