Metro Board OKs $135 Million for North Hollywood-Pasadena Bus Rapid Transit Project

The Los Angeles Metropolitan Transportation Authority Board of Directors approved $135 million Wednesday afternoon to advance the overdue North Hollywood to Pasadena Bus Rapid Transit project into its preconstruction phase, marking a major step forward for the delayed transportation initiative.

The funding package, detailed in Metropolitan Transportation Authority staff reports, includes $44.5 million for early construction activities and will cover design finalization and engineering work for the 19-mile, 22-station transit corridor.

The project, estimated to cost more than $320 million total, will connect the Metropolitan Transportation Authority A Line Memorial Park Station in Pasadena to the Metropolitan Transportation Authority B and G Line North Hollywood Station.

Originally funded in 2016 through Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s Measure M sales tax with $266 million, the project’s groundbreaking was initially scheduled for 2020-2023. The state provided an additional $50 million in transit capital grant funds in 2018.

The new transit line will serve Burbank, Glendale, Pasadena, and Los Angeles City neighborhoods of Eagle Rock and North Hollywood.

The project faced opposition from some Eagle Rock residents, who filed a lawsuit over proposed bus lanes on Colorado Boulevard in that community.

In 2022, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority approved a fairly ambitious design, largely based on a context-sensitive pro-transit community design. Burbank residents also protested against planned bus lanes in their area.

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority has already awarded two smaller contracts for project management and architecture/engineering. The newly approved funding brings onboard the Bus Rapid Transit project Construction Manager/General Contractor to begin utility investigation and relocation work.

Rising construction costs and slower-than-anticipated sales tax revenue have contributed to the project’s delays.

Local bus riders continue to miss out on improved service while the Metropolitan Transportation Authority races to complete the transit line before the 2028 Olympic and Paralympic Games. If the preconstruction phase proceeds as planned, full construction is expected to begin by 2027.