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L.A.’s Airport Metro Connector scores $900 million approval, will break ground this fall

The Kind Of AMC That's Actually Open

L.A.’s Airport Metro Connector scores $900 million approval, will break ground this fall

The sinuous Airport Metro Connector Station (Courtesy Grimshaw Architects)

Los Angeles is still gearing up for the 2028 Summer Olympics, and one major change is the $14 billion facilities upgrade to Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) to help facilitate more passengers and transportation to and from the city’s mass transit options. That includes the $900 million Airport Metro Connector (AMC), which was approved by the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority board on April 22.

According to Streetsblog LA, the Metro Board scoffed at the project’s price but ultimately voted to unanimously fund the light rail station that will connect LAX to the E Line extension from Crenshaw and Exposition Boulevards and the Metro C Line extension. Once complete, the metro system will connect with the new LAX people mover.

Exterior rendering of a mesh-enclosed bicycle storage depot
The three-story bike storage hub for commuters. (Courtesy Grimshaw Architects)

With a budget approved, the city is hoping to secure a construction contract this summer and break ground in the fall. The board’s trepidation at the AMC’s cost is due to the fact that the project was originally slated to cost $581 million when Measure M, a sales tax plan put in place to fund rail, bus, and bike improvements across L.A. Since design is now 100 percent complete, it’s expected that costs won’t rise any further.

As for the AMC itself, London-headquartered Grimshaw Architects designed the facilities across the 9.5-acre site. That includes the Metro Airport Connector station with light rail access, the three-story Metro Bike Hub, a 16-bay bus station that can charge electric vehicles, retail space, communal pick-up and drop-off areas, and public restrooms.

Construction of the AMC is expected to be completed sometime in 2025.

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