LA Metro presents $161.5 million Reconnecting Communities plan for Florence Corridor, proposes new bus shelters and lighting

Meghna Khanna, deputy executive officer at the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority, told the Huntington Park City Council on Aug. 18 that LA Metro will deliver bus shelters, smart lighting, and pedestrian improvements along the Florence Corridor as part of the federal Reconnecting Communities Neighborhoods (RCN) grant.

Khanna said the total RCN program is $161,500,000, including $139,000,000 in federal funding, and that the Florence Corridor work within Huntington Park spans about nine miles and will include dozens of bus-stop and street improvements.

The city would receive 26 improved bus-stop locations along the corridor, Khanna said, with 23 new or replaced bus shelters, solar and smart pedestrian lights and 62 infill trees. “We received 161,500,000.0. That's the total program amount. We received 139,000,000 from the federal government,” Khanna said. She also said the project will add “real time travel times” displays at stops and other passenger information systems.

The plan for the segment through Huntington Park, Khanna said, includes signal-priority upgrades at intersections, 23 shelters, 23 solar smart lights and expanded real-time information. She told the council Metro is at about 30% design on the corridor and aims to complete final design by June 2026 with construction required to be complete by June 2028 under federal deadlines.

Nolan Borgman, a Metro program-management director, said Metro seeks a letter of agreement to formalize coordination and design-review milestones with the city. Borgman said the draft letter would set design review checkpoints at 30%, 60% and 100% and give city staff 10 working days to review milestone submittals; Metro would be responsible for construction, permitting and the public outreach that accompanies work in the right-of-way.

Council members raised design and maintenance questions. Council member Macias asked whether the new shelters would be added in places that already have shelters or would be new stops; Khanna and Borgman responded that LA Metro plans to add and replace shelters and will coordinate standards with each jurisdiction. Council members also pressed Metro to avoid “hostile architecture” in shelter design and to ensure shelters are durable and maintainable after handover. “We are happy to get into the city to see if there's other ... shelter standards we should be using,” Khanna said.

Metro staff also described modest street changes such as bus bulbs and said the agency will review impacts on bike riders and traffic circulation with city engineers. Metro noted it expects to hand over finished assets to the city for ongoing maintenance and to reimburse city staff time under the proposed agreement.

Council members repeatedly asked Metro to coordinate design standards with neighboring jurisdictions and to ensure shelter design is both accessible and easy for the city to maintain. Council members also urged Metro to work with Huntington Park staff on solar lighting, Wi‑Fi feasibility and vandal-resistant materials.

The presentation closed with Metro saying it will continue regular meetings with city staff as the project advances and will bring a letter-of-agreement to the council for formal consideration.

Details and next steps: Metro is at ~30% design, targets final design by June 2026 and must finish construction by the federal deadline of June 2028; the Florence Corridor scope described a nine-mile extent with 26 stop improvements and 62 added trees. City staff and Metro will continue to coordinate on the draft letter of agreement and on technical standards for shelters and lighting.