L.A. Metro unveils new station names, advances construction of Crenshaw/LAX transit-rail

The Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s (Metro) board approved names for the eight new stations along the Crenshaw/LAX transit-rail project.

The official station names are Expo/Crenshaw, Martin Luther King Jr., Leimert Park, Hyde Park, Fairview Heights, Downtown Inglewood, Westchester/Veterans and Aviation/Century.

Meanwhile, crews are continuing excavation work at the Expo/Crenshaw underground station, where they've reached a depth of approximately 50 feet and are expected to hit 65 feet in the next few weeks. Contractors also have reached 25-foot depths at the Martin Luther King Jr. station and the Leimart Park station. 

Excavation work continues at the Martin Luther King, Jr. underground station.
Photo: Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority

Additionally, crews soon will begin construction of an entrance/exit portal between Vernon Avenue and 48th Street. To that end, contractors will undertake steel pile installation, utility relocation, sidewalk reconstruction, and street excavation and decking, Metro officials said in a press release.

The 8.5-mile, $2 billion Crenshaw/LAX Transit Project involves the construction of a connecting light-rail route between the Green and Expo lines. The route is expected to open in 2019.

Metro is also carrying out several other light-rail expansion projects, as reported in the July cover story of Progressive Railroading.