Free rides on L.A. Metro through Sunday, but Amtrak and commuter trains shutdown

L.A. Metro has suspended fare collection on its trains and buses through Sunday as wildfires continue to ravage parts of the county, officials said Saturday.

But people wanting to take a train south to Orange County or north to Ventura and Santa Barbara were disappointed. Transportation officials shut down all Amtrak and Metrolink trains between San Diego and San Luis Obispo for pre-scheduled work on the tracks through the weekend.

That frustrated some Angelenos. “Wanting to get out of LA for a few days,” said one person on Reddit. “Is Metrolink not offering services?”

Trains were still traveling east to the Inland Empire and Antelope Valley.

Metro officials said earlier this week that L.A. County Supervisor and Metro Board Chair Janice Hahn had authorized the agency to stop collecting fares across its local bus and rail system. The agency extended the free rides through the weekend to help residents travel, including to shelters.

Metro also created a map showing evacuation and resource centers near its bus and rail routes.

Officials said riders should allow for extra time because the wildfires and wind have impacted service on some bus and rail lines.

Here are the current service alerts:

A LINE: Bus shuttles replace trains in both directions between the Southwest Museum and Fillmore stations due to wind damage to overhead wires. This work will continue into Saturday. Allow extra time if riding to or from the San Gabriel Valley.

LINE 134: Canceled due to the fire in the Palisades area.

LINES 180 and 217: Buses detouring between Los Feliz Boulevard/San Fernando and Vermont/Prospect due to downed power lines. Buses using Sunset, Alvarado, Glendale, Rowena, Hyperion, Glendale and San Fernando.

LINES 660 and 662: No service north of Washington Boulevard in the Pasadena and Altadena areas due to wildfires.

LINE 296: Buses detour to 5 Freeway between Los Feliz Boulevard and Western Avenue.

LINE 602: Canceled due to the fire in the Palisades area.

LINE 690: Buses in both directions are using the 210 Freeway between Foothill/Arroyo and Paxton/McLay.

METRO MICRO: In Pasadena, Altadena, and Sierra Madre, service north of Woodbury Road, New York Drive and Sierra Madre Boulevard is suspended. Service has been restored in the following areas:
*Rose Bowl area
*Lincoln Boulevard south of Montana Street
*Montana Street and south between the 210 Freeway and Los Robles Avenue
*Elizabeth Street and south between Los Robles Avenue and Hill Avenue
*New York Drive and south between Hill Avenue and Altadena Drive

All service alerts can be found at https://alerts.metro.net/