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Metro Line
Bryant Irawan/Indonesia Media
 After conducting a thorough research on the Metro Lines in the Los Angeles area, I decided to head out to the nearest Metro Line and travel around Los Angeles for my Saturday. My journey began at the Sierra Madre Villa Gold Line station –the starting point of the Metro Gold Line-, the Gold Line serves to eleven other stations including Allen St., Lake Ave., Heritage Square, and even Chinatown. The Gold Line starts and ends at Sierra Madre and Union Station. I purchase my day ticket for five dollars at a ticket booth and travel down the Metro Gold Line. The Gold Line is actually the newest built Metro Line in Los Angeles. Once I pass Chinatown station, the end of the Gold Line is approaching and I could see the Amtrak and Metro Link trains lined up waiting for departure on the railways of Union Station. Once I arrived at Union Station, I discovered few options were available for passengers. Metro Link and Amtrak trains are available for long distance traveling within California. For example, Antelope Valley and San Diego are possible destinations for Amtrak and Metro Link trains. Besides the Metro Link and Amtrak, Union Station boasts the choice of riding the Metro Red Line. The Red Line starts at Union and travels all the way to the Wilshire or North Hollywood area. Then again, Metro buses is also another available choice for transportation at Union Station and don’t forget Union Station also includes the Gold Line as an option to travel.
 I decided to exclude Amtrak and Metro Link trains as part of my journey so I hopped on the Metro Red Line and traveled to North Hollywood. Unlike the Gold Line, the Red Line is actually a subway so relaxing scenery is definitely not a feature on the Red Line. Once reaching North Hollywood, I headed onward to try the Orange Line. The Orange Line is basically two buses merged into one and the Orange Line travels exclusively on a private bus way owned by Metro for faster transportation. The Orange Line is not well-known among the citizens of Los Angeles because it is relatively new and far from downtown. After reaching Warner Center via Orange Line, I headed all the way back to North Hollywood and then to Union Station. On the way to Union Station, however, I decided to get off at 7 th Street/Metro Center. Inside the Metro Center, passengers are able to transfer from the Red Line to the Blue Line as well as travel on Metro buses to travel elsewhere. Though Metro Line systems and Metro Link is limited in their stations, metro bus stations are always available at each station. Passengers may use local buses to travel onward to arrive at their destination after using the Metro Line. In addition, local buses are convenient and if you purchase a valid ticket from a Metro Line station, you are able to use the bus (with proof of your purchase) for a specific number of rides depending on what type of ticket you bought. Even though you are able to use your Metro Line ticket for buses and other Metro lines, Metro Link tickets require a different ticket. With the help of local Metro buses, the most you have to walk to your destination is half a mile. Public transportation is also cheap compared to driving in cars considering the rising gas prices. For example, if you were to travel from Sierra Madre Villa Station top Echo Park by car, the trip would at least cost $10.79 according to AAA formula (56.2 cents/mile). However, if you were to ride Metro, you would only spend $3.75.
 The Metro Blue Line is the longest Metro Line in all of Los Angeles. From Pico to Compton to 5 th street, the Blue Line takes you deep into south central Los Angeles. Instead of traveling on freeways or above cities, the Blue Line travels on roads just like ordinary buses! Though you might enjoy the scenery of south central LA, traveling on roads is slow from the abundance of traffic lights and stop signs. This makes traveling on the Blue Line a bit slower than other Metro Lines. But, I decided to try it anyways. As I reached the end of the Blue Line, I circled back to 7 th Street, but I decided to get off at Imperial/Washington Station instead in order to test the Metro Green Line. If you ever drive to LAX and wonder what the transit transportation is along the freeway, the Green Line is your answer. The Green Line travels from Norwalk to Redondo Beach. After a quick journey back and forth, Harbor Freeway station caught my eye and I decided to get off at that station instead of Imperial. I knew express Metro buses were available at Harbor Freeway and I never rode on a bus in Los Angeles before, so I thought this might enhance my experience and knowledge of public transportation. From Harbor Freeway, the express bus  took me all the way to Union Station. Before Union Station only provided train transportation. Currently, Union Station has expanded to be a transportation hub for subways, trains, buses, Amtrak, Metro Link, Red Line, and the Gold Line. Two of its features include a sky lit dome area and a mountain made from bottles and Chinese crockery excavated from around the station. Children are free to climb around the play mountain –“River Bench”- made by May Sun. But, my expedition was coming to an end and I boarded the Gold Line to start my journey home. 
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