LA sucks when it comes to public transit: report

Car culture is still alive and well in Los Angeles.

Despite the influx of development around the new Expo stations that opened in May, more than 75 percent of all L.A. residents still don’t have access to public transportation, a new report has found.

Only 24 percent of Angelenos live within a kilometer — or 0.62 miles — of a light rail, metro or rapid bus stop, according to a report from the Institute for Transportation and Development Policy. In metropolitan L.A., that number is even lower: 11 percent.

Out of the 25 international cities examined in the study, as Curbed first reported, metropolitan L.A. ranks second to last. Only Johannesburg is less transit accessible.

The top four public-transit friendly cities are all in Europe. In Paris, for instance, nearly 100 percent of residents live close to transit stations. New York City ranked number six on the list, with 77 percent of residents living near public transit.

But L.A.’s dismal situation may soon change. If passed, a November sales tax ballot initiative would generate $860 million a year for infrastructure projects, including expansions and improvements to Expo lines. [Curbed] — Cathaleen Chen