After two days of pomp, the new Eastside Gold Line began regular weekday service earlier this morning. There was a sprinkling of riders on the train at 4:10 a.m. at Mariachi Plaza, with more passengers jumping on the train as the morning proceeded.

Several riders said they had switched from taking the bus to the train and some were heading to Union Station — the region’s rail hub — to switch to other trains.

It will, of course, be interesting to see how the ridership numbers develop over the next few days. Metro estimates about 75,000 people took the Eastside Gold Line on Sunday when rides were free and several events were being held on the Eastside.

Also, new timetables for the entire Gold Line are now available on the Metro website by clicking here. Trains will need 24 to 25 minutes to run the entire six-mile length of the Eastside Extension of the Gold Line, according to the timetables.