Click above to watch the video on YouTube. Arrows on top left of video allow you to turn the camera right, left, up and down.

Metro is rolling out videos that show 360 degree views of construction on two of our major transit projects: the Regional Connector and the Purple Line Extension. Above is a screen grab from the Regional Connector video — click the above photo to see the video on YouTube (the 360 degree view doesn’t work in our blogging software).

The video was shot in late 2018 and provides a great behind-the-scenes view of the vast amount of work required to build this project, as well as the large construction sites. For those unfamiliar, the Regional Connector is a pair of 1.9-mile rail transit tunnels under downtown Los Angeles that will tie together the A Line (Blue), E Line (Expo) and L Line (Gold) to provide faster trips to and through DTLA with fewer transfers for riders. The project is scheduled to open in 2022.  

To make this video, Metro worked with Heritage Tree Films, which is based in the Crenshaw Corridor. Paris McCoy, a Heritage Tree co-owner and cinematographer, is a native of our region and one of the relatively few African-American women working as a cinematographer.

As for the Regional Connector, here’s some more info on the project: 

•Here’s a detailed Source post from last week about the complexities and uniqueness of the project.

•Three new underground stations are being constructed. The Little Tokyo/Arts District Station will be at 1st and Central and will replace the nearby Gold Line Little Tokyo/Arts District Station that is at street level and will be demolished. The Historic Broadway Station will be located at 2nd and Broadway and will serve the Broadway Corridor and the L.A. Civic Center. The Grand Av Arts/Bunker Hill Station will be located at 2nd and Hope — a short stroll from Disney Concert Hall, the Broad, the Music Center, MOCA and the Colburn School, as well as many residences, restaurants and offices. 

•Here are some recent pics from 2019 that give you an idea of the scope of the work involved:

The crossover cavern where trains will be able to switch tracks under 2nd Street.

One of the twin tunnels under Flower Street.

The west end of the Grand Ave Arts/Bunker Hill Station at 2nd and Hope.

Ongoing work this winter at the Historic Broadway Station.

Recent work at the Grand Av Arts/Bunker Hill Station on the west side of Disney Hall and The Broad.

Work at Grand Av Arts/Bunker Hill Station.

•When connected to the existing L (Gold), A (Blue) and E (Expo) Lines, the project will allow Metro to run all three of those lines to and through DTLA. For example, it will be possible to run trains from East L.A. to Santa Monica or between Azusa and Long Beach. All trains will stop at five DTLA stations: Little Tokyo Arts District, Historic Broadway, Grand Av Arts/Bunker Hill, 7th/Metro and Pico and it will be easy to transfer between light rail trains headed to different destinations beyond DTLA.  

•One technically complex aspect of the Regional Connector is the construction of a mined crossover cavern that will allow trains to switch tracks between Little Tokyo/Arts District and Historic Broadway Stations. The excavation of the cavern, under 2nd Street between Spring and Main streets, is one of the largest tunneled excavations ever realized in Los Angeles. Connecting three light rail lines all built at differen times is another big challenge; we’ll have another post about that soon.

•The Regional Connector project home page on metro.net has a ton of great info. A gallery of construction pics is here.