Metro Mysteries - L A (Part 2)

Sylmar - North Hollywood - Universal

The 224 is one of Los Angeles' shorter routes. 

The core route starts at Sylmar station were the stop is literally next to the platform (just out of shot, right).

The only obvious information is a stop "flag" with numbers ...

... whch includes our 224. Another route shows the platform waiting shelter ...

... although the bus is red, not orange!

The occasional extensions to start from Kennedy Road are shown on the map. Here, on an industrial estate, is the reason for the part service, viz a large Medical Centre ...

But from Sylmar station, the bus trundles south west (ish) to North Hollywood. We pass through place names that will probably be familiar to lovers of LA, namely, San Fernando, Paloma and Sun Valley.

North Hollywood is a Metro metro station (i.e. Undergound) which will feature in a later blog.

A photographic "artist" has assembled a montage of signage at the station, so, as in the UK ...

... consistency is not always consistent.

fbb has struggled to unravel this station which, as we might expect, is offering interchage with all local bus routes and some longer distnce ones as well.

There is a Metro bus station to the east of the most obvious station entrance ...

... and there is more interchange on the opposite side of the road.

Here is another small bus station which we will meet in a later blog. Our route 224 to "Universal" stops on the street opposite the multicloured station access. All the stops on the western side of the road are reached by subway.

Complicated, innit?

Below is an extract from the timetable.

All timetables are offered in a horizontal format whereas in the UK most operators and local authorities always use a vertical table. The L A  version takes a bit of getting used to.

The Monday to Friday 224 runs every 15 minutes on the core with a running time of just about one hour.

Click on the graphic for an enlargement.

The 224 has another trick up its sleeve. The main service terminates across the road from Universal Studios ...

... as we have seen ...

... but, in the evenings, buses are extended south to Hollywood Highland.

Here the evening 224 replaces something called Dash on Streetview ...

... which may, or may not be "Hollywood Clockwise" ...

.. on Google Maps. Wherever and whatever the daytime bus may be, we are certainly reminded that Hollywood is not all film stars and glamour!

To simmarise: we have followed Metro route 224 from Sylmar in the north ...

... continuing south west-wards (from top left on map below) via North Holywood to Universl studios (below, lower right) ...

... and enlarged).

In the process, we may have gained just a little insight into the Metro bus network of Los Angeles.,

Or we might have become very confused!

 Next Universal Metro metro : Wed 12 Feb