One of the largest light rail station overhauls in the history of the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority recently wrapped up.

The $129 million Willowbrook/Rosa Parks Station Improvement Project in South Los Angeles was completed in mid-August, and the station fully reopened to the public.
 
The station overhaul is the centerpiece of the $350 million renovation of the 22-mile Metro A Line from downtown Long Beach to downtown Los Angeles, which began nearly three years ago.
 
Metro recently renamed the Blue Line the A Line. The rest of the A Line improvement work mostly centers on electrical and signal upgrades.

Since it opened 30 years ago, the Willowbrook/Rosa Parks station, at the intersection of the Glenn Anderson (105) Freeway and Wilmington Avenue, has become one of the largest transit hubs in South Los Angeles, serving two light rail lines — the other is the C Line (Green) — six bus lines and three shuttle service lines.
 
The station serves roughly 30,000 passengers a day, according to Metro, making it the fourth busiest in its entire transit system.

With the upgrades, Metro sought to improve connections with the immediate Willowbrook community. Among the new features: a transit plaza with nine bus bays, numerous bicycle racks, a park-and-ride lot with upgraded electric vehicle charging stations, a pedestrian crossing and a customer service center building.

“Metro brings equity to this underserved community with improved Metro services,” Stephanie Wiggins, Metro’s chief executive, said in a statement. “Navigating this station has never been so convenient and easy. Everything is here to provide seamless journeys for our customers and to enhance the customer experience for residents of Willowbrook and surrounding areas.”  

Edmonton, Alberta-based engineering and design firm Stantec Inc. led the design work on the project, while Westlake-based Icon West Inc. was the general contractor. The subcontractors included PacRim Engineering Inc. of Santa Ana for structural engineering.

“The revitalized facility will provide thousands of patrons with improved access to many of L.A.’s most critical amenities while enhancing the busy station’s role as a key community resource,” Amy Chang, senior project manager in Stantec’s Los Angeles office, said in a statement.