Airport officials on Thursday confirmed the long-planned Automated People Mover project at LAX won’t be completed until the end of 2025, with service beginning in January 2026.
The project, which was supposed to be done this year, has been hampered by delays and additional required work, which also prompted the Los Angeles World Airports board to allocate an additional $550 million to developer LAX Integrated Express Solutions, or LINXS.
That money includes the $400 million in new funding sought and an additional $200 million that had already been authorized for LINXS, as well as a $50 million contingency fund.
Despite the delays and increased costs, local officials were effusive in their praise for a train that will take an estimated 30 million passengers about 2.25 miles to and from the airport for free in just 10 minutes. Ideally, with more passengers using the Automated People Mover, traffic will ease in the airport’s busy horseshoe and neighboring streets.
“Constituents who drive, live and work around LAX are eager for the train to start taking cars off the road,” Councilwoman Traci Park said in a news release. “I am hopeful this project will reduce congestion on our local streets; give people time back in their lives; and improve mobility for residents, travelers, and patrons of our local businesses.”
John Ackerman, CEO of Los Angeles World Airports, was more than hopeful; he’s expecting that “LAX’s train will make life better for millions of people year after year.”
“This is a critical step in our transformation of LAX to make it more welcoming, convenient and sustainable, and to enhance the airport as an economic engine for our region,” Ackerman said in a release. “Completing this program with certainty is a top priority of LAX leadership, and this agreement does just that. The train will also make it easier for Angelenos to work at LAX, easing commutes and stress.”
