Advocating for an Accessible and Equitable Sepulveda Transit Corridor
Access to transit is a major inequity across Los Angeles, disproportionally affecting people of color and low-income households - who are more likely to depend on public transit - as well as seniors and people with disabilities who depend on public transit for access to work, healthcare, education, and cultural attractions. The Sepulveda Transit Corridor must be accessible to all Angelenos and provide stops where people want to go, including students, groundkeepers, custodians, faculty, medical support staff, and administrative staff.
Commuters
Of UCLA’s total population (approximately 84,000), roughly 67,000 employees commute to campus on a regular basis. UCLA commuters come to campus from all directions, but those coming from the north account for approximately 26% of the total, while 23% of commuters come from the east. This represents almost half of all UCLA employees:
- UCLA has ~7,500 employees and ~2,350 students who live in the San Fernando Valley and travel to UCLA and Westwood almost daily.
- There are another several thousand employees who also come through the Sepulveda Pass almost daily, living in Santa Clarita and points further north including Palmdale and Lancaster.
- In addition, over 850 students and employees commute from the Conejo Valley and beyond.
- Commuters who live east of downtown L.A., generally in the San Gabriel Valley, will also benefit from the STC rail line—should it connect seamlessly to the D Line—as travel times via rail from places like Arcadia and East Los Angeles to the UCLA campus will be shorter than driving.
Employees
Beyond academics, UCLA provides tens of thousands of high-quality employment opportunities, and employs not only doctors, other health care professionals and professors, but also groundskeepers, electricians, food service workers, custodians, administrative staff, bus drivers and others.
UCLA is the fourth largest employer in LA County, with over 84,000 people on campus each day, including 37,000 UCLA employees on campus each day, which includes nearly 8,000 faculty and academic staff and over 29,000 staff members (not including medical residents and interns, graduate assistants or other part-time workers).
UCLA is the fourth largest employer in LA County, with over 84,000 people on campus each day, including 37,000 UCLA employees on campus each day, which includes nearly 8,000 faculty and academic staff and over 29,000 staff members (not including medical residents and interns, graduate assistants or other part-time workers).
Students
Almost one-third of UCLA students are the first in their family to go to college.
- The proportion of admitted California first-year students who would be the first in their families to attend college is 43.1% as of 2024.
- 70% of first year's admitted to UCLA are California residents.
- The proportion of first-year students from underrepresented groups is 45.4% and for transfer students it is 31.2%.
- 28% of UCLA students receive Pell Grants, federal need-based grants for low-income students.
- In the 2022-23 academic year, 64% of undergraduates received a need-based scholarship or grant aid, with an average award of $22,061.
A Case Study
A study from the University of North Carolina’s School of Law and Unidos US found that former Latinx college students surveyed reported “transportation problems” as one obstacle to college completion at a rate 19 percent higher than their peers. Transportation is often the single thread allowing a student to attend school while juggling multiple other responsibilities (related to work, school, and home); if that thread is broken, everything can unravel. Among the challenges students faced:
- lacked reliable access to a car and cobbled together multiple transportation methods, such as carpools, rides with friends or family who have cars, public transportation and walking, to get to and from campus.
- struggled to pay for transportation and to schedule their commutes into their routines.
- impacted their ability to juggle full range of responsibilities, from getting from class to work to driving siblings to school.
Housing
Housing in the Westwood area is among the most expensive in the nation. It is essential for equity reasons that rapid transit options be available to students and employees who are traveling to UCLA to make a better life for themselves and their families. This is especially true for students with extreme commutes (extreme being > 50 miles or 90-minutes each way); these commuters comprise a hidden population of housing-insecure students who might decide to live closer to UCLA in a more affordable area if there was adequate public transit available.
Arts, Culture & Entertainment
UCLA and Westwood are home to a thriving arts and cultural community that unfortunately is not easily accessible by Metro. Many of these entities are free and open to the public, yet inaccessible to many Angelenos. On campus, the UCLA Sculpture Garden reflects founding Chancellor Murphy’s belief in the accessibility of art and its purpose in our everyday lives. Just a short walk away, the Fowler Museum houses arts from around the world with an emphasis on Africa, Asia, the Pacific and the Indigenous Americas. UCLA’s Center for the Art of Performance presents a diverse season of contemporary performing arts programs both on campus and in Westwood, providing public schools, UCLA students and the metropolitan L.A. area access to the arts. In addition, UCLA’s Royce Hall hosts numerous student groups who offer a wide variety of free concerts, dance and theater performances, and film screenings. Finally, for those who prefer the stadium over the stage, UCLA Athletics’ award-winning teams such as basketball and gymnastics perform at Pauley Pavilion and other sports facilities on campus.
Off-campus, Westwood boasts the Hammer Museum, the Geffen Playhouse, the Fox and Bruin Movie Theaters, the UCLA Nimoy Theater and private art galleries. It is also home to the Italian Cultural Institute and the historic Persian Square.
Access to art, culture and entertainment throughout the Sepulveda Transit Corridor should be available to all Angelenos. An on-campus UCLA station would help improve access to many of these venues, while a direct connection to the Purple line in Westwood would provide travelers from all along the Sepulveda Corridor access to cultural institutions such as LACMA, Koreatown, and Downtown Los Angeles.
Off-campus, Westwood boasts the Hammer Museum, the Geffen Playhouse, the Fox and Bruin Movie Theaters, the UCLA Nimoy Theater and private art galleries. It is also home to the Italian Cultural Institute and the historic Persian Square.
Access to art, culture and entertainment throughout the Sepulveda Transit Corridor should be available to all Angelenos. An on-campus UCLA station would help improve access to many of these venues, while a direct connection to the Purple line in Westwood would provide travelers from all along the Sepulveda Corridor access to cultural institutions such as LACMA, Koreatown, and Downtown Los Angeles.
