To the editor: We have traveled all over the world, in both developing and fully developed countries. In our experience, Los Angeles Airport, with its off-airport ride-share parking lot called LAX-it, is the worst. In New York, you simply line up for a taxi to take you wherever you need to go. (“The ride from your plane to the LAX-it airport ride-share parking lot can be a nightmare. Will it be fixed?”, July 31).
When the system was rolled out in 2019, it was like a computer upgrade: more complicated and far worse than the problem it was intended to solve.
Previously, we could just walk in and out of LAX. Now, we (ages 77 and 83) arrive, pick up our bags, and then check an app. Then, we hop on a bus at a stop that is neither clearly marked nor easy to find.
Those waiting for the bus do not queue up, but instead a crowd enters. The drivers do not help us lift our bags, but we must rely on the kindness of younger travelers. There are few seats available, so we hold on to straps and swing erratically for 20 minutes. Then we get off and run.
It is dangerous and exhausting.
The answer is simple: let people who need transportation design this system. When exiting the terminal, there should be signs every 15 to 30 meters indicating where to queue for a taxi or ride-sharing service. Unobstructed paths should be provided to exit the airport onto all public roads, without the need for apps or phones.
Cheryl Younger and Allan Harris, Los Angeles
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To the editor: It's long past time to fundamentally redefine access to air travel in Los Angeles.
Driving to the airport and parking near the gate is no longer a viable connectivity concept. The central parking lots on the horseshoe-shaped LAX roadway are not only past their prime from a structural standpoint, but they also prevent the opportunity to redefine arrivals and departures.
Someone thought it would be a good idea to stop the main public transportation system before the airport so that they could switch to an escalator-accessible passenger transportation system, while still having all the ride-sharing connections in that parking lot. That is totally wrong.
It's time to abandon that concept, move ride-sharing facilities to the center of the airport, move private cars out of the airport, and even carefully consider bringing public transportation directly through the middle to an airport station.
Richard Keating, San Marino
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To the editor: It's interesting that the front page article on getting transportation from LAX makes no mention of the excellent, always punctual and inexpensive Flyaway bus.
Wherever you're going, whether it's the Van Nuys stop or Union Station in downtown Los Angeles, Flyaway will get you to a place where, if you need to, you can easily hail a taxi or call an Uber or Lyft.
We never travel to or from LAX without taking that bus.
Ellen Butterfield, City of Studies
