Listed below are some of the educational destinations that can be visited from 116th Street School. If you have the free Adobe Acrobat Reader program installed on your computer, you can click here to download a formatted, print-ready copy of this information.

     TransitPeople covers transit and admission costs for low-income participants in our weekend program. If you wish to take your students on a week day transit trip without TransitPeople, you can visit the MTA Pass and Token Information page to find a market in your area that sells tokens. A bag of ten tokens costs $9.00. Transfers, when necessary, cost an additional 25 cents per person. You also can call MTA information at 1-800-COMMUTE. MTA schedules and a computerized trip planner are online at their web site : www.mta.net

     When traveling via public bus, it is strongly recommended that you limit group size to 15 - 20 students, and never attempt to travel with more than twenty. If you bring more, you may be stranded if a bus does not have room for your group. 15 - 20 is also a good limit for travel via the Blue or Green Line. The Red Line subway can handle more; however, it becomes more difficult to safely manage students as the group size grows larger.

     If you are a teacher or youth group staff member who plans to take one of these trips on your own, please feel free to e-mail or call (213) 637-0409 for informal advice beforehand. The information that follows should be regarded as an outline. If traveling without TransitPeople, you also should obtain timetables for the routes you plan to use, as well as more detailed information on fares from MTA or other transit agency.

     If you are taking a trip on your own and plan to transfer from one train to another or from a bus to a train, be sure to purchase a transfer when you buy the first ticket.

Exposition Park

     Your group can visit Exposition Park by riding the westbound (Redondo Beach) Green Line one stop to the Harbor Freeway/I-105 stop, and transferring to a northbound #81 bus for a twenty minute ride to the park. The Green Line runs every 15 minutes on Saturdays; the #81, every ten.

     Alternatively, also at the Harbor Freeway/I-105 stop, your group could transfer to one of the Harbor Transitway buses northbound to the 37th Street Transitway exit. The Transitway is the Harbor Freeway's HOV (High Occupancy Vehicle) lane. Your group can board either a 444, 445, 446, or 447 bus; all four run through the city on their way to Union Station.

     The staggering of the Transitway schedule is irregular; a group arriving at the wrong time may wait twenty minutes, or longer. The fare also costs an additional $1.00 per person. However, the ride to the 37th Street exit is only ten minutes, and the Transitway offers a unique, enjoyable bus trip for kids.

     Exposition Park attractions include the Science Center, Natural History Museum and African-American museum.

Los Angeles Airport

     A 116th group can visit the airport by riding a westbound Green Line to the Aviation/I-105 station, and then boarding a Santa Monica Big Blue Bus route #3 for the 10 minute ride to the LAX transit center. At the LAX transit center, shuttle buses leave every few minutes for the airport terminal.

     The ride to the Aviation/I-105 station should take 13 minutes. The Big Blue #3 runs approximately every 20 minutes, and the ride to the LAX transit center should take about 10 minutes. The Big Blue Bus will accept an MTA transfer; the standalone fare on the #3 is 50 cents. Additional information is available on the Big Blue Bus web site, at www.bigbluebus.com.

     The Airport offers weekday tours for school groups.

Santa Monica

     A 116th group can visit Santa Monica by using the same route as that provided above for the trip to the airport. However, the ride on the #3 Big Blue Bus will take 40 to 45 minutes, rather than 10. In Santa Monica, the group could visit the Ocean Discovery Center, which is directly beneath the Santa Monica Pier.

Long Beach Aquarium

     A 116th group can visit the Aquarium by riding the Green Line one stop eastbound to the Rosa Parks Imperial/Wilmington station, then transferring to a Long Beach-bound Blue Line train for the 30 minute ride to the "Transit Mall" station at First and Pine in Long Beach. The Blue Line trains run approximately every 12 minutes. At First and Pine, your group can board a free "Passport" shuttle to the Aquarium.

"The Strand," Manhattan Beach

     A 116th group can visit the beachfront in Manhattan Beach by riding the westbound Green Line to the Douglas Rosecrans station and transferring to a westbound #125 Rosecrans Avenue bus. The Green Line ride should take 19 minutes. The #125 runs approximately every 25 minutes; the ride to the intersection with Vista del Mar, and a short walk to the beach, should take about 10 minutes.

Getty Museum

     A 116th group can visit the Getty Museum by riding the westbound Green Line to the Aviation/I-105 station, then transferring to a northbound #561 for the 35 minute ride to the Getty Center. The major drawback to this trip is that the #561 runs only once an hour.

L.A. County Museum of Art/Tar Pits

     A 116th group can visit the L.A. County Museum of Art and Tar Pits by riding the westbound Green Line four stop west to the Hawthorne/I-105 station, then transferring to a northbound #212 bus for the 45 minute ride to La Brea and Wilshire; from here, the group can walk west to the museums. The #212 runs every 15 minutes on Saturdays.

To Downtown Los Angeles

     The remainder of the trips described begin downtown. A 116th group can travel downtown by riding the eastbound Green Line one stop to the Rosa Parks Imperial/Wilmington station, then transferring to a northbound Blue Line for the 25 minute ride downtown.

     Attractions downtown include the central library, Olvera Street, Grand Central Market, Union Station and, on weekdays, the Wells Fargo History Museum.

Trips originating Downtown

Griffith Park (Zoo and Autry Museum)
Once downtown, your group can walk to Olive street and board a northbound MTA #96 bus for the half hour ride to the zoo. The #96 runs approximately every half hour on Saturdays.
Southwest Museum
Once downtown, your group can board either the northbound #83 on Spring Street or the northbound #81 on Hill Street for the 25 minute ride to the intersection of Avenue 45, north of the city, and the short walk to the museum. The ride will take aproximately 25 minutes. The #83 runs approximately every 15 minutes on Saturdays; the #81, every 10 to 12.
Huntington Museum
Once downtown, your group can board the northbound #79 on Olive Street for a 35 to 40 minute ride to San Marino Avenue in San Marino and the short walk to the Huntington. The 79 runs approximately every half hour on Saturday.
Arboretum
Once downtown, your group can board the northbound #79 on Olive Street for a 40 to 45 minute ride to Baldwin Avenue in Arcadia. The 79 runs approximately every half hour on Saturday. The walk north on Baldwin to the Arboretum from Huntington Drive may take another fifteen minutes.
Long Beach Aquarium
At the 7th Street Metro Center station, your group can leave the subway and walk upstairs to the Blue Line train. The train ride to the First and Pine "Transit Mall" stop in Long Beach takes about fifty minutes. From First and Pine, the group can catch a free Passport shuttle bus to the Aquarium, or walk.

Recommendations for 116th Street Elementary

  • Rail travel is almost always easier for student groups than bus travel.
  • Although the L.A. County Museum of Art and Tar Pits are excellent educational destinations, a forty-five minute bus ride is likely to be difficult for some kids. The Getty Museum is also a difficult transit destination for your group, as it includes a bus that runs only once an hour.