We are, right this very moment, scouting for cheap parking at LAX (and cussing aloud) because there’s simply no workable public transportation from Orange County to spare us this agony.
Travelers make their way through Los Angeles International Airport on Wednesday, Aug. 28, 2024. (Photo by Axel Koester, Contributing Photographer)We’re not alone. Some 9.9 million trips out of LAX are taken by O.C. passengers each year, according to a new Orange County grand jury report noting the lack of options far more politely than we do.
This works out to about three LAX trips for every O.C. resident per annum. Which makes O.C. residents responsible for 13% of LAX’s passengers. With summer Olympics on the horizon, might it be a good idea to address this infuriating failure?
Of course. But federal regulations make that extremely difficult. Stay with us here.
The problem
“A substantial share of Orange County travelers continues to rely on LAX despite the proximity of John Wayne Airport (SNA),” the grand jury said (because: cheaper and more direct flights).
“The Grand Jury analyzed ten different transportation options, ranging from personal vehicles and ride-hailing services to combinations of Metrolink, Amtrak, LA Metro rail, and shuttle buses. Costs and travel times varied widely: the least expensive options, such as Metrolink combined with LA Metro light rail, generally involved the longest travel times, while premium private car services offered the fastest and most convenient—but highest cost—experience.”
We love the grand jury as a matter of principle — it’s the officially appointed government watchdog, whereas we’re self-appointed — but its analysis of public transport options from O.C. to LAX range from fanciful to outright fiction.
A couple kiss goodbye at a Metrolink station in 2024. (File photo by Terry Pierson, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG)Yes, we could get to a Metrolink or Amtrak station, then head to Union Station in downtown L.A., then take the FlyAway bus or a combination of light rail, and eventually arrive at the airport. The grand jury said we could do this in under two hours.
HA! On Saturday, we took Metrolink from the Laguna Niguel/Mission Viejo station to L.A. Union Station for the 127th Annual Golden Dragon Parade celebrating the Lunar New Year in Chinatown. From our front door, it took close to two hours just to get to Union Station.
The grand jury estimates it might take just 30 more minutes to get from Union Station to LAX. Perhaps it’s using an estimate for 3 a.m. on Christmas morning?
Then there are the light rail options from Union Station to LAX, which can involve up to four changes. Imagine that with luggage in tow!
And even if there were a feasible option, cars aren’t supposed to stay in a train station parking lot for more than 72 hours. So there’s that.
We summarily reject the assertion that there are any feasible public transportation options from O.C. to LAX. Period.
Proof: “Approximately 1% of LAX passengers use public transit,” the report notes.
Why?!
Federal regulations prohibit the Orange County Transportation Authority from running a bus straight from some central spot (or spots) to California’s largest airport.
This is apparently the work of Charter Service Restrictions (49 CFR Part 604), which states that, under federal law, agencies receiving Federal Transit Administration funds are restricted from providing “charter service” that competes with private companies. A direct, long-distance bus from Orange County to LAX might be legally viewed as competing with private shuttles or charter buses.
Would a little competition be a bad thing? Getting to and from LAX can cost as much as an entire airline ticket, often even more. A shuttle for my family to LAX would cost $218 round trip. Rideshares and taxis top $260 round trip.
Parking is usually much cheaper. But our summer trip this year is going to be an unusually long one (a bit more than three weeks, so you’re on notice, boss), and the cheapest public parking option is LAX’s Budget Lot on 111th Street. That’s $367.99. We’re regulars, so we get a discount code from the good folks at LAX Official Airport Parking, which drops our total down to $275.99.
We consult CheapAirportParking.org to compare prices. For the flush, the most expensive available option is the Marriott indoor valet for $929.95. The cheapest is 405 Airport Parking at $192.24. (Guess which one we’re using?)
There are a lot of improvements underway at LAX, including the Automated People Mover (a 2.25-mile elevated train connecting terminals, parking areas, the car rental facility and the LAX/Metro Transit Center, which is expected to transport up to 85 million passengers a year), as well as roadway upgrades that officials say will enhance airport access, ease congestion and reduce emissions.
Fab. But we’re not sure they’ll do much to improve public transport options from O.C.
Buses arrive at the FlyAway Thursday, Van Nuys CA. July 10, 2025. (Photo by Gene Blevins, Contributing PhotographerThe grand jury made several recommendations to nudge that along, concluding that there are five viable “candidate sites” for direct-to-LAX transportation services: the Anaheim Regional Transportation Intermodal Center (ARTIC); Irvine Transportation Center; Fullerton Park & Ride and Orangethorpe Transit Village Conceptual Study; The Village at Buena Park Mall (transit-oriented development); and Bolsa Pacific at Westminster (transit-oriented development at the former Westminster Mall).
“Establishing service from these locations could reduce trip times to LAX by 30 minutes or more, reduce traffic congestion and vehicle emissions, and potentially reduce overall transportation costs to LAX,” it said.
(Photo by Teri Sforza)Turns out that, between 2009 and 2012, FlyAway operated a direct route from the Irvine Transportation Center to LAX. It took about an hour. “Despite its convenience, the service faced several challenges, including a limited schedule of just six trips per day, a relatively high fare of $25, and low ridership,” the grand jury said. “During Fiscal Years 2011–2012, the route averaged only 48 passengers per day and generated an annual operating loss of $382,337, equating to roughly $21.89 per passenger. These factors contributed to the route’s discontinuation.”
The operator, Coach America, filed for bankruptcy in 2011. The service officially terminated the following year.
Still, the grand jury has recommended that the cities of Fullerton, Buena Park, Westminster, Anaheim and Irvine work with transit authorities to study FlyAway-type services from their areas, including projected ridership, financial sustainability and infrastructure readiness. They have three months to respond.
It also recommended that Metrolink increase service on the weekend OC Line; and that OCTA and Metrolink should “promote services that offer convenient connections to LAX, aiming to inform and guide travelers who are ready to choose public transit for their airport commute.”
OCTA is digesting the report and will respond, said spokesman Eric Carpenter. “The report correctly notes that federal law limits transit agencies that receive FTA funding from operating service to a single destination such as LAX. Any change to those restrictions would require federal action, not local policy changes.
“As far as the findings and recommendations related to FlyAway-style service, it would be up to LAWA (Los Angeles World Airports) to establish any new routes but we can coordinate with the cities noted in the report and provide technical input and data as appropriate. As the report also notes, LAWA’s previous attempt at direct shuttle service from Irvine to LAX was discontinued because of low demand.”
So we won’t hold our breath. Seems the car will always be king here in SoCal, and we will always park in strange garages uncomfortably far from the airport. Sometimes we do wish it was like New York, where you can take a train directly to JFK, to Newark, to LaGuardia… then we see the ice storms and 3-foot-high snow drifts and conclude that driving to LAX each time we travel is a small price to pay for paradise.
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