section_path: Infrastructure/Transportation/Buses
section_name: Buses
paragraph_text: Buses
  
  The Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (LACMTA; branded as Metro) and other regional agencies provide a comprehensive bus system that covers Los Angeles County. While the Los Angeles Department of Transportation is responsible for contracting local and commuter bus services primarily within the city limits of Los Angeles and several immediate neighboring municipalities in southwest Los Angeles County, the largest bus system in the city is operated by Metro. Called Los Angeles Metro Bus, the system consists of 117 routes (excluding Metro Busway) throughout Los Angeles and neighboring cities primarily in southwestern Los Angeles County, with most routes following along a particular street in the city's street grid and run to or through downtown Los Angeles. As of the third quarter of 2023, the system had an average ridership of approximately 692,500 per weekday, with a total of 197,950,700 riders in 2022. Metro also runs two Metro Busway lines, the G and J lines, which are bus rapid transit lines with stops and frequencies similar to those of Los Angeles's light rail system.
  
  There are also smaller regional public transit systems that mainly serve specific cities or regions in Los Angeles County. For example, the Big Blue Bus provides extensive bus service in Santa Monica and western Los Angeles County, while Foothill Transit focuses on routes in the San Gabriel Valley in southeast Los Angeles County with one express route going into downtown Los Angeles. Los Angeles World Airports also runs two frequent FlyAway express bus routes (via freeways) from Los Angeles Union Station and Van Nuys to Los Angeles International Airport.
  
  While cash is accepted on all buses, the primary payment method for Los Angeles Metro Bus, Metro Busway, and 27 other regional bus agencies is a TAP card, a contactless stored-value card. According to the 2016 American Community Survey, 9.2% of working Los Angeles (city) residents made the journey to work via public transportation.