Skip to main content

Look what she made them do: Taylor Swift boosts public transit

LA Metro is latest US transport agency to add more services for fans to get to Eras Tour
By Adam Hill August 3, 2023 Read time: 2 mins
Taylor's Version: Shake It Off - driving, that is, as Swifties use public transit instead (© Starstock | Dreamstime.com)

Taylor Swift’s global Eras Tour continues to cement her position as an unlikely bastion of public transportation.

In Los Angeles, where she begins a six-night residency at SoFi Stadium tonight, LA Metro has put on extra services and encouraged fans - known as 'Swifties' - to use train, bus and free shuttles to get to the concerts, rather than driving (although it does also point them to car parking spots at stations).

"We’re enchanted that Taylor Swift fans have given a big boost to public transit across the US this year — and we’re looking forward to spending our midnights with many of you very soon.  

LA Metro says that trains will be running until around 2am and lays out instructions on how to access Tap cards, as well as detailing three specific sets of directions for people to follow, depending on where they are coming from - for example, fans coming from the Westside, Eastside, Central LA and points north should take the K Line to the Downtown Inglewood Station and ride the shuttle to SoFi. 

The shuttles from the C Line and K Line to SoFi will run before the concerts from 3:30pm to 6:30pm and for 90 minutes after the concerts end.  

With some pride, LA Metro also points out that the singer filmed part of her Delicate video on the city's transport system: 7th/Metro Station and the B/D Line subway.

Agencies elsewhere in the country have been getting into the swing of persuading Swifties to ditch their cars: for instance, Southeastern Pennsylvania Transport Authority (Septa) said it added extra services to allow riders to 'shake off' congestion.

Related Content

  • Florida’s Altamonte Springs uses Uber pilot program with Uber to expand transportation coverage
    April 5, 2017
    To Uber or Not to Uber, that is the question cities must answer as they consider the pros and cons of inviting private transportation service providers to fill transportation gaps. Back in 1999, Frank Martz, city manager of Altamonte Springs, Florida, had an idea to expand transportation services to areas not covered by the local bus company.
  • Green light for emergency response day
    September 20, 2022
    Emergency Response Day has returned to the ITS World Congress in Los Angeles this year, giving delegates and visitors the opportunity to see how smart technology is helping to ensure safety in the most high-pressure environments.
  • Brooklyn eyes Bogota’s BRT system
    June 17, 2016
    David Crawford considers the increased interest in bus rapid transit and looks that the latest trends. Bus rapid transit (BRT) is gaining an increasingly high profile in the US public transport agenda, for two main reasons. One is the potential for ‘trains on wheels’ to save substantially on installation costs as compared with other modes such as underground metros or light-rail transit. Another, highlighted in the case of New York City, is the value of having a rapid surface-based alternative available whe
  • 'Half of US' fears Covid-19 on public transit
    March 26, 2020
    Nearly half of 1,000 Americans who took part in an opinion poll feel riding on public transit poses a high health risk due to the Covid-19 outbreak.