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

  • Turning information into stories
    April 16, 2018
    IBTTA says its TollMiner tool can transform transportation planning. Here, the tolling organisation explains how it works – and what part it might play in Donald Trump’s infrastructure plan. Imagine being able to turn the black-and-white numbers in a spreadsheet into graphics and visualisations that tell a compelling story about essential transportation infrastructure. Having easy access to the solid, reliable data you need to plan surface transportation projects and assign project resources based on
  • Running on empty
    May 2, 2018
    Drivers are an increasingly rare species on Europe’s commuter metros as unattended train operation is embraced. David Crawford takes a low-speed tour of the continent’s capitals to see what’s happening. Unattended train operation (UTO) is fast becoming the norm for Europe’s metros, on existing as well as new lines. November 2017 statistics published by the International Association of Public Transport (UITP) show the continent as having 28% of the global total of route km on lines operating at the ultimate
  • USA’s first smartphone rail ticketing system to be launched
    April 24, 2012
    Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) and Masabi US, a transit mobile ticketing specialist, have jointly announced that they will be bringing mobile ticketing to MBTA commuter rail riders later this year. With applications for iPhone, Android, and Blackberry, customers will be able to seamlessly purchase commuter rail tickets and passes and, once they are purchased, customers will be able to use and display directly via their phone screen.
  • Acusensus highlights magnitude of seatbelt problem
    March 8, 2023
    If you don’t wear a seatbelt, you’re disproportionately likely to be killed in road collisions. Geoff Collins of Acusensus talks to Adam Hill about how AI will allow police to monitor and prevent this risky behaviour