Los Angeles County Supervisor Janice Hahn has proposed a water taxi service capable of shuttling tourists and others between Long Beach and San Pedro when the Summer Games come to town.
The supervisor, who represents both cities and chairs the Metro Board of Directors, said she will propose a feasibility study on the service at the Metro’s next Ad-Hoc Committee meeting.
This comes hours after officials announced Long Beach will host 11 Olympics events — mostly along the shoreline — the second-most in the Los Angeles region.
In a release, Hahn envisioned the water taxis as a “fun and innovative” way to ferry tourists between events as well as waterfront hotels, restaurants and attractions.
“Long Beach will be the place to be in 2028 and I want us to get creative about how people will get there,” Hahn said in a statement.
Hahn’s proposal will ask for a broad study where “everything is on the table,” according to Liz Odendahl, a spokesperson for Hahn’s office.
Without many details yet, Hahn said the service would run during the 2028 games and be operated by LA County Metro within the neighboring cities’ breakwater. Options include Metro buying water taxis, renting them or contracting with third-party operators, according to Odendahl.
Water taxies would tie well, Hahn explained, with other traffic-decongestant measures and work toward LA Mayor Karen Bass’ ambitious ‘No-car Games’ plan.
“If we really want the 2028 games to be ‘transit-first,’ we have to make transit fun for people and we can’t just rely on buses and trains,” said Hahn. “A water taxi would be a great time for visitors and residents alike and would keep traffic off our bridges.”
Long Beach Transit already operates a $1 water taxi service within Rainbow Harbor and a $5 one-way trip to Alamitos Bay.