Figueroa Street

Figueroa Street
Length 25.00 mi (40.23 km)
Coordinates 34°2′59″N 118°15′34″W / 34.04972°N 118.25944°W / 34.04972; -118.25944
North end SR 134 near Eagle Rock
Major
junctions

US 101 near Downtown LA
I‑10 in Los Angeles

SR 91 near Gardena
South end John S Gibson Blvd in Los Angeles
Staples Center at 12th Street

Figueroa Street is a street in Los Angeles County, California named for General José Figueroa (1792 – 29 September 1835), governor of Alta California from 1833 to 1835, who oversaw the secularization of the missions of California.

Route

One of the longer streets in the city, it runs in a north/south direction for more than 30 miles (48 km) between the neighborhoods of Eagle Rock and Wilmington of Los Angeles. The northern terminus is just a little bit north of the Ventura Freeway west of Pasadena, and at Harry Bridges Boulevard in San Pedro, with a break between San Fernando Road in Cypress Park and College Street in Chinatown.

An early routing of Figueroa Street near downtown Los Angeles was part of U.S. Route 66, today a part of the Arroyo Seco Parkway. The noted Figueroa Street Tunnels were once a part of that same stretch of roadway. Figueroa resumes its course near the overcrossing of Sunset Boulevard over the Pasadena Freeway, just north of the "stack" or four-level interchange. The road passes through downtown Los Angeles near Bunker Hill and South Park. South of the Financial District, Figueroa Street services some popular locations including Staples Center/L.A. Live, the Los Angeles Convention Center, and the University of Southern California. For the rest of its southbound journey, Figueroa Street runs parallel to the Harbor Freeway (Interstate 110) in South Los Angeles. The only portion of Figueroa Street that lies outside Los Angeles city limits is in the city of Carson, but it soon reenters Los Angeles near Wilmington. The street ends at Harry Bridges Boulevard north of the Los Angeles neighborhood of San Pedro.

Some of the southern termini was once part of U.S. Route 6 before its almost total decommissioning through California in 1964; indeed, Figueroa Street at Pacific Coast Highway was the actual western terminus of that highway, although maps show that US 6 went as far east as Atlantic Avenue in Long Beach.

Early maps produced by the Automobile Club of Southern California measured distances to Los Angeles from the club's headquarters at the intersection of Figueroa Street with Adams Boulevard.[1]

On April 2, 2011, a portion of the street at Jefferson Boulevard was blocked off for the "Orange Carpet" and the grandstand for the broadcasting of the 2011 Kids' Choice Awards.

History

Entrance of Grammy Museum at L.A. Live

Figueroa was originally called Calle de los Chapules (or Grasshopper Street). Later in the 1880s it became known as "Pearl Street". The section of what is now Figueroa in Highland Park above Avenue 39 was known as "Pasadena Avenue" until Figueroa was extended through Elysian Park. The portion of what is now Figueroa between the Los Angeles River and Avenue 39 was originally known as Dayton Avenue until the Arroyo Parkway went through.[2]

Education

Transportation

Metro Local Line 81 bus stop at Figueroa and 65th Streets, Los Angeles, California. Metro Local Line 81 runs on Figueroa Street.

The Metro Green Line operates a station underneath Interstate 105 at Figueroa Street. Metro Local Line 81 operates on Figueroa Street between Colorado Boulevard and Interstate 105 and Torrance Transit Line 1 between Interstate 105 and the Harbor Gateway Transit Center. The Metro Silver Line runs on Figueroa Street between 23rd and 6th Streets: Northbound Silver line trips to El Monte Bus Station continue north on Figueroa Street to serve the 7th Street / Metro Center and finally turn right on 6th street, leaving Figueroa Street. Southbound Silver Line trips to Harbor Gateway Transit Center run south on Flower Street from 5th Street to the Harbor Transitway. There are 5 Silver line street stops served in the northbound direction: Figueroa/23rd, Figueroa/Washington, Figueroa/Pico, Figueroa/Olympic and Figueroa/7th. In addition, there are 5 Metro Silver Line Stations served on the Harbor Transitway close to Figueroa Street: 37th Street/USC, Slauson, Manchester, Harbor Freeway, and Rosecrans. The Harbor Transitway is located on the I-110 freeway, between Figueroa Street and Broadway. The Lincoln/Cypress Station for the Metro Gold Line on Avenue 26 at its intersection with Lacy Street is about a 5-minute walk from Figueroa Street.

Notable Landmarks

Buildings on Figueroa

References

  1. ↑ See Route 66: Traveler's Guide and Roadside Companion by Tom Snyder for examples
  2. ↑ Lucas, Greg (29 September 2011). "The Streets of Los Angeles". California's Capitol. Retrieved 22 Jun 2012. Grasshopper Street – Calle de los Chapules – is now Figueroa which, in turn, is a tip of the hat to the former Mexican Governor Jose Figueroa.

External links

Route map: Bing / Google

This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the Thursday, February 11, 2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.