The Summer Olympic Games scheduled for Los Angeles in 2028 will be car-free with spectators expected to leave their private vehicles behind and only use public transport to access events, Democrat mayor Karen Bass decreed Saturday.
Bass addressed the issue of the city’s notorious traffic in her opening remarks at a press conference in Paris as that city’s games came to a close.
She added Angelenos not traveling to events over the tw0-week festival of sport will be expected to work remotely to keep freeways clear, citing COVID restrictions as an example of how stay-at-home expectations can be implemented even as the city is currently known more for its crime levels than any sporting endeavors.
“We’re already working to create jobs by expanding our public transportation system in order for us to have a no-car Games,” she said. “And that’s a feat for Los Angeles, as we’ve always been in love with our cars. We’re working to ensure that we can build a greener Los Angeles.”
Bass said public transportation will be the only way to access the city’s Olympic venues. Her plan to address traffic includes using 3,000 buses borrowed from other U.S. cities, and asking businesses to allow their employees to work from home during the Games, the Guardian reports.
L.A. mayor Karen Bass, left, and first lady Jill Biden clap after the National Anthem before a women’s water polo match between U.S.A. and Greece in the 2024 Olympics in Paris, France Saturday. (Wally Skalij/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)
It will be the third time Los Angeles hosts the Olympics – the city was also the venue for the Games in 1932 and 1984. Bass observed widespread concern over traffic before the 1984 Games proved to be unwarranted.
“Angelinos were terrified that we were going to have terrible, terrible traffic, and we were shocked that we didn’t,” Bass said. “But I will tell you, in 1984, we didn’t have any of the technology that we do today. We learned in Covid that you can work remotely.”