With tests, a long-awaited train at LAX gets moving

The Automated People Mover is set to begin trial runs next week

- BY CLARA HARTER

THE TRAIN will connect terminals, pickup/drop-off spots and parking lots. It's still unclear when it will open.

(CHRISTINA HOUSE Los Angeles Times)

Recent travelers to Los Angeles International Airport are used to seeing an elevated railway connecting the terminals, but next week they will be greeted with a new and exciting sight — actual trains moving along the tracks.

The airport’s long-awaited Automated People Mover system will begin running without passengers Monday, according to airport executive Jake Adams, who is overseeing a $5.5-billion initiative to improve access at LAX.

Over a roughly 60-day testing period, empty trains will run on the same schedule that the airport intends to use once the system opens to the public.

The 2.25-mile electric train system is designed to help reduce airport congestion by connecting terminals, parking lots and passenger pickup / drop-off areas — ferrying riders over the airport’s notorious horseshoe loop.

“It’s really exciting, because not only is it a big milestone for the project, but it’s going to be a really visible milestone for all of our guests,” Adams said of the testing. “They're going to get to see tons of trains running up and down the guideway all over the LAX campus.”