Yesterday, Southern California's premiere open streets event CicLAvia returned to South Los Angeles.
The six-mile route connected Central Avenue and Crenshaw Boulevard, the city's two historically Black corridors, via Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard.
The King and Central stretches of the route (and several other South L.A. corridors) have hosted past CicLAvia South L.A. events, but this was the first to incorporate Crenshaw Avenue between MLK and Leimert Park. Metro K Line construction had effectively precluded open streets events there for many years. The K Line finally opened just over a year ago, and many participants rode it to get to and from the route.
As usual, thousands of people showed up to enjoy car-free streets. Families walked, biked and scooted the route, mostly in the shadows of the Canary Island Pine trees that mark a living memorial to Dr. King.
Four hubs featured activities, booths, performances, food trucks, and more. Along the route, restaurants and other eats, from the 27th Street Bakery to street vendors, were packed with walkers and cyclists taking short breaks to recharge.
The weather was cool and sunny, perfect for a taking a walk or ride.
Overall attendance appeared slightly less than the massive crowds that CicLAvia events often draw. It was somewhat less convenient to take Metro rail to the event, as Metro had planned partial closures (for maintenance/construction) on its K and C Lines, as well as an unplanned B/D Line subway closure due to a significant electrical issue at Union Station.
Readers, how was your experience at yesterday's CicLAvia South L.A.?
