El Monte Busway - Bus Services

Bus Services

Bus service operates from Downtown Los Angeles to various points in the San Gabriel Valley and Pomona Valley, as well as the San Bernardino County cities of Chino and Montclair. Foothill Transit Line 481 continues to Koreatown to the Wilshire/Western station of the Metro Red Line.

Bus services are provided with a mix of Foothill Transit and Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority buses:

• Metro Silver Line
• Metro Express Line 485, 487, and 489
• Silver Streak (Foothill Transit)
• Line 481 (Foothill Transit)
• Commuter Express lines 493, 497, 498, 499, and 699 (Foothill Transit) – restricted boarding at alighting at intermediate stops during morning/evening peak

Foothill Transit's Silver Streak operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week; all other Foothill Transit routes operate weekdays only in the peak direction. Metro Express Line 489 operates weekdays only in the peak direction; Line 485 operates Monday through Friday into Union Station, line 487 and the Silver Line operate seven days a week. Hours vary for each line.

The fare structure differs between Metro Express, Foothill Transit's Silver Streak and Line 481, and Foothill Transit's Commuter Express. Fares vary based on the destination. Metro Express trips on the busway to and from El Monte Station are $2.45, however the base fare of $1.50 is applied for passengers not traveling east of Cal State L.A. Station except on the Silver Line which charges $2.45 regardless of trip length. As a result of the Foothill Transit-Metro "Silver2Silver" program, the Silver Streak also charges a $2.45 fare for all trips. The fare for Line 481 is $2.75, regardless of trip length. Commuter Express fares are $4.90.

The El Monte Bus Station is claimed to be the busiest bus terminal west of Chicago, with 22,000 boardings daily.