Can LA host a 'car-free' Olympics?

The Indicator from Planet Money

NPR

Business

4.7 • 9.2K Ratings

🗓️ 22 September 2025

⏱️ 9 minutes

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Summary

Los Angeles is synonymous with car culture. But now that it's hosting the 2028 Olympics, could that be changing? On today's show, LA's public transit building bonanza, and why some worry the new infrastructure will benefit tourists more than locals.

Related episodes:
Why the Olympics cost so much
Why building public transit in the US costs so much

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Transcript

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0:00.0	NPR.
0:02.0	This is the indicator from Planet Money.
0:13.0	I'm Darien Woods.
0:15.0	And with me is reporter and Forbes columnist Sonari Glinton.
0:19.0	Many listeners will recognize his voice from NPR and Planet Money and his years covering the auto industry.
0:25.1	Now, Sonari lives mostly car-free in Hollywood.
0:28.1	It's good to be with you, Daryan.
0:29.7	And, you know, I've been thinking about Hollywood and driving, and Brian Wilson died this summer.
0:40.0	Rest in peace, Brian Wilson died this summer. Rest in peace, Brian Wilson, and at the time, the Little Duce Coupe album went to number
0:45.8	four on the Billboard charts.
0:47.7	Oh, the harmonies.
0:48.8	Yes.
0:49.2	I know it's a gratuitous song cue, but driving is a core part of California culture and even more so Los Angeles culture.
0:56.5	That, though, is changing.
0:57.8	Right. I heard Los Angeles is having a bit of a mass transit renaissance. It's building a new subway,
1:04.1	light rail, and adding $120 billion of transit infrastructure for Los Angeles County over 40 years.
1:11.6	Yeah, there's the 28 by 28 plan, which aims to complete 28 huge projects in time for the
1:19.2	2028 Olympics. Now, the goal is a no-car Olympics.
1:25.2	Quite a goal for a city known for its car culture.
1:29.6	Today on the show, the debate over how those billions of dollars should be spent
1:33.9	and how those funds will serve the Angelinos who already use LA's public transit.
1:50.9	Let's start with what is easily seen as the most important road in Los Angeles.
	...

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