Meeting_Body
OPERATIONS, SAFETY, AND CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE COMMITTEE
JULY 17, 2025
Subject
SUBJECT: STATUS REPORT: METRO'S RESPONSE TO EATON & PACIFIC PALISADES WILDFIRES
Action
ACTION: RECEIVE AND FILE
Heading
RECOMMENDATION
Title
RECEIVE AND FILE status report on Metro's Response to Eaton & Pacific Palisades Wildfires.
Issue
ISSUE
At its January 2025 meeting, the Board passed Motion #36 by Directors Hahn, Barger, Horvath, Solis, Dutra and Bass (Attachment A) which directed the CEO to modify the eligibility criteria of all reduced fare programs to include individuals and families displaced by the wildfires for six months, with an option to extend the program as needed and report back to the board in June 2025 on the outcomes and impacts of this effort.
Staff immediately implemented the Wildfire Recovery modified LIFE enrollment. Riders participating in this program received a free 30-ride pass good on Metro, a free 90-day pass good on all LIFE participating transit agencies, and three months of 20-free-ride passes under the LIFE Program, regardless of income. The benefits allocated during this initial period expire six months after the individual's enrollment in the program.
On June 18, 2025, staff provided an oral report to the Board on the preliminary outcomes and impacts to riders and Metro employees affected by the wildfires. The next steps reported to the Board in June included staff conducting a financial analysis on the possibility of extending the program beyond the initial 6-month period, which ends on July 23, 2025.
Background
BACKGROUND
On the evening of Tuesday, January 7, 2025, wildfires, propelled by hurricane-force winds, low humidity, and dry bush, burned through multiple communities in Los Angeles County. The Palisades fire, which had started that morning, would go on to burn through more than 23,000 acres, reducing much of a vibrant community to ash, and killing at least eight people. The Eaton fire, which started later that...
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