The 2028 Summer Olympics planned for Los Angeles will be car-free, with spectators forced to leave their cars behind and rely only on public transportation to get to the venues, Democratic Mayor Karen Bass declared Saturday.
In his opening remarks at a press conference in Paris to mark the closing of the Olympics, Bass referred to the city’s notorious traffic congestion problems.
She added to the Los Angeles crowd: The mayor, who will not be attending events during the two-week sports extravaganza, will be required to work remotely to keep highways closed to traffic and the city is currently known more for its high crime rate than sporting activities, citing COVID-19 restrictions as one example of how work-from-home expectations can be implemented.
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“We’re already working to expand public transportation and create jobs to have a car-free Olympics,” she said. “This would be a great achievement for Los Angeles. We’ve always loved the car. We’re working to build a greener Los Angeles.”
Mayor Bass said the city’s Olympic venues will be accessible only by public transportation, and plans to combat congestion include borrowing 3,000 buses from other U.S. cities and asking businesses to allow employees to work from home during the Olympics. Guardian Reports.
Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass, left, and first lady Jill Biden clap after the national anthem before the USA vs. Greece women’s water polo match at the 2024 Olympics in Paris, France, on Saturday. (Wally Scalisi/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)
This will be the third time Los Angeles has hosted the Olympics – the city also hosted the games in 1932 and 1984. Bass noted that there were widespread concerns about traffic congestion before the 1984 Olympics, but those fears turned out to be unfounded.
“Los Angeles residents were scared that there would be terrible traffic jams, and we were shocked that that didn’t happen,” Bass said. “But in 1984, we didn’t have any of the technology we have today. We learned during the pandemic that remote work is possible.”
