The highly awaited Expo Line extension to Downtown Santa Monica will open on May 20th, and Metro wants riders to celebrate the occasion.

Metro will provide free rides on the Expo line beginning at noon on opening day and will continue until the close of service.  Don’t worry if you aren’t able to get a free ride on the extension on Friday.  The free rides will start again on Saturday morning before 5:00 a.m., and will continue all day until around 2:00 a.m.

Station celebrations will be from 10:00-4:00 on Saturday, 5/21, and will be held at the Downtown Santa Monica, 17th St/SMC, 26th St/Bergamot, Expo/Bundy, and Palms stations.  Even though the Culver City station has been operating since 2011, it isn’t going to let the occasion pass without a little celebration.  Entertainment, kid’s activities, food trucks, bike valet, and info booths are some of the activities that can be found at the stations.

The Expo Line extension has been highly anticipated, and will finally connect DTLA to the west side and the beach.  Three of the new stations will have park and ride facilities to accommodate commuters.  The Expo Line also runes along a paved bike path and has bike racks and lockers at each of the new stations.  The extension is expected to revolutionize the way commuters travel to and from the West Side, a part of the Southland notorious for its gridlock traffic.  Hey, maybe I’ll be able to surf more often again!