Ten minutes.
That’s how long it takes to get to the APU/Citrus College Metro station from the closest part of campus, give or take a minute or two for certain variables.
Should it take that long to get to the train? Especially when one sees that there could be a shorter, more direct path to the station if thought through more.
The current path to get to the Metro station starting at the most northwest point of campus is by crossing the parking lot at the intersection of Citrus Avenue and Foothill Boulevard. The path then leads to a patch of dirt that lies between patches of bushes that divide campus from the sidewalk which is actually a shortcut. Proper directions make the trip longer by leading up to Foothill Boulevard through a steep driveway.
After this, one has to get to the intersection of Foothill Boulevard and wait for a light to cross Foothill Boulevard. This can take a few minutes if there is traffic running along the bend of the street.
To cross Citrus Avenue, another light has to be waited for that can sometimes be quick and sometimes be lengthy.
After crossing Citrus Avenue, one has to go north on Citrus Avenue on the sidewalk that has an under-grade crossing for the future train line that will head east to Pomona for the next phase with hopeful plans to Montclair past that.
The next step is getting to the wheelchair access ramp in the parking structure. A rider must walk through the parking structure and then climb to flights of stairs.
After climbing the stairs, one has to exit the parking structure and walk across a path that leads to the gates of the stop.
Once there, it is the homestretch, finally, to get to the platform.
This complicated process of getting to the train seems questionable, annoying, and cumbersome as there could be an easier path made by building a direct access path to the station at grade.
A direct path could be constructed by building a path from the northeastern corner of Citrus Avenue and Foothill Boulevard. The path could easily lead to the stop.
The only reason that the station is built this way is that it is meant to attract business people who use a car to commute to the current terminus of Los Angeles Union Station in downtown Los Angeles.
Other stops are difficult to access along the L(Gold) Line for pedestrians.
Irwindale Station is a prime example as it is in the middle of nothing. If a pedestrian wants to access the stop from Irwindale Avenue right above the station, they have to walk all the way down to the light at Adelante Street, then walk back toward the station for another four minutes or more if the pedestrian is slow. It is unclear why there was no direct staircase or elevator installed at Irwindale Avenue to facilitate easier access.
Sierra Madre Villa Station in Pasadena is also difficult to access for pedestrians from the street. To get to the station that rests in the middle of the 210 Freeway, a pedestrian has to walk from the street through either walking paths off Sierra Madre Villa Avenue or Foothill Boulevard. That takes a few minutes; they then have to either climb a four-story flight of stairs or wait for an elevator to take them to the fourth floor of a parking structure.
That is not even the end of it. They then have to walk from the most northern side of the structure across to the other end that connects with a foot bridge that runs across the westbound lanes of traffic on the 210 and connects to the station platform. Riders then have to descend down a story and half worth of stairs to the platform.
It is worth noting that this is not the case for all the stations along the L(Gold) Line. Other stations are extremely easy to access. Such examples include Downtown Azusa Station, Duarte Station, Arcadia Station, Del Mar Station in Pasadena, Fillmore too, Station in Pasadena, South Pasadena Station and Highland Park Station.
