Jason Lanzarini shows up late to his own recording: a drive that should have taken 50 minutes took an hour and a half. On the third episode of Cadê Moradia, he and realtor Dina Silveira talk about the subject every Los Angeles resident knows well — traffic — and the changes on the way.

"Here everybody's used to driving, and it's one person per car. That's why traffic is so heavy." — Dina Silveira, on the episode

The 405 bottleneck

On the map, Dina shows the problem: between the San Fernando Valley and the Westside, practically only the 405 freeway crosses the Santa Monica Mountains. It's one of the most congested stretches in the region, used by people who live in the Valley and work near the beach, and vice versa.

The subway under the Sepulveda Pass

Dina says an underground subway linking the Valley to the west side was approved "just now in January." The information checks out: on January 22, 2026, the Metro board unanimously approved theheavy railalternative, similar to the B and D lines. The chosen route is about 13 miles long with seven stations, entirely underground, from the Van Nuys Metrolink station to the E Line's Expo/Sepulveda station, with a stop on the UCLA campus and connections to the G and D lines. The estimated cost is around $25 billion.

On the episode, Dina talks about a connection to Santa Monica and Mar Vista. The approved project ends at the E Line, on the Westside; from there, the connection to Santa Monica is via the E Line itself. There's also no firm opening date: the next step is the final environmental study, and the timeline depends on funding. Dina estimates "after 2030."

She believes the subway will boost values in the San Fernando Valley and areas to the north. That's a common expectation when new lines arrive, but not a guarantee — and the effect, when it happens, tends to be concentrated near the stations.

Already open: the LAX station

Dina notes that, near the airport, the LAX/Metro Transit Center station opened in June 2025, connecting the C and K lines and, soon, the automated people mover to the terminals. For her, the bigger challenge is cultural: convincing Angelenos to trade their cars for public transit.

Express lanes, carpooling and transponders

Until the subway arrives, the alternative is to pay to go faster. Jason explains that he has a transponder — the FasTrak device, which charges the toll automatically — to use the ExpressLanes, the express lanes on the 110 and the 10, run by Metro. The price changes with traffic, and the number of people in the car makes a difference:

• Solo drivers pay the full toll.
• Cars with two or more people ride free on the 110; on the 10, at rush hour, the exemption applies to three or more.
• The transponder has a switch for the driver to indicate how many people are in the car; cameras and officers check.

The two recall stories of people who put a mannequin in the passenger seat to use the carpool lane — and end up ticketed and on the news. Rules and prices vary by corridor; in Orange County, the 405 express lanes have their own rules.

When the freeway is scary

Dina says that after a car accident — on a regular street, not the freeway — she spent some time avoiding the freeways and using avenues such as Western, which runs from San Pedro and Palos Verdes to the north of the city. It took longer, but it reduced the stress. It's a common choice among newcomers, and Los Angeles's big avenues make that alternative route possible.

Sources and verification

• Episode 3 of the Cadê Moradia podcast (February 2026), with Dina Silveira and Jason Lanzarini.
• LA Metro — Sepulveda Transit Corridor: approval of Modified Alternative 5 (heavy rail) as the locally preferred alternative, 01/22/2026.
• NBC Los Angeles, Streetsblog LA and Daily Bruin — coverage of the January 2026 vote.
• LA Metro — LAX/Metro Transit Center, opened June 2025.
• Metro ExpressLanes — exemption and toll rules on the 110 and 10 freeways (FasTrak Flex).

This topic comes from the full episode — watch it:

South Bay LA, CA