Angel’s Flight

Angels Flight is the tiny orange railway in Downtown L.A. that looks like public transportation designed for a dollhouse. It opened in 1901 to carry people between Hill Street and Bunker Hill, back when Los Angeles was actually pretty easy to get around without a car. Wild concept, I know.

In the early 20th century, L.A. had a huge electric rail system, including the Pacific Electric “Red Cars,” which connected neighborhoods and cities across Southern California. Then came the car era: freeways, suburban sprawl, underfunded transit, and yes, companies tied to the auto industry helped push cities toward buses and cars instead of rail. Very subtle. Very not suspicious at all.

I rode Angels Flight when a few friends and I did a self guided walking tour of filming locations from 500 Days of Summer, which is a very specific way to wander around Downtown L.A. haha. It was extremely hot, because of course it was, and the day mostly confirmed that L.A. is not exactly a walkable city unless you enjoy sweating through your clothes and negotiating with concrete. But we drove and walked around anyway, saw some beautiful architecture, learned a few things, and somehow managed not to be completely defeated by the general downtown urine smell, which honestly felt like a civic achievement.

Riding Angels Flight felt like stepping into the movie for a minute — cute, cinematic, and very “I am pretending this city is walkable.” You should see it because it is historic, slightly ridiculous, and basically a miniature ghost of the public transportation system L.A. used to have. Also, it is proof that sometimes the most memorable part of a city is not the giant landmark, but the tiny weird thing that drags you up a hill for 298 feet.