Metro bus, workers trapped amid one of three raucous L.A. street takeovers within 24 hours

A crowd of people climbed on top of a Metro bus and prevented it from moving during a raucous street takeover in the Harbor Gateway area over the weekend.

At 11:45 p.m. Saturday, the Los Angeles Police Department responded to multiple calls of a street takeover involving people climbing on top of a bus at the intersection of Alondra Boulevard and Figueroa Street, according to a department spokesperson. Officers dispersed the crowd, impounded two cars and issued seven parking citations.

The takeover was one of three similar incidents the LAPD responded to in less than 24 hours this weekend.

Video recordings captured by news-gathering organization OnScene.TV show more than a dozen people standing on top of a Metro bus, which is unable to move forward as a crowd of over a hundred people blocks the intersection. People can be seen running along the top of the bus and sitting on the front bumper as the driver stares glumly ahead from inside windows tagged with graffiti.

The bus was transporting Metro maintenance workers back to their bus division when it became trapped, according to a Metro spokesperson. It was not carrying any members of the public.

“Mayor Bass has zero tolerance for this criminality, especially when it messes with a bus taking hardworking Angelenos home after a long day,” a spokesperson for her office said in a statement Monday to The Times. “We have ramped up visibility and enforcement — that will continue.”

Earlier this month, the mayor announced that the LAPD was surging resources to deter and respond to street takeovers in downtown L.A. following an incident where a brawl from a takeover spilled into an upscale apartment complex. The apartment lobby’s windows were smashed during the fight, and at least one person was sent to the hospital.

People film a car doing doughnuts at Alondra Boulevard and Figueroa Street late Saturday.

(OnScene.TV)

During the street takeover in the Harbor Gateway area, people could be seen hanging out of cars and spinning doughnuts in the intersection amid smoky clouds of burning rubber. Onlookers filmed the spectacle on their phone, and some people ignited fireworks in the intersection and nearby streets.

The LAPD cleared the crowd and allowed the Metro bus and its occupants to get away from the area. Officers then impounded and towed two vehicles from the scene.

But the night didn’t end there.

At 2:50 a.m. Monday, officers responded to multiple calls of a street takeover around six miles away at the intersection of Western Avenue and Century Boulevard in South L.A., according to a department spokesperson. Officers cleared that takeover by around 3:30 a.m. and impounded one vehicle.

A street takeover Sunday evening on Broadway in downtown L.A. between Adams and Washington boulevards drew a large crowd as people in cars and motorcycles performed stunts.

(OnScene.TV)

OnScene.TV also captured video of a third street takeover, which took place in South L.A. around 7:35 p.m. Sunday. Recordings show dozens of cars as well as motorcycles taking over Broadway from Adams Boulevard to Washington Boulevard as people blast music.

Police helicopters circle above while LAPD cruisers move in and clear the scene.

Street takeovers exploded in popularity during the pandemic as people took advantage of quiet streets to throw massive gatherings and perform car stunts. They have remained a frequent, disruptive and at times deadly phenomenon since then.