{"id":204180,"date":"2026-03-04T17:51:11","date_gmt":"2026-03-04T17:51:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/204180\/"},"modified":"2026-03-04T17:51:11","modified_gmt":"2026-03-04T17:51:11","slug":"transit-hacks-for-travel-from-orange-county-to-lax-orange-county-register","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/204180\/","title":{"rendered":"Transit hacks for travel from Orange County to LAX \u2013 Orange County Register"},"content":{"rendered":"

Well! We\u2019re clearly not alone in our frustration over the transportation options \u2014 or lack thereof \u2014 between Orange County and LAX<\/a>.<\/p>\n

We haven\u2019t received this much mail since Rehab Riviera<\/a> hit the presses nearly nine years ago. So, thank you, fellow travelers, for sharing your airport transportation hacks, and we\u2019ll pay your efforts forward by sharing those hacks here.<\/p>\n

First, to summarize the issue: The Orange County Grand Jury found that some 9.9 million trips out of LAX are taken annually by passengers from Orange County. That\u2019s 13% of LAX\u2019s load and some three trips per Orange Countian per year.<\/p>\n

Still, despite that, there remains a profound lack of workable public options f<\/a>or traveling from Orange County to LAX.<\/p>\n

The grand jury, in its report, said Orange County has five viable \u201ccandidate sites\u201d that could host direct-to-LAX transportation services: in Anaheim, Irvine, Fullerton, Buena Park and Westminster The grand jury also directed those cities to get to work on that; the cities have until late May to respond.<\/p>\n

But federal law makes this much more complicated than it sounds. Public agencies can\u2019t run a bus straight from some central spot (or spots) to California\u2019s largest airport because of the Charter Service Restrictions rules, which forbid agencies that receive Federal Transit Administration funds from providing a \u201ccharter service\u201d that competes with private companies.<\/p>\n

\"Buses<\/a>Buses arrive at the FlyAway Thursday, Van Nuys CA. July 10, 2025. (Photo by Gene Blevins, Contributing Photographer<\/p>\n

So, a direct, publicly operated, long-distance service from Orange County to LAX might be legally viewed as competing with private shuttles or charter buses, and is thus verboten.<\/p>\n

FlyAway<\/p>\n

Which, after our previous column, prompted a reader to ask this question:<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s a Flyaway Bus that travels between Van Nuys (near the Van Nuys airport) and LAX \u2014 runs about once every hour or thereabouts throughout the day (24 hours\/day). How do they get around the federal laws that you mentioned? Looks like the fare is $12.75 each way and parking at their terminal is about $6\/day. LAX and Van Nuys airports are both managed by LAX, so maybe that has something to do with it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Yes indeed. Here\u2019s the deal:<\/p>\n

\"People<\/a>People arrive at the FlyAway parking building Thursday, Van Nuys CA. July 10, 2025 Today Los Angeles World Airports (LAWA) celebrates the 50th anniversary of the Van Nuys FlyAway nonstop bus service to Los Angeles International Airport (LAX). First launched on July 10, 1975.
\n(Photo by Gene Blevins, Contributing Photographer<\/p>\n

The FlyAway bus service avoids federal anti-competition restrictions by operating as a service of Los Angeles World Airports, the agency that runs both LAX and Van Nuys Airport. FlyAway\u2019s operations and driving are contracted out to private bus companies, and the service is framed as an airport-operated, non-stop ground transportation initiative rather than as a public transit line.<\/p>\n

Orange County had a FlyAway bus line, between 2009 and 2012. It ran from the Irvine Transportation Center straight to LAX, and took about an hour. But it cost $25 per person, offered just six trips per day, and eventually was discontinued. Perhaps we were living under a rock at the time, but we don\u2019t recall hearing much about this service. If officials ever decide to give this another go, a much meatier public information campaign might help.<\/p>\n

Hacks<\/p>\n

Several readers offered this intriguing tip: One-way rentals.<\/p>\n

\u201cI didn\u2019t want to leave the car in some remote parking lot for a week+ at fairly ridiculous rates. What worked, actually, was to rent a car locally and drop it off at the airport, then do the same thing in reverse when returning,\u201d a gent who lives near Sacramento said. \u201cCost-wise, it worked out a little less than a week\u2019s economy parking at the airport, even with a splash of gas at each end before returning the beasts. Think about that next time you need to make the OC-LAX run.\u201d<\/p>\n

The next extremely popular suggestion was: Use your proximity to the Mouse.<\/p>\n

\u201cFor many years, until Covid 2020, my family took a Disney bus from Disneyland Hotel to LAX. It was the best!\u201d one reader said.<\/p>\n

It appears there are no more Disney-operated buses between the resort and LAX, but several companies operate shuttles serving Mouseketeers. They run not just from the three Disney hotels, but from neighboring hotels as well. If you live close, or if you can get a ride to the resort area, those buses could be an option. Do a Google search and book in advance. (These services are private; it may be the same price from your front door as from the resort area, so be sure to check.)<\/p>\n

Next tip: Mix private and public transport \u2014 but skip Union Station.\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cThis isn\u2019t totally public transportation, but it\u2019s close and very cheap: drive about 50 miles to the Redondo Beach Metro station, park free \u2026 ride Metro to the LAX Transit Center, then take the bus \u2026.\u00a0 We\u2019ve never taken this way to LAX, but we\u2019ve taken it many times for Chargers games at SoFi (walk from the transit station some distance to a free bus to the stadium). It\u2019s 2 hours from our front door to our seats.\u201d<\/p>\n

Folks closer to Long Beach can hop the blue A or gray J Metro lines, switch at Willowbrook\/Rosa Parks (A) or Harbor Freeway (J) to the green C line, and ride to the LAX Transit Center. That takes about an hour. It\u2019s just 16 minutes more for the shuttle to the airport.<\/p>\n

Monthly 24-hour parking at the Long Beach city lot on East 3rd St. is just $80, making this an extremely attractive option. However, most trains don\u2019t run 24\/7, so that could be a factor depending on when you take off and land.<\/p>\n

Another hack: Use train station parking.\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

If you have the time (and not much luggage), do public transit from Metrolink\/Amtrak to Los Angeles Union Station, and then bus or train to LAX. But be sure to get permission to park for more than 72 hours at the O.C. train station. Long-term parking is not available at all stations, and usually you can\u2019t park longer than two weeks. The overlords who grant this permission vary; start with the city where your station is located and\/or check with security at the station itself.<\/p>\n

Remembering<\/p>\n

Many folks shared reminiscences of the old days.<\/p>\n

\u201cI took the Flyaway from the Irvine Transportation hub many times,\u201d a reader said. \u201cIn fact, I lobbied for it and I was pleased that they brought it in. The price was fair, and I was traveling abroad on business often so I liked the service. Yes, it was infrequent, but it was clean, quick, and professional.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut the Irvine Transportation hub changed the parking rules, and I learned that the on-site police would be required to give a permit for longer than three days and not beyond 30 days and the police office was not open all the time, so Flyaway customers could no longer park there. It got so that I would drive to Irvine the day before my travel and get the parking permit so I could be sure of not having my car towed. FlyAway also did not advertise or promote the Irvine service in any way that I could see \u2026.<\/p>\n

\"Travelers<\/a>Travelers make their way back home
\n(Photo by Gene Blevins\/Contributing Photographer)<\/p>\n

\u201cThe combination of potential customers not knowing of the service, and the parking hassle, doomed the service. And after heavy losses it was cancelled. What a disappointment. I no longer travel as I used to \u2026 the pandemic and the shutdown ensured that. But easy travel to LAX is a missing link. Paying $25 a day at John Wayne adds up pretty fast.\u201d<\/p>\n

Another reader recalled a frequent bus from John Wayne Airport to LAX back in the 1980s. \u201cI used to take it all the time \u2014 given the frequency, it took about the same amount of time as the commuter flight (maybe less), and I didn\u2019t have to check in luggage, show ID, etc. I used to take it even when my company paid for the commuter flight \u2014 it was more convenient for me.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy wife usually picked me up at John Wayne. But sometimes I took a bus to Laguna Hills Mall, and then another bus to within two blocks of my home in Mission Viejo.\u00a0 Maybe a simple solution like that is worth considering.\u201d<\/p>\n

It is with a heavy heart that we report trying to schedule some of these hacks for our three-plus week trip in July to August, to no avail.<\/p>\n

Yes, renting a car one-way would be cheaper than parking at LAX \u2014 but then we\u2019d either have to park at John Wayne or cajole someone to take us and pick us up. Grabbing the rental car at the counter in my town is an option, but it costs more than parking at LAX.<\/p>\n

In the end, we\u2019ll be driving. My hacks: LAX Official Parking,<\/a> which offers coupons that can sometimes save you tons of money (we live on journalist\u2019s pay, so opt for the cheapest lot, which is Budget, which is not to be confused with the more expensive Economy!), and CheapAirportParking.org,<\/a> which lets you peruse private parking options and variables like how often shuttles run. On this trip, the latter beats the former: So we\u2019ll be going private, paying $8 a day. It\u2019s the cheapest option for three people, round-trip, clocking in at less than $200.<\/p>\n

(We\u2019re going to the Fleadh Cheoil na h\u00c9ireann,<\/a> the world\u2019s largest annual festival of Irish traditional music, song, and dance.)<\/p>\n

Thanks folks for sharing your ideas, and\u00a0bon voyage, buen viaje, turas maith a bheith agat!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Well! We\u2019re clearly not alone in our frustration over the transportation options \u2014 or lack thereof \u2014 between…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":204181,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[36],"tags":[5172,163,165,164,3003,1474,1071,100,136,1967,2422],"class_list":["post-204180","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-anaheim","tag-airports","tag-anaheim","tag-anaheim-headlines","tag-anaheim-news","tag-consumers","tag-lax","tag-local-government","tag-news","tag-top-stories","tag-transportation","tag-travel"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/204180","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=204180"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/204180\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/204181"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=204180"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=204180"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=204180"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}