Copper wire thefts, which have run amok throughout the Los Angeles region, caused significant, hourslong impacts on the longest light rail line in the world Wednesday.
The LA Metro A Line was victim to wire thefts that left multiple stations from Carson to Long Beach without power for several hours beginning around 8 a.m., officials said.
The power outages, as well as related issues with communication and signal systems, caused delays of over 20 minutes from the Rosa Parks station in Willowbrook through downtown Long Beach.
Copper wire thefts have caused tens of millions of dollars in damage across Southern California, and passenger rail and commuter train systems have among the most heavily targeted by vandals.
Train systems use the copper wires as part of critical communication and signaling infrastructure. Vandalism to these lines are among the priciest expenses local public transit systems face, and can take days to months to fully repair.
As of 4:30 p.m. Wednesday, Metro crews were still attempting to resolve the electrical issues and related delays, which continued to be around 15 to 20 minutes at affected stations.
The A Line runs nearly 50 miles across Los Angeles County, connecting Azusa in the north with Long Beach in the south. An expansion of the line north into Pomona is slated to be completed later this year.
In addition to being the longest light rail line in the world, it is also Metro’s busiest and oldest line.