EL MONTE (CNS) - With COVID-19 vaccination rates falling, a new public site to get shots in arms will open next week at the El Monte Metro station, the transit agency said today.
Jointly operated by Metro and the L.A. County Department of Public Health, the vaccine site will operate on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays from noon until 7 p.m. beginning on Tuesday, June 1, Metro said.
It will become the fourth vaccine site opened on the Metro public transit system.
The station is a key transit hub that connects the San Gabriel Valley to downtown Los Angeles. It serves Metro Bus lines as well as Foothill Transit, El Monte Transit and Greyhound.
Metro said that, in addition to those traditional transit modes, the vaccination site will also be served by Metro Micro's El Monte service zone, which operates Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. and on weekends from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m.
Riders in the service zone can hail shared rides to the vaccination site through the Metro Micro app or Metro's official transit app, or by calling 323-GO-METRO.
Riders going to and from the El Monte station vaccination site can ride for free by using the promo code “VAXELMONTE'' when they hail a Metro Micro ride. Riders will get up to four free rides in the El Monte service zone with the promo code, to account for trips to receive two vaccination doses.
“The opening of this site in El Monte, which I am so proud to represent, will serve as a beacon of hope for commuters in the San Gabriel Valley,'' said L.A. County Board of Supervisors Chair Hilda L. Solis, who is also Metro vice chair.
“However, our efforts will not stop here. We will continue to identify opportunities to better serve communities throughout the county where there is the greatest need to ensure that there is free, easy and equitable access to vaccinations.''
The site is located in the main El Monte Station plaza, directly in front of the main station at 3501 Santa Anita Ave.
Appointments can be made by visitinghttps://vaccine.fulgentgenetics.com/. The site will also accept walk-ups.
Both the Pfizer and Johnson & Johnson vaccines will be available, with Pfizer available to everyone 12 years and older. Children require a parent or guardian present. The one-dose Johnson & Johnson shot will be available to everyone 18 years and older.
The vaccines are free, and no insurance or citizenship documentation is required.
Metro said that its Office of Equity and Race spearheaded the effort to ensure a more equitable recovery by identifying communities of need and offering convenient access to free vaccines at Metro transit sites in those communities.
More information on Metro's Office of Equity and Race is available atwww.metro.net/projects/resources/equity/.
The El Monte site joins three other vaccination sites on the Metro transit system -- the C Line's (Green) Crenshaw/105 Station in Hawthorne; the Harbor Gateway Transit Center in Gardena; and the A Line's (Blue) Del Amo Station in Los Angeles in serving zip codes identified by Gov. Gavin Newsom as having high rates of COVID-19 cases and low vaccination rates.
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