Tickets will be handed out, first come first served, at Irvine Metrolink Station on Saturday
ORANGE – Orange County residents are invited to commemorate the Lunar New Year with a free celebration at Irvine’s Metrolink Station, followed by a Metrolink ride to Chinatown in Los Angeles on Saturday, Feb. 9 for the Golden Dragon Parade.
The first 100 guests at the Irvine station will receive free round-trip Metrolink tickets to ring in the Year of the Pig at the 120th Golden Dragon Parade.
Tickets will be handed out first come, first served, beginning at 8 a.m. at the Irvine Station, 15215 Barranca Parkway in Irvine, where there will be prizes, refreshments and dragon dancers.
Riders also can take advantage of Metrolink’s $10 Weekend Pass, which allows passengers to ride to any Metrolink destination all day Saturday or Sunday. The pass includes free rail and bus connections throughout Southern California.
The free Irvine Lunar New Year celebration, from approximately 8 to 9 a.m., will be followed by attendees departing on the 9:08 a.m. train to Los Angeles Union Station. Upon arrival at Union Station, Metrolink riders can use a free transfer on the Metro Gold Line to Chinatown to view the 1 p.m. parade.
Metrolink riders can save time and avoid lines by using Metrolink’s mobile app, which can be downloaded for free at the App Store and Google Play.
For train schedules and event details, visit www.octa.net/lunar or www.metrolinktrains.com.
Metrolink riders south of the Irvine station should also be aware that this weekend, Feb. 9-10, regular Metrolink service will only be available as far south as the Laguna Niguel/Mission Viejo Metrolink Station on the Orange County (OC) and Inland Empire-Orange County (IEOC) lines.
The tracks between the Laguna Niguel/Mission Viejo and Oceanside stations will be closed for ongoing track work.
Connecting bus service will be used to transport riders between the Laguna Niguel/Mission Viejo and Oceanside stations for only OC Line trains 660, 661, 666, 667 and IEOC Line trains 857 and 860.
