I also lived in LA for quite a while about 10 years ago, and for certain routes (like venice/sm -> downtown) it wasn't that bad. Unfortunately if I wanted to g

I also lived in LA for quite a while about 10 years ago, and for certain routes (like venice/sm -> downtown) it wasn't that bad. Unfortunately if I wanted to get anywhere outside the major hotspots, that involved the aforementioned walk half mile to bus stop/10-15 minute wait/take bus in traffic/get off and walk several blocks to next stop/wait 10-15 minutes/take bus in traffic/walk to destination loop. I highly suggest getting a motorcycle - I was able to cut some trips that took almost 2 hours down to about 30 minutes and parking was always easy because you can park end in between cars.