So I was recently in LA for a little bit, and it has certainly changed since the last time I spent much time there. Basically, it seems to have filled in a bit and there was actual foot traffic in places like downtown LA even on weekends. It's still a place where the car is king, of course, with much of it, though theoretically walkable, really built at a scale which isn't really pedestrian friendly. Still it is dense enough - and as I said seemed to have filled in a bit since last I was there - that one can get around to some degree without one. Rode their
local SUPERTRAINS from the airport to downtown and they were pretty full on a Sunday.