Transportation Updates
On March 31 I attended a Webinar hosted by MoveLA that described new transportation projects currently in the works including: a Gondola from Union Station to Dodger Stadium, a people mover at LAX, and a downtown streetcar. All hope to be operational by the 2028 Olympics.
Upcoming State Transit Legislation. These bills promise to make South Park safer, quieter, and less polluted.
• Noisy mufflers. Two bills address this problem, which has grown increasingly troublesome since the pandemic. AB 2496, introduced by Orange County’s Cottie Petrie-Norris, proposes to add noise testing to the smog testing program. Another bill, SB 1079, sponsored by the San Fernando Valley’s Anthony Portantino, calls for cities to install noise-sensitive devices along roadways. Portantino’s bill promises to have greater impact because many drivers with noisy mufflers do not have drivers’ licenses and do not go through smog testing.
• Speeding. Traffic fatalities increased during the pandemic because the worst drivers drove more and drove faster. According to David Yang, Executive Director of the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety, “many [high risk] drivers tended to engage in riskier behaviors behind the wheel” during the pandemic. To address this problem, Laura Friedman, who represents East San Fernando Valley, has introduced AB2336, which directs cities to install cameras to enforce speed limits on high injury streets.
• Parking Minimums. Another bill introduced by Friedman, AB 2097, would eliminate the need to include a minimum number of parking spaces in buildings near transit.
• Clean Transportation. Several bills seek to further this trend.
• Orange County’s Tasha Boerner Horvath is proposing AB 1738, which sets standards for electric vehicle hookups in multifamily dwellings.
• San Francisco’s Philip Ting is sponsoring two bills, AB 2061, and AB 2075, which address the need for electric charging infrastructure around the state.
• AB 1778 (Garcia) prohibits freeway widening in areas with high pollution.
AB 2438 (Friedman) requires all state and local transportation projects to align with California’s climate goals.
• CEQA Exemptions. Opponents of transportation projects that privilege biking, walking, and public transit over cars have long made use of the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) to mount legal challenges. Such challenges can drag on in the courts for years. San Francisco’s Scott Weiner has recently introduced numerous bills that seek to correct this abuse of California’s commitment to the environment by fast tracking such projects through the CEQA process. Currently on the State docket are SB 288 and SB 922. AB 1778, sponsored by South LA
County’s Cristina Garcia, also addresses this issue.
• Bike and Pedestrian Improvements. In recent years, the phrase “street calming” has been coined to signify streets designed to slow down traffic. An associated concept is designated by the phrase “complete streets,” which refers to streets designed for walking, biking, and public transit as well as cars. Several new laws address the values associated with these terms.
o SB 932 (Portantino) focuses on creating biking and pedestrian paths.
o AB 2147 (Ting) This “Freedom to Walk” bill seeks to decriminalize jaywalking.
o AB 1713 (Boerner Horvath) will let bicyclists treat stop signs as yields.
o AB 1909 (Friedman) revises existing traffic laws to facilitate biking.
o AB 2264, proposed by Richard Bloom who represents the West San Fernando Valley, would adjust traffic signals to give pedestrians a head start over cars.
o AB 2237 (Friedman) provides funding to connect bicycle paths.
LA City and County Initiatives. These proposals promise to make our city less car-centric and more welcoming to various modes of getting around.
• Speed Limits. The LA City Council has approved a plan to lower speed limits on some city streets.
• Women and Transit. LA Councilmember Monica Rodriguez, who represents areas in the northeast San Fernando Valley, has introduced legislation aimed at addressing transit issues that affect women. Women are more likely to use transit than men, and they tend to take shorter trips and carry more baggage. “The motion builds on my work since taking office to provide safe, accessible, and affordable transit options for all riders in my district, especially women,” Rodriguez said.
• Transit Policing. LA Metro is in the process of replacing some police on buses and trains with unarmed transit ambassadors.
• Healthy Streets LA Ballot Measure. In 2015, the Los Angeles City Council passed a ballot measure that called for the creation of more bike lanes and pedestrian crossings on our streets. Thus far, only 3% of the recommended changes have been implemented, largely because of pressure from car-oriented Angelenos. The Healthy Streets ballot measure seeks to redress this shortfall by mandating that whenever a street is repaved, recommended bike lanes and pedestrian crossing be included as directed in the original plan. According to Michael Schneider, head of Streets for All, who is spearheading this initiative, “The majority of [traffic injuries and deaths] are in South LA, East LA, Downtown and Central LA. And so, if we want to do a service to people in those communities, stopping them from dying in the streets just by trying to bike or cross the street, this ballot measure would be a great first step.”
Cost of Highway Gridlock:
A recent study calculated the cost of traffic gridlock in various U.S. cities. LA topped the list with gridlock costing an average of $1816 per year per driver in lost productive time.
By Virginia Wright Wexman