4 reasons why Measure M will help create safe, walkable communities in Los Angeles County

You wouldn’t know it from walking around Metro’s trains stations and bus stops today, but Los Angeles County is well on its way to becoming one of the easiest places to walk, roll, and bike in the country. With Measure M, we can get there faster.

Measure M, known as the “Los Angeles County Traffic Improvement Plan,” is a half-cent sales tax measure that will allocate over $850 million per year to improving transportation and mobility options for all in Los Angeles County.

Here are 4 reasons why Measure M, if passed this November, will have such an impact on the safety and walkability of our communities:

1. Over $4 billion during the next 50 years will be dedicated towards projects that will benefit people of all ages and abilities to walk and bike (especially our youth who often walk to and from school) and complete streets projects. This includes over $900 million for first-and-last mile improvements that improve access to transit.
2. Completing the Los Angeles River and San Gabriel Valley Greenways. Measure M includes $650 million in funding to create a more connected bicycle network for people of all ages and abilities to ride with their friends and family, for recreation, and to get to work, school, and other services.
3. Repairing local streets and sidewalks. Measure M will reserve up to 17 percent of revenue for local cities to repair local infrastructure. Fixing streets and sidewalks is the responsibility of local jurisdictions, but many cities haven’t had enough funding to keep their sidewalks in good condition and make them accessible for people with disabilities. As an example, if approved, over $30 million per year in local return will be dedicated to the cities of the Gateway Cities subregion and over $17 million per year to the cities of the South Bay subregion.
4. Funding countywide walking and biking programs. Metro has reserved $857.5 million — about $20 million per year — for programs and projects that serve the whole county. This would provide a stable funding source for ongoing program costs currently subject to the uncertainty of grant funding, like safe routes to school, bike safety classes, public education campaigns, open streets, and bike share.

Investing in Place’s poll of LA County voters shows broad support for a forward-thinking and world-class transportation plan for Los Angeles County, with overwhelming support for fixing broken sidewalks, adding safe crosswalks, safe routes to school, and easier access to transit.