Thursday, March 30, 2017

City of LA takes Giant Step Forward Towards Ending All Roadway Deaths by 2025 Thanks to Measure M

by Jessica Meaney

This week, the City of Los Angeles began the process of deciding how to spend its Measure M local return dollars — approximately $50 million per year for the City in new transportation revenue.

Yesterday, Councilmember Mike Bonin introduced a proposal to prioritize safety for our most vulnerable travelers and equity for our most vulnerable communities. By infusing approximately $30 million per year into Mayor Garcetti’s Vision Zero initiative, Councilmember Bonin’s proposal would ensure the focus is on truly fixing unsafe infrastructure, not just resurfacing potholed streets with a new layer of asphalt.

This proposal is right in line with Investing in Place’s approach: it allocates funding according to data and need, and treats our public right-of-ways holistically by addressing broken sidewalks alongside crumbling streets. This proposal builds on the foundation of Mobility Plan 2035 and delivers the resources needed to implement Mayor Garcetti’s bold plan to eliminate all traffic deaths in the City of Los Angeles by 2025.

Giant Step Forward for Vision Zero

This current proposal — championed so far by Councilmembers Mike Bonin, Nury Martinez, Jose Huizar and Marqueece Harris-Dawson — would prioritize investing local return funds on our most dangerous and deadly streets. Every year, more than 200 people are killed while trying to move throughout our city. Nearly half the people killed on our streets are those who were walking or bicycling, and an alarming number of them are children and older adults. In fact, traffic collisions are a leading cause of death for children in Los Angeles.

Councilmember Bonin’s motion is a counterproposal to the one recommended by the City of Los Angeles Chief Administrative Office (CAO), which would use local return for paving “D” and “F” streets. No one disagrees with the importance of repairing “failed” streets, but the CAO’s narrow focus would repave mostly small residential streets without addressing the other ways our transportation system is failing: safety, sustainability, and equity.

Smooth streets are an improvement for people biking and riding buses, but without systemic changes to how we design and maintain our streets, the City will not meet the ambitious goals laid out in its ambitious plans like Mobility Plan 2035 and Vision Zero. The CAO’s recommendation was silent on the need to fix broken sidewalks that are barriers for people with disabilities and older adults, or to address inherent inequities in the mobility needs of low-income residents of color, many of whom don’t have access to a car.

Thankfully, Councilmembers Martinez and Harris-Dawson advocated forcefully on behalf of these needs when supporting Councilmember Bonin’s proposal.

The City of Los Angeles needs a proactive, data-driven approach to investing in its streets to ensure that they meet the mobility needs of all who use them safely, sustainably, and equitably. Thanks to Councilmembers Bonin, Martinez, Huizar, and Harris-Dawson, the City took a giant step forward yesterday.

See Councilmember Bonin’s proposal here.

Next Steps

Next, this proposal will head to the Public Works & Gang Reduction Committee, which is chaired by Councilmember Joe Buscaino and includes Councilmembers Martinez, Price, O’Farrell and Ryu. This committee meeting is not yet scheduled — but once it is we will let you know as we hope you’ll join us.

Sign up here to join our email list and find out more about this exciting possibility. And join us in supporting a city that no matter how you travel, you’ll get there safe and sound.

A huge thanks to all the community organizers, residents, partners, elected officials, public agency staff — everyone — who stood up in LA City Hall and said safety, social equity, and mobility for no matter how you travel need to come first on how we spend our public funds on our streets, sidewalks and crosswalks. Especially:

  • Adriana Mendoza, AARP California
  • Amanda Meza, Investing in Place
  • Analu Fernandini, American Heart Association volunteer
  • Andrew Pasillas, Safe Routes to School National Partnership
  • Andres Cuervo, Palms Neighborhood Council
  • Andres Ramirez, SCOPE
  • Anisha Hingorani, Multicultural Communities for Mobility
  • Caro Jauregui, California Walks
  • Claudia Goytia, American Heart Association
  • Debra Daley, TRUST South LA
  • Deborah Murphy, Los Angeles Walks
  • Emmanuel Beltran, TRUST South LA
  • Eric Bruins, Bruins Policy Solutions
  • Erik Valiente, BlacklistLA Run Organization
  • Francois Nion, Outfront/JCDecaux
  • Hilary Norton, Fixing Angelenos Stuck in Traffic (FAST)
  • Jennie Chamberlain, Friends of King
  • Jenny Binstock , TreePeople
  • Joe Viana, LA City resident
  • John Guevarra, Investing in Place
  • Justin Manuel, Trust South LA
  • Lillibeth Navarro, Californians Actively Living Independent and Free (CALIF)
  • Luis Gutierrez, LURN
  • Lyndsey Nolan, Los Angeles County Bicycle Coalition and representing the Vision Zero Alliance
  • Malcolm Harris, TRUST South LA
  • Melissa Hernandez, Outfront/JCDecaux
  • Melinda Amato, Los Angeles County Bicycle Coalition
  • Nakea Brown, TRUST South LA
  • Robin Desta, TRUST South LA
  • Ross Zelen, Abundant Housing
  • Roxan Rivas, Prevention Institute
  • Scott Frazier, LA City resident (90029, CD13)
  • Tamika Butler, Los Angeles County Bicycle Coalition
  • Terence Heuston, LA City resident/Vision Zero Alliance
  • Vanessa Gray CICLE

Additional reading:

P.S. Our campaign #CompletingStreets trended on Twitter!

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