Today, there is no trace of the former Waterford exit.

You are unwittingly employing a fallacy – traffic is not like water. It is possible to discourage auto trips over time by blocking its flow – you can’t do the same with water in a river.

Here is an example:

You tear down a bridge that cars use to cross a gorge, replacing it with a foot bridge. The first day (or days) that the bridge is removed, people will show up with cars to cross the bridge. Pretty soon, however, all traffic will shift to the mode that allows travel across the gorge and/or traffic will decrease from its previous volume.

There is not a magical fixed amount of automobile traffic given a set density of human beings in an urban area. Automobile travel is induced by circumstances paid for, largely, by all of collectively in the form of taxes and fees that build our roads to serve automobiles.

Traffic calming DOES work, as it removes the ability to travel using a car in certain areas – thereby reducing the use of cars!

Your anecdotal evidence is weak.

Man, is Jack Wiess the handmaiden of the developers of this project or something? Do they have pictures of him making out with a donkey? Why would he so directly try and screw his own constituents. Pre-interwebnets era, he might have gotten away with it – but having access to these documents show that this move on his part is ridiculous.

“DOT’s policy for determining whether traffic restrictions should be implemented includes a consideration for whether there is super-majority community support for such restrictions. Hence, at the request of DOT, the City Clerk’s Office mailed out opinion survey forms and related information to every residence within a designated affected area, asking if the occupants supported the proposed NTM Plan. Based upon the responses returned to the City Clerk, DOT has determined the implementation of permanent restrictions did not meet DOT established thresholds for community support.”

I’d say “straight from the horse’s mouth”, but this looks like it came from the other end.

The DOT determines what “the community” is, and when their “community” doesn’t respond with 67% in favor of slowing down cars they want cars to flow at maximum speeds in a residential area.

The DOT’s policy is based on NOTHING – there is nothing behind it other than “DOT policy”. F&*k DOT policy. What is wrong with the mayor? Didn’t he lobby hard with wealthy jews in L.A. to get his job? Doesn’t he owe these folks calmer streets and a healthier climate for business? This department acts like its own little caliphate, and the people who pay for its existence are serfs who need to get back to threshing wheat for its coffers.