Los Angeles County Complete Streets Policy Planning Meeting – SOLD OUT

During 2013 we convened four distinct and different meetings with various partners throughout Los Angeles County: Community Based Organizations, Public Agency staffers, Elected officials and business leaders.  Please save the date for our next Los Angeles Collaborative Convening on January 8, 2014 at 8am where we will be working to bring all our partners together to discuss:

• Transportation Finance for the Los Angeles County Region
• What we learned from our partners in 2013 in our meetings and listening sessions
• Transportation Policy Goals for the Los Angeles County Region – key happenings in 2014
• Engage policy makers and partners on content of a Metro County level Complete Streets Policy Best Practices
• Create a dialogue among Complete Streets Practioners and Implementers
• Inspire partners and us to keep moving goals forward for a more multi-modal Los Angeles County Region

We are excited to have Prevention Institute as a partner in this event. Space is limited and RSVP’s are required.

In Los Angeles County, the Safe Routes to School National Partnership and Los Angeles County Bicycle Coalitionare working to support improved policies and increased levels of funding for active transportation and complete streets.  One of the ways SRTSNP and LACBC do that is by supporting a Los Angeles County Active Transportation Collaborative, which endeavors to impact transportation policy priorities for Los Angeles County specifically regarding  transportation funding, equity, data collection and evaluation. Watch our video on walking, bicycling and riding Metro in Los Angeles County!

Key Stats: In Los Angeles County, the popular narrative says that everyone drives all the time, and transportation policy has largely reflected this social understanding.  However, active transportation modes are a significant form of mobility, calling into question the truth of the dominant narrative.

• 19 percent of all trips made in Los Angeles County are completed on foot or by bicycle (2009 National Household Travel Survey: 17.6 percent walking and 1.4 percent bicycling);
• 34 percent of Los Angeles County students walk and bicycle to school (2009 National Household Travel Survey); and
• 39 percent of Los Angeles County roadway fatalities are people walking and bicycling (SWITRS 2010);
• One percent (1%) of Metro’s funding is dedicated to pedestrian and bicycling projects (Metro LRTP 2009 p.15)

Key Reports

• Los Angeles County: Travel to School (2009 National Household Travel Survey) - October 2012
• Los Angeles County: All Trips (2009 National Household Travel Survey) - October 2012
• Transportation Finance in Los Angeles County: An Overview – February 2013
• Summary of 2012- 2013 Research – May 2013

Key Recommendations for Metro/County Transportation Policy:

• Develop a Complete Streets or Multimodal Policy for all Metro Funded Projects
• Increase allocations for Bicycle and Pedestrian Projects in Metro’s Call for Projects
• Allocate revenues from local sales taxes to bicycle and pedestrian projects
• Prioritize local revenue sources for bicycle and pedestrian projects to make these projects easier for cities to complete in a timely manner
• Expand Metro’s role as a Technical Assistance provider to assist cities in planning, designing and building active transportation projects
• Develop a list of 100 shovel ready active transportation projects
• Create an Active Transportation Division at Metro to plan and design larger projects
• Establish performance criteria for transportation projects to improve safety
• Allocate additional funding for Education, Encouragement and Enforcement activities
• Include bicycle and pedestrian improvements in infrastructure bonds and legislative priorities

Key Recommendations for Cities:

• Adopt local Complete Streets policies
• Update local street standards
• Adopt Pedestrian, Bicycle, Safe Routes to School Master Plans
• Use SWITRS (Statewide Integrated Traffic Records System) data to prioritize safety improvements and high need areas
• Include bicycle and pedestrian improvements in infrastructure bonds and legislative priorities
• Leverage local funds as a match for other grant opportunities
• Include bicycle and pedestrian improvements in infrastructure bonds and legislative priorities

Key Partners:

• Los Angeles County Bicycle Coalition (LACBC)
• Prevention Institute
• Los Angeles County Department of Public Health PLACE Program
• Los Angeles Walks
• Community Health Councils
• Advancement Project
• And many other partners – consider having your organization added to this list and getting involved by emailing us.