Transportation Funding

A new study by researchers at UCLA and USC calculates the cost to people of lower income of funding transportation with toll revenue and compares it to other ways of funding transportation. The study concludes that tolls, especially congestion pricing tolls, are among the most progressive ways to raise funds.  The study reaches this conclusion by comparing the source of funds generated by HOT Lane tolls on SR-91 with fees collected from taxes in Orange County.

D.C. Launches Bike-Share Network (WaPo) Think Metro is Wasteful?  Check out LAUSD (Daily News) Metro Breaks Ridership Records (Bottleneck Blog, LAist) 115 New Parking Spaces Coming to Abbot-Kinney (LAist) More Than 40 U.S. Cities Exploring Streetcar Systems for Their Downtowns (NYT) D.A. Investigating Cop’s Critical Mass Takedown (Chelsea Now) City Puts in New Parking Meters … Continued

The Bottleneck Blog reports that the logjam holding up A.B. 2321 was broken earlier today when the Committee moved an amended motion to the Senate floor.  Because the amendments don't change the list of funded projects, the measure won't require a new vote by the Metro Board of Directors.  It seems Metro's sales tax measure is one step closer to being on this November's ballot.  Sort of.

 

The Bottleneck Blog is reporting that the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors has voted to place Metro's proposed sales tax on the fall ballot with the rest of the elections.   Just to make clear that placing the measure on the ballot has to do with the millions of dollars it would cost the county to run a "separate" election, held on the same day as the presidential election, Supervisors also voted to formally oppose the sales tax measure. 

First, the good news. 

A Times’ editorial  lifted the curtain on some of the back room dealings endangering Metro’s sales tax proposal, hereafter referred to as Measure R, in Sacramento.  Apparently two Los Angeles County State Senators that sit on the appropriations committee, the same committee that passed on the proposal on Monday and is scheduled to vote on … Continued

Earlier today, the LA County Board of Supervisors, all of whom serve on the Metro Board of Directors, voted to reject placing the Metro's proposed sales tax measure on the November 4th ballot.  The procedural vote doesn't end the battle over the sales tax and the attached project list, although it does muddy the waters.  If the State Senate approves Metro's request an election will still be held on the measure, it would just be held separately and concurrently with the presidential election, congressional election, and everything else on this fall's ballot.  Confused?  So were the Supervisors.

Transit operators struggling to keep pace with demand as rising fuel costs strain their budgets received some welcome news on Friday. New York's junior senator has introduced a version of the Saving Energy Through Public Transportation Act. The bill, which would provide $1.7 billion for local transit agencies over the next two years (including $237 million for New York City), passed the House in June but lacked a Senate sponsor until now.