Activists threaten to sue after the city of Los Angeles decided to forgo environmental review on a street reconfiguration project that removed a vehicle lane on Venice Boulevard.

"Setting the stage for a legal challenge, the Los Angeles City Council rejected an appeal Friday from neighborhood advocates fighting a bicycle lane on a congested Westside artery," reports Laura J. Nelson.
The controversy surrounds a 0.8-mile stretch of Venice Boulevard in the neighborhood of Mar Vista.
"The city spent $1.8 million to add four traffic signals, sidewalk mosaics, curb ramps, more visible crosswalks and a bike lane with a buffer zone to separate drivers from cyclists," according to Nelson. "The project removed one vehicle travel lane in each direction."
The bike lane enjoys some public support, but opponents have been threatening to sue the city if the City Council made the pilot project permanent. After the City Council voted in December to make the project permanent, opposition groups appealed, which set the stage for last week's decision.
As noted by Nelson, the city's Vision Zero goals and its Mobility 2035 plan, have encountered resistance wherever road lanes for cars have been removed—perhaps most infamously in 2017, when the city reversed nine miles of road diets in Mar Vista and nearby Playa del Rey.
FULL STORY: L.A. backs Venice Boulevard’s controversial ‘road diet’ as activists threaten to sue

Maui's Vacation Rental Debate Turns Ugly
Verbal attacks, misinformation campaigns and fistfights plague a high-stakes debate to convert thousands of vacation rentals into long-term housing.

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.

San Francisco Suspends Traffic Calming Amidst Record Deaths
Citing “a challenging fiscal landscape,” the city will cease the program on the heels of 42 traffic deaths, including 24 pedestrians.

Defunct Pittsburgh Power Plant to Become Residential Tower
A decommissioned steam heat plant will be redeveloped into almost 100 affordable housing units.

Trump Prompts Restructuring of Transportation Research Board in “Unprecedented Overreach”
The TRB has eliminated more than half of its committees including those focused on climate, equity, and cities.

Amtrak Rolls Out New Orleans to Alabama “Mardi Gras” Train
The new service will operate morning and evening departures between Mobile and New Orleans.
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