The Sepulveda Transit Corridor could offer tens of thousands of Los Angeles commuters an alternative to the infamously congested I-405 freeway, if local officials can find the funding.
"Building a transit line through the Sepulveda Pass, one of the worst traffic bottlenecks in Southern California, could cost more than $13 billion, a figure significantly higher than previous estimates," reports Laura Nelson.
That leaves the project with a potential funding gap of $8 billion, according to the new cost estimate released by Los Angeles County officials this week. "The project has about $5.7 billion earmarked from Measure M, the sales tax increase that county voters approved in 2016," according to Nelson. Federal and state funds will be necessary to fill the funding gap.
"The cost estimate for the project was far lower when Metro officials compiled a funding list for Measure M in 2015," notes Nelson. Another figure that has changed in reports on the project: the amount of funding Metro has to spend on the project. Writing for Metro in January 2019 to announce refined plans for the project, Steve Hymon said the transportation agency had $10 billion to spend on the project.
For more, timely information on Measure M, see also an Eno Center for Transportation report published this week on the lessons of the Measure M campaign that convinced a supermajority of voters to approve the funding measure.
Nelson provides a lot more details on the numerous alternatives still in play for the project, including routing alternatives and funding and operations proposals that include partnering with the private sector to build, operate, and maintain the project. There is also a monorail in play.
FULL STORY: Cost of Metro transit line through the Sepulveda Pass could reach $13 billion
Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.
The state-sanctioned urbicide of Austin
People don’t kill cities. Freeways do.
US to reduce Colorado River water deliveries to Mexico
A new Colorado Treaty amendment reduces Mexico’s Colorado River water allocation by 250,000 acre feet.
Airbnb launches $250 million 'last-dollar financing' housing accelerator, makes first investment in Austin
The company will put $6.4 million towards affordable housing development in Texas’ capital.
Guerilla urbanists are building DIY bus stop benches in Chicago
A before-and-after of one of the bus stops with a new bench. The new benches are not officially sanctioned or permitted, but the residents who placed them hope they will be the start of a network of DIY benches across the city.
Mamdani overhauls NYC's Vision Zero plan with 100 new policy goals
The overhaul aims to reduce traffic deaths and make streets safer for pedestrians, cyclists and drivers through lower speed limits, new safety infrastructure and more.
FREE Course: Walkable City 1: Why Walkability?
After describing his path towards focusing on walkability as the essence of good planning, Jeff Speck marches through his five principal reasons for making more walkable places.
Reinventing Malls: Planning Alchemy—Turning Gray Fields Into Gold
The course focuses on the opportunities and imperatives that shape reinvention of mall sites.
Eagle County Government
Harvard University Graduate School of Design
Nashville Planning Department
The Architects Foundation
University of Cincinnati Online
The Pocatello Development Authority
The Urban Renewal Agency of the City of Pocatello
Journal of the American Planning Association