Scooter Revenue, Empty Streets Allow for Quick Construction of Bike Lane in L.A.

A busy corridor, popular with bike and scooter riders, is gaining a new protected bike lane in Los Angeles.

1 minute read

May 26, 2020, 10:00 AM PDT

By James Brasuell @CasualBrasuell


Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority

vesperstock / Shutterstock

"With automobile traffic down due to the COVID-19 stay-at-home order, the City of Los Angeles took the opportunity to resurface the stretch of 7th Street between the Financial District and the Historic Core," reports Steven Sharp. "When that fresh pavement is restriped in the coming weeks, it will come with a treat for cyclists."

That treat will come in the form of a new protected bike lane--still a rare sight in Los Angeles. Though the new .6-mile-long protected bike lane will be installed with temporary fixtures like plastic bollards, the street improvements will include other features like bus stop consolidation and a parklet (the latter will be installed in August, according to the article). The bike lane will be made permanent in 2021.

Funding for the project came from the city's dockless mobility pilot program, which was once a promising revenue model for alternative transportation infrastructure. Bird canceled its infrastructure funding program in 2019 and the city of L.A.'s one-year pilot program has exceeded that window of time, but revenue generated by this still relatively new mode of transportation is still paying off.  Sharp notes that the 7th Street corridor sees the highest rates of electric scooter ridership in the city.

Friday, May 8, 2020 in Urbanize Los Angeles

portrait of professional woman

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching. Mary G., Urban Planner

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching.

Mary G., Urban Planner

Use Code 25for25 at checkout for 25% off an annual plan!

Interior of Place Versailles mall in Montreal, Canada.

Montreal Mall to Become 6,000 Housing Units

Place Versailles will be transformed into a mixed-use complex over the next 25 years.

May 22, 2025 - CBC

Logo for Planetizen Federal Action Tracker with black and white image of U.S. Capitol with water ripple overlay.

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker

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

May 28, 2025 - Diana Ionescu

Rendering of California High-Speed Rail station with bullet train.

California High-Speed Rail's Plan to Right Itself

The railroad's new CEO thinks he can get the project back on track. The stars will need to align this summer.

May 19, 2025 - Benjamin Schneider

Woman and man in orange safety vests and hard hats doing surveying work at road construction site.

DOJ Seeks to End USDOT Affirmative Action Program

The Disadvantaged Business Enterprise Program encouraged contracting with minority- and women-owned businesses in the transportation sector, where these groups are vastly underrepresented.

4 seconds ago - The Washington Post

Aerial view of Missouri state capitol in Springfield, MO at golden hour.

A Missouri Tenant Union’s Fight Against Millennia Housing

In Springfield, Missouri, senior and disabled tenants at one Millennia affordable housing building say they’ve gone about a year without a working elevator, but their organizing has gotten the city to threaten receivership if it's not fixed soon.

1 hour ago - Shelterforce Magazine

Chicago Transit

Time Running Out for Illinois Transit Bill

Chicago-area transit agencies face a daunting budget gap if lawmakers fail to agree on a funding bill by the end of the current legislative session.

2 hours ago - Streetsblog Chicago