Congestion Pricing Study Taking Shape in Los Angeles

According to an article by Steve Hymon, the big-ticket item of the study is an initial examination congestion pricing for the region. Metro is conducting a series of public hearings this month to gather feedbacks on four potential congestion pricing concepts. In each case, Hymon says Metro the term "managing traffic" is used to describe the concept of congestion pricing.   

1. The Santa Monica Mountains Corridor concept would toll some combination of the freeways and roads that cross the Santa Monica Mountains between Interstate 405 and Interstate 5.
2. The Downtown L.A. Freeway Corridor concept would apply to the busy freeways leading into and away from Downtown.
3. The Downtown L.A. Cordon would work more like the congestion pricing scheme proposed in Manhattan, tolling cars that entire the geographic area of Downtown Los Angeles as bound by the 110, 10, 101, and 5 freeways. "Additional transportation improvements would be explored for this area as part of the study," according to Hymon.
4. The I-10 Corridor concept would apply on the I-10 freeway between Downtown Los Angeles and Santa Monica. "To mitigate potential spillover traffic, the I-10 and parallel arterials will be included in the analysis," similar to the Santa Monica Mountain Corridor concept.

The article provides a through description of how congestion pricing works as well as how Metro would potentially supplement the region's transportation options to provide alternatives to car travel if and when a congestion pricing concept is implemented.

Previous Planetizen coverage of the congestion pricing idea in Los Angeles.

• Congestion Pricing in Los Angeles? (December 2018)
• Transit Agency Chief to Propose Congestion Pricing for Los Angeles (January 2019)
• Report: Modest Congestion Charge Would Produce Dramatic Results in Los Angeles (April 2019)

Planetizen coverage of other U.S. cities exploring congestion pricing.

• Congestion Pricing Gains Traction in Seattle (July 2019)
• Portland Ready to Experiment With New Forms of Road Pricing (October 2019)
• Congestion Pricing Under Discussion in San Francisco (November 2019)