Elections Could Sabotage L.A.'s 30/10 Plan

Hawthorne surmises that incoming Speaker John Boehner of Ohio will likely channel transportation funding to a more "suburban-rural focus," which could also sink California's high-speed rail program.

But, Hawthorne writes, there is some reason for transit supporters to be comforted: "...the basic funding for mass transit in Los Angeles is firmly in place - thanks to 2008's Measure R - and therefore largely protected from the chill of fiscal austerity descending on Washington, even as the pace of subway construction may speed up or slow down."

Hawthorne also points to a recent MTA vote to approve a new subway line on Wilshire Blvd. as a reason to rejoice.