Jeremy Rosenberg's latest entry in his "Laws That Shaped LA" column looks at the impact of the Collier-Burns Act, a state law passed in 1947 that allowed the city to become "smothered with concrete and asphalt goliaths."
Intended to relieve growing urban traffic congestion, the Collier-Burns Act created the bureaucratic and funding mechanisms that sparked "a local, regional, and nationwide road-building frenzy that
began in the 1940s and '50s and hasn't yet come to a full and complete
stop," writes Rosenberg.
"Collier-Burns raised the fuel tax by 50%, vehicle registration fees
by 200%, and in a maneuver with an efficacy that should never go
underestimated, centralized bureaucratic power in one agency -- the
California Division of Highways (which later became Caltrans)."
"The Collier-Burns legacy? Within just five years after the Act's passing, the Golden State increased its freeway mileage by four and a half times. Prior to Collier-Burns, many Californians -- and Los Angelenos in
particular -- had worked towards developing a multi-modal highway system
with a relatively limited footprint inside cities, left the mega-roads
we know today for more spacious rural routes, and incorporated and
expanded public transit."
"Instead, catalyzed by the Collier-Burns-inspired highway funding
spigot, with the 1956 Federal-Aid Highway Act (more about this in a
future Laws That Shaped LA column), cities received a Godfather-style offer they couldn't refuse: money, and lots of it, to build freeways, lots of them."
FULL STORY: My Way Or The Highway: Why Mega-Roads Rule The City
Report: Bike Lanes Can't Make up for New Roads
If California wants to meet its climate goals, the state must stop funding its myriad road construction and expansion projects.
A Traffic Solution 'Straight Out of the 1950s'
That's how the Los Angeles Times editorial board characterized the $6 billion plan by Los Angeles Metro to widen the 710 freeway. "A waste of money," they assert. Key to the solution is how to deal with goods movement from the seaport complex.
Legal Spat Over Plan to Widen I-405 in Orange County
Orange County, California transportation officials want to widen the 405 to reduce travel times and ease predicted congestion. The cities of Seal Beach and Long Beach are concerned about how that will impact traffic on surface streets.
Pennsylvania Mall Conversion Bill Passes House
If passed, the bill would promote the adaptive reuse of defunct commercial buildings.
Planning for Accessibility: Proximity is More Important than Mobility
Accessibility-based planning minimizes the distance that people must travel to reach desired services and activities. Measured this way, increased density can provide more total benefits than increased speeds.
World's Largest Wildlife Overpass In the Works in Los Angeles County
Caltrans will soon close half of the 101 Freeway in order to continue construction of the Wallis Annenberg Wildlife Crossing near Agoura Hills in Los Angeles County.
Maine Approves Rent Relief Program
Legislators hope the assistance program will help struggling low-income households avoid eviction.
How Transit Architecture Impacts Real and Perceived Safety
More than a third of Americans believe major transit systems are too unsafe to ride. The built environment can change that.
New York Passes Housing Package Focused on New Development and Adaptive Reuse
The FY 2025 budget includes a new tax incentive, funding for affordable housing on state land, and support for adaptive reuse and ADUs.
City of Costa Mesa
Licking County
Barrett Planning Group LLC
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
Mpact Transit + Community
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
Tufts University, Department of Urban and Environmental Policy & Planning
City of Universal City TX
ULI Northwest Arkansas
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