The Los Angeles City Council aims to improve road safety and calm traffic by encouraging residents to give up their motor vehicles or reduce usage through its controversial Mobility Plan 2035.
The plan calls for hundreds of miles of new bus-only lanes, bicycle lanes, and traffic calming measures over the next 20 years. It would use existing roads for 300 miles of bike lanes and 117 miles of bus-only lanes. Major corridors such as Van Nuys Boulevard, Sherman Way, and Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard would be redesigned. But critics doubt the plan will have the intended effect.
"Taking away lanes, which creates congestion, to try and force people to choose a different method of transportation other than the car, is a horrible way to solve a congestion problem," said Richard Katz, a planning commissioner. "People don't respond well to being forced to do things.”
Supporters say the mobility plan is an acknowledgment that the city can't build its way out of congestion problems. Widening streets is no longer feasible, and new freeways not viable because of the cost and difficulty in acquiring rights of way, they say.
Related Stories
| Sep 14, 2012
Costa Rica’s strict building codes prevent major damage in powerful quake
The relatively little damage from a 7.6 earthquake was due in large part to strict building codes in Costa Rica, a country that has long enjoyed more stability, better governance, and stronger economic development than many of its Central American neighbors.
| Sep 14, 2012
Building codes should require continuous connection from roof to foundation, says IBHS chief
“One of the most effective ways to greatly increase a building’s strength and safety during hurricanes, tornadoes and straight-line windstorms is to be sure the building is tied together properly,” says Julie Rochman, president and CEO of the Insurance Institute for Business & Home Safety (IBHS).
| Sep 7, 2012
Related Companies and unions agree to wage-cutting deal on Hudson Yards
The Related Companies has won wage-cutting agreements with four dozen construction unions in its efforts to save money on the $15 billion development of Hudson Yards.
| Sep 7, 2012
Lorain, Ohio considers halting downtown construction while it works out development plan
Construction would stop downtown for six months while Lorain, Ohio officials consider a development plan for the city, according to new legislation.
| Sep 7, 2012
Business, labor groups push for easing of California’s Environmental Quality Act
Business and labor groups have combined forces to push for a change to California's Environmental Quality Act, specifically its complex review process for building and construction projects.
| Sep 7, 2012
Twenty years later, Florida contractors cite Hurricane Andrew as construction game-changer
Remarking on the 20th anniversary of Hurricane Andrew, which devastated south Florida; contractors are noting the storm’s impact on their industry—including the state’s adoption of tougher building codes.
| Sep 7, 2012
At risk for nine types of natural disasters, Texas trails most coastal states on building codes
Texas has the most diverse weather risk in the country, with exposure to nine different types of natural disasters.
| Aug 30, 2012
OSHA plans new crane-safety standards for demolition and underground work
The new rule will streamline OSHA’s standards by eliminating the separate cranes and derricks standard currently used for underground and demolition work.
| Aug 30, 2012
Federal government cancels defense contracts worth $2.15 billion
This action may foreshadow federal spending cuts scheduled for year's end if Congress takes no action on the federal budget.
| Aug 30, 2012
Public comment period is open for CRRC-1 standard
The CRRC-1 standard covers specimen preparation and test methods for measuring the initial and aged solar reflectance and thermal emittance of roofing products.
