Two corridors are at risk of being eliminated from the Plan's Bicycle Enhanced Network: Westwood Blvd. near UCLA and Central Avenue in South LA.
The original intent of Mobility Plan 2035 was to change how Los Angeles designs its streets to better meet the needs of all citizens, whether they're in a car, on foot, or on wheels. On May 11, 2016 members of the Los Angeles City Council's Transportation Committee voted to compromise this vision, allowing critical components of the Mobility Plan 2035 to be reconsidered.
In his proposed amendment to the Plan, City Councilmember Koretz requested that the Planning Department consider the feasibility of alternate parallel routes instead of Westwood Blvd. and Central Ave. The Planning Department will present its recommendation to the City Planning Commission on Wednesday, June 23 at 8:30am.
LA Walks will be at the Planning Commission meeting to speak for pedestrians along Westwood Blvd. and Central Ave.
Bicycle lanes - particularly protected bike lanes - provide enormous safety benefits for all road users (especially for those walking). Protected bike lanes shorten crossing distances and control turning conflicts, and have reduced injury rates for people walking on similar urban corridors from 12% to 52%. These health and safety benefits should not be denied to people walking Westwood Boulevard or Central Avenue without their consent.
Accepting amendments that remove streets from the Mobility Plan without first consulting residents goes directly against previous Council direction to increase engagement within these very same communities. Residents and stakeholders should be absolutely clear on safety trade-offs before this kind of decision is made for them.
Please take a moment to let members of the City Planning Commission know that you support safer Westwood Blvd. and Central Ave.