Novel Funding For L.A. Rail

[WhoozOn1st]

MTA endorses transit blueprint

"The 30-10 plan is unprecedented because it seeks to create a pool of federal money to speed construction of light rail, subway and rapid transit bus projects. The idea has gained some traction in Congress and the U.S. Department of Transportation.

"Under such a program, it might be possible for the nation's third-largest transportation agency to borrow federal money and pay it back with Measure R [half-cent sales tax for transit, passed in 2008] revenue or secure loan guarantees, which would allow the MTA to finance transit projects with bonds sold to investors."

"Among the 12 transit projects in the 30-10 plan are the regional connector for light rail in downtown Los Angeles, the Foothill Extension of the Metro Gold Line, a Green Line extension to Los Angeles International Airport and the South Bay, the Crenshaw corridor transit project, and the Orange Line ["rapid" busway] Canoga Extension. The estimated cost of all the projects is about $20 billion."

EDIT: Similar story from the Glendale News Press:Transit projects may be sped up

 

[WhoozOn1st]

An L.A. Times Op-Ed columnist gives a positive progress report on the 30/10 transit plan:

Good for L.A., and the nation

"When [L.A. mayor Antonio] Villaraigosa first proposed 30/10 last fall, it seemed like the longest of shots, but his tireless lobbying — and the initiative's self-evident merits — won over powerful congressional allies, particularly Rep. Jane Harman (D-Venice) and Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.), who chairs the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works, as well as Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood.

"In fact, 30/10 is one of those ideas that gets better under close examination. Consider, for example, that completion of the 12 transit projects would reduce annual particulate emissions by at least 500,000 pounds, reduce annual gasoline consumption by 10.3 million barrels and, by conservative estimates, cut automobile travel by 208 million miles each year."

 

[WhoozOn1st]

An update on, and call for swift adoption of, an L.A. transit funding plan that President Obama has called a template for national transit expansion:

30/10 is too good to wait

"According to current estimates, accelerating the Measure R construction schedule will cut the 12 projects' [light rail, subways, busways] overall construction costs to $14 billion from $18 billion. [L.A. Deputy Mayor Jaime] de la Vega believes the ultimate savings might be much larger. In an interview this week, he pointed out that, because the recession and credit crunch have brought most construction work to a halt, bids now being taken for transit projects — for example, the Gold Line extension [to San Gabriel] — are coming in at 15% to 30% under original estimates."

 

[WhoozOn1st]

Seems I wasn't the only one who noticed that this week's proposal by President Obama for creation of a national infrastructure bank could dovetail nicely with the 30/10 plan for funding L.A. transit. L.A. Times editorial:

Banking on 30/10

"Such a bank would allocate transportation funding based on merit rather than political patronage, a fairer and more efficient way of keeping the country moving."

 

[WhoozOn1st]

Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa - in D.C. to attend the U.S. Conference of Mayors - has been meeting with the new Republican poobahs to talk up Big Orange transit, especially his 30/10 proposal to tap fed resources for more rapid construction:

Mayor's transit plans get mixed reviews on Hill

"On Thursday, Villaraigosa...met with Rep. John Mica (R-Fla.), the new chairman of the House Transportation Committee.

"'The mayor and I shook hands on pledging to move projects forward in an expedited fashion,' Mica said. But the chairman threw cold water on one L.A. proposal — getting Washington to pay the interest on transportation bonds. 'That's not going to float,' Mica said."

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At a recent L.A. seminar on high speed rail (sponsored by the Japanese government and Japanese HSR equipment vendors) I heard Villaraigosa speak encouragingly about the 30/10 plan's prospects, in addition to his solid endorsement of California's high speed project.