LA Mayor pushes BRT-only lanes

Becomes MTA Board Chairman

Jay Blazek Crossley, Aug 10, 11.

Antonio Villaraigosa, Mayor of Los Angeles, will assume the chairmanship of Los Angeles’ MTA on a platform of adding bus-only lanes across the city to build a bus rapid transit system, according to the Los Angeles Times:

Chairing the regional transportation board is important to the mayor, who is seeking to make transit a legacy of his administration. He plans to use the position to bolster lobbying on behalf of Metro in Washington and Sacramento, and to push America Fast Forward, his initiative to accelerate locally funded transportation projects using federal financing.

The mayor has not yet targeted corridors that would receive the bus lanes, but said he wants a list of recommendations by October. A motion he plans to introduce today calls for the Metro staff to explore possible routes based on ridership demand and the potential for congestion relief, among other factors.

Villaraigosa has held the one-year board chairmanship twice before, and while he has some measure of control over votes on the board — three other board members are his appointments — being chairman gives him more sway over meeting agendas and committee assignments.