San Fernando Valley Projects & Measure R2!

Two major take-aways from the crowded San Fernando Valley Town Hall meeting Move LA co-hosted with the San Fernando Valley Council of Governments in February: There is a very high level of interest in and support for a new sales tax measure for transportation and for rail projects in particular, and a very high level of support for bike and pedestrian projects as well!

The East San Fernando Valley Transit Corridor is one of the Measure R-funded projects that hasn't been built yet but counts the Valley Industry and Commerce Association, the Transit Coalition and the Valley Economic Alliance among its champions. The 9.2 mile corridor would mostly travel along Van Nuys Boulevard from the Orange Line in the south to the Sylmar Metrolink station in the north.

Measure R dedicated $180 million to make this an “enhanced Rapid Bus” project, but proponents want an upgrade to bus rapid transit ($450 million) or light rail (more than $2 billion). There’s keen interest in this project because it would eventually connect to the Sepulveda Pass project — which could include tolled Express Lanes on the 405 and a tunnel for a light (or heavy) rail line that would end at UCLA and provide real alternatives to sitting in the 405’s notorious traffic!

Some people imagine this corridor could one day continue to LAX, then connect to the existing Green Line, and then travel southeast to Torrance, eventually ending in Long Beach! Let's continue to dream big when we think about a new sales tax measure, which is likely to be put on the 2016 ballot, and that we like to call Measure R2!