LOS ANGELES — Voters on Tuesday will have the final say on a ballot initiative that would require the city of Los Angeles to install various street modifications aimed at making roadways safer for walking, biking and other forms of transit.
If approved by the voters, the Healthy Streets LA ballot measure, also known as Measure HLA, would require the city to implement modifications described in its Mobility Plan 2035 whenever certain street improvements are made to at least one-eighth of a mile of roadway.
Additionally, it would require the city to create a website so the public can follow the progress of Mobility Plan projects, and give residents the right to sue if the city fails to comply with Measure HLA.
The Mobility Plan 2035, a 20-year city planning document for improving LA streets and promoting other modes of transportation such as walking, biking and other transit options, was adopted by the City Council nine years ago. But since then, the city has only implemented 5% of the plan.
Backers of the measure call it an attempt to improve street safety for pedestrians and bicyclists. According to city data, traffic violence took the lives of 336 Angelenos in 2023, and over the past five years more than 1,500 residents have been seriously injured annually.
But some previous efforts by the city to implement roadway modifications and make streets safer for non-drivers have come under fire for narrowing roads or even eliminating traffic lanes, leading to extensive motor vehicle congestion. In 2017, the city eliminated some traffic lanes in the Mar Vista and Playa del Rey areas to improve access for pedestrians and bicyclists. The resulting uproar from motorists over increased congestion and traffic delays prompted the city to remove some of the modifications and restore traffic lanes. Similar uproar occurred two years later when the city installed a protected bike lane along a mile of Venice Boulevard on the Westside.
City Administrative Officer Matt Szabo recently estimated it would cost $3.1 billion over 10 years for the city to fully implement the measure.
Several LA City Council members questioned that estimate, saying Szabo's report seemed to conflate costs associated with some of the city's current obligations to repair sidewalks and ensure compliance with ADA requirements with Measure HLA.
Streets for All, the organization that led the initiative to place HLA on the ballot, also criticized the CAO's numbers. The group came out with its own estimate that put the price at $286 million over 10 years for street safety measures, such as pedestrian enhanced districts and bike networks.
Measure HLA is backed by environmental and labor groups, as well as some nonprofit organizations, such as the Sierra Club, Unite Here! Local 11, SEIU Local 721, Climate Resolve, Streets for All, and Biking While Black.
Opponents of the measure, such as Keep LA Moving, the National Motorists' Association and Safer Streets LA, argue the measure is a "one-size-fits-all" mandate that would negatively impact drivers and increase traffic. They also say it will cost the city and taxpayers.
United Firefighters of Los Angeles City, International Association of Fire Fighters, California Professional Firefighters and Keep LA Moving launched their "Don't Slow Us Down!" campaign against the measure. Firefighters say Measure HLA would negatively impact emergency services, contending that the Mobility Plan measures could obstruct roads for motor vehicles, making it tougher for emergency vehicles to navigate traffic.
Several LA City Council members have come out in support of Measure HLA, including Nithya Raman, Heather Hutt, Eunisses Hernandez, Katy Yaroslavsky, Imelda Padilla, Marqueece-Harris Dawson and Hugo Soto-Martinez.
The other council members have criticized the measure for its potential price tag. Councilwoman Traci Park has come out against it, backing the firefighter unions opposing the ballot initiative.
Mayor Karen Bass has also not commented on whether she supports or opposes the measure.
LA County Supervisor Lindsey Horvath, state Sen. Ben Allen, Assemblyman Isaac Bryan and Assemblywoman Tina McKinnor have endorsed the measure as well.