The Reality: A Region Deep in Crisis

The facts speak for themselves:

• Traffic congestion in the L.A.-Long Beach region costs businesses & residents more than $10.7 billion annually
• For every dollar of capital or operating investment in transportation projects, three dollars in increased retail sales are created along the corridor
• The average driver here wastes 72 hours per year stuck in traffic-three whole days!
• For a lawyer who bills even $300/hr, that time is valued at more than $21,000
• A staffer who makes $25/hr could value his time lost as almost of $2,000
• 10% of gasoline is wasted regionally due to traffic – equivalent to a $5-$10 tax on every fill up!
• Due to population growth, L.A. will add the equivalent of two cities of Chicago by the 2030′s
• Traffic is expected to slow to an average speed of 20 miles per hour in some areas
• SCAG says congestion will increase by up to 100% in some areas over the next 20-plus years
• L.A. has less road capacity per capita than all but 2 of the 65 largest U.S. regions
• As little as 6.6% of L.A. commuters take transit, in part due to a lack of a fully built out system
• Development projects that would be heralded in any other region, are blocked by homeowner whose top concerns are traffic, traffic, and traffic.
• L.A. has 88 days of unhealthy air pollution, the worst in the nation; whereas air pollution concerns are used to block development & industrial projects, in fact cars are the primary source of air pollution; gridlock causes higher exhaust emissions than free-flowing roadways
• Equally important, traffic congestion has an intangible effect on society – consumers have less time for their family & friends, for shopping, or for dining out. Dodger Stadium, the Music Center, LACMA, and other civic landmarks become inaccessible on weekday evenings.

Sources: TX Transportation Inst, SCAG, FHA, U.S. Census Bureau, LACMTA, EPA, UCLA Institute on the Environment, American Public Transportation Association, & Remarks by L.A. Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa