In the Wilshire BRT (Bus Rapid Transit) project, the LA County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (LACMTA) proposes eliminating two lanes of Wilshire Boulevard, one in each direction, between Centinela Avenue and Downtown LA to create bus-only lanes.
The lanes would not be implemented in Beverly Hills, and it is likely that they would be discontinued east of the 405 for several blocks to avoid interfering with traffic entering and exiting the 405.
LACMTA recently issued a Draft Environmental Impact Report (DEIR), and many homeowners groups, bus riders associations, and individuals across the City gave comments.
Everyone agrees that traffic is a major problem on the Westside. The question is whether the Wilshire BRT will help bus riders enough to justify the significant negative impact on vehicle traffic that will be caused by reducing the number of lanes of traffic on Wilshire.
Surprisingly, the DEIR does not estimate how much time will collectively be saved by bus riders, nor does it fully address the impact on people who drive through the area, many of whom can’t get to their destinations by bus.
Trial bus lane projects have previously been conducted on Wilshire west of the 405. Dedicated bus lanes were implemented during peak rush hour traffic only, with a morning westbound lane and an afternoon eastbound lane, instead of a current proposal for round-the-clock lanes in both directions.
LADOT reported in 2005 that trials “caused adverse impacts and significant delays to mixed traffic on Wilshire Boulevard as well as parallel streets like Sunset Boulevard,†and Councilman Rosendahl told the LA Times that implementing bus lanes “caused more gridlock than it has helped.â€
The DEIR inexplicably does not address the traffic impact on streets north of Wilshire Blvd. from bus lanes, which makes it almost impossible for area residents and workers to evaluate whether this project is a good idea.
The DEIR studied streets from Wilshire Blvd south, and east of the 405, but not north of Wilshire.
Many intersections will be significantly impacted, and Bundy/Wilshire will experience additional delays of over 30 seconds beyond its current “F†level of service. Of course with this sort of delay traffic will divert to other neighborhood streets.
The Brentwood Community Council (BCC) and other homeowners groups have asked that the DEIR be redone to include information on the impact on traffic vs. the projected time savings so that residents and commuters can make informed decisions about whether or not to support the project.
They also noted that many items in the DEIR such as improving signal timing, adding left turn lanes, and paving sections of Wilshire that are potholed and broken can all be implemented without taking out lanes for buses.
Just because a project has the word “Bus†in it does not mean that it is a good project. The residents and workers in West Los Angeles deserve to know the impact that a significant project like the Wilshire BRT would have on the area west of the 405, and the LACMTA should be able to demonstrate that this project helps more people save time than it hurts.
