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Transportation

Cities Must Follow Through on Road Safety Plans. Here’s How.

There’s a way to overcome the political backlashes and bureaucratic delays that keep cities from implementing safety-focused street changes such as bike lanes. 

A reconfigured intersection in downtown Culver City in Los Angeles features bike and bus lanes. The city has been slow to add street improvements called for in a 2015 mobility plan. 

A reconfigured intersection in downtown Culver City in Los Angeles features bike and bus lanes. The city has been slow to add street improvements called for in a 2015 mobility plan. 

Photographer: Citizens of the Planet/Universal Images Group Editorial via Getty Images

Angie Schmitt

Not long ago, Los Angeles seemed ready to take on its notorious traffic congestion and build a more balanced, walkable and safer city — or at least improve on the status quo.

Approved in 2015, the city’s Mobility Plan 2035 staked out an ambitious vision for transformation: Over the next two decades, 1,500 miles of streets were to be overhauled for safety and walkability. Mayor Eric Garcetti also made a commitment to Vision Zero, the international traffic safety movement that emphasizes redesigning roads to dramatically reduce transportation-related fatalities.