Measure M has wide support support from both sides of the aisle, business & labor working together
LOS ANGELES COUNTY -- A powerful roster of L.A. County Republican leaders released an open letter to GOP voters today urging that they vote yes on Measure M, the Los Angeles County Traffic Improvement Plan.
Their support underscores the universal appeal of Measure M -- benefits including reducing the time we're stuck in traffic by 15 percent, creating 465,000 new jobs and immediately filling potholes and fixing local roads in all 88 L.A. County cities has earned Measure M endorsements from prominent Democrats and Republicans; the Los Angeles County Federation of Labor and the Los Angeles County Business Federation; and the AARP, the Los Angeles Times and La Opinion. View a larger list of endorsements.
Signing the letter are Senator Bob Huff; Supervisor Mike Antonovich; Duarte Councilmember John Fasana; Glendale Councilmember Ara Najarian; LA Board of Public Works President Kevin James: LA Deputy Mayor Jeff Gorell; Chief Deputy Supervisor, Fifth District, Kathryn Barger; and Los Angeles Area Chamber of Commerce President & CEO Gary Toebben.
As Republicans, we do not often support measures such as Measure M, The Los Angeles County Traffic Improvement Plan. We the undersigned strongly endorse Measure M, however, because it will deliver a tremendous return on investment for the people of Los Angeles County by easing our congestion and investing in critically-needed infrastructure.
Many of us are business people. We know a good investment when we see it. Measure M will reduce traffic congestion for every resident in our County. According to the non-profit Los Angeles County Economic Development Corporation, it will create 465,000 jobs.
And it will further accelerate our economy by sparking manufacturing opportunities; increasing employee and employer productivity; making L.A. County a more attractive place in which to invest and do business; moving goods better to and from the twin ports of L.A. and Long Beach; moving tourists, business travelers and cargo better to and from LAX.; and opening cross-county opportunities to people and commerce currently restricted by long-travel times and a lack of transportation options.
Measure M is an example of where government should indeed be focusing its efforts:
- To address problems that are universal in scale
- On the largest-scale infrastructure projects
- Where there is demonstrable return on investment
- Where the private sector is a true partner, and private sector entities are not given a hand-out, but are activated through opportunity and competition to hire, invest and innovate
- Where there is true transparency and accountability
While we are proud Republicans, we view Measure M as truly non-partisan. Measure M is not about furthering a political philosophy. It is a plan to address a problem, traffic congestion, that impacts all of our lives, lungs and livelihoods. It was not created by bureaucrats -- Measure M was created through a bottoms up, Countywide process led by local cities that engaged stakeholder groups and 48,000 every day people. Like the L.A. Area Chamber of Commerce, the Los Angeles County Business Federation, the Valley Industry & Commerce Association and the AARP, we urge every Los Angeles County resident — Republicans, Democrats and independents alike — to vote yes on Measure M.
Sincerely,
*Bob Huff, State Senator; former Assemblymember and Mayor/Councilmember, City of Diamond Bar; former Senate Minority Leader, Republican Caucus Chair, Assembly Republican Whip
*Mike Antonovich, Los Angeles County Supervisor, 5th District
*John Fasana, former Mayor and current Councilmember, City of Duarte
*Ara Najarian, former Mayor and current Councilmember, City of Glendale
*Kevin James, President, City of Los Angeles Board of Public Works
*Jeff Gorell, Deputy Mayor, Homeland Security & Public Safety, City of Los Angeles; former Assemblymember
*Kathryn Barger, Chief Deputy Supervisor, Fifth District, County of Los Angeles
*Gary Toebben, President & CEO, Los Angeles Area Chamber of Commerce
(titles are for identification purposes only)
MEASURE M BACKGROUND
Measure M will reduce the time people are stuck in traffic by fifteen percent a day. According to the non-profit Los Angeles County Economic Development Corporation, it will create 465,000 new jobs. Measure M will ease traffic immediately by repairing potholes and repaving local streets and roads in each of L.A. County’s 88 cities. It will keep senior, disabled, and student fares affordable and will provide critical earthquake retrofitting for overpasses and bridges.
A recent Texas A&M analysis found that traffic congestion costs the average commuter in our region $1,711, including from wasted fuel and lost productivity. All together, drivers in our region lose 622 million hours stuck in traffic a year, for a total cost of $13.3
billion, according to the analysis. The L.A. County population is projected to increase by 2.3 million.
Measure M will modernize L.A. County's aging transportation system and build a twenty-first century transportation network that expands subway, light rail, Rapid Bus, Metrolink, freeways, and highways. Measure M adds and accelerates transit lines and finally ties them together into a comprehensive system that will work with an improved freeway and local road network.