TUESDAY | Oct. 14, 2008

If Ben Franklin lived in Southern California today, he might have said that, “Nothing is certain except death, taxes…and traffic.” On Nov. 4, Los Angeles County voters can take a major step against traffic by supporting Measure R – the half-cent county sales tax increase. If approved by voters, the measure will fund $40 billion in local transportation projects.

Why, you might ask, would a business organization endorse a sales tax increase during a struggling economy? We took this action because the traffic we encounter daily will only get worse if we do not take matters into our own hands. This sales tax proposal is the single greatest opportunity for all of us to collectively invest in highways and public transportation that will improve our quality of life, our local economy and during peak rush hour – our sanity.

Nearly two-thirds of the $40 billion will be spent on expanding our regional mass transit network such as extending the Green Line to LAX and the South Bay, the Purple Line to Westwood, the Gold Line to Azusa and more bus routes. The rest of the money will pay for long overdue road and highway improvements like expanded carpool lanes on our most congested freeways, traffic light synchronization on surface streets and pothole repairs to roads that have not been improved for decades.

By investing in our highways and transit to reduce our time in traffic, we will also be investing in our economy. Building these transportation projects will create 210,000 jobs in the region – jobs sorely needed to jumpstart our local economy. They will also save our local businesses money from lost productivity and high fuel prices. And at the same time, we will improve our air quality and reduce our carbon footprint.

The most direct benefit will be to our sanity and quality of life. The sales tax increase will cost each resident about $40 per year – less than many of us waste in gas idling on the freeway. For that investment, we can spend more time with family and friends. We will also have more options to travel our county via a mass transit system that connects us to more places quickly and efficiently.

Doing nothing about traffic is no longer an option for the citizens of Los Angeles County. Without the congestion relief projects in Measure R, it is certain that our traffic will get worse. Average highway speeds in rush hour traffic will drop from 30 to 20 miles per hour over the next decade and commute times will double for many residents.

We understand the reasons for voting against Measure R, including the economic challenges faced by every family and the feeling that some regions of the county will see more projects funded than others. From a review of the commuting patterns in Los Angeles County it is clear that all of us, no matter where we live, will benefit from the traffic relief created by these projects.  Is it worth $40 per year per resident to make that happen? We think it is and we urge our members and their employees to vote YES on Measure R on Nov. 4.
 
And that's The Business Perspective.

Gary L. Toebben
President & CEO
Los Angeles Area Chamber of Commerce

The Business Perspective is a weekly opinion piece by Gary Toebben, President & CEO of the Los Angeles Area Chamber of Commerce, produced with the input of Samuel Garrison, Vice President of Public Policy.

by Gary Toebben, President & CEO, Los Angeles Area Chamber of Commerce

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