LA Auto Club: Traffic Tie-Up$ Can be Improved With Ballot Measure$

    LOS ANGELES--Jan. 24, 2002--

101-405 Interchange, Sepulveda Pass, Other Congestion Spots To Receive
    Funding if Proposition 42 is Approved in March

    Some of Los Angeles' top traffic trouble spots will start moving quicker if voters approve Proposition 42, a March ballot measure that would provide more than $1 billion yearly in transportation funding without raising taxes, according to the Automobile Club of Southern California.
    Congestion relief and safety improvements at the 101/405 Freeway interchange, on the 405 Freeway at the Sepulveda Pass and on the 5, 10, 60, 14 and 101 freeways would be among the first in line to receive funding if Proposition 42 passes, according to Auto Club transportation specialists.
    "Some of these congested locations have been in the state transportation project pipeline for years, but can't move ahead because there is no money to pay for planning or construction," said Dan Beal, the Auto Club's manager of public policy and programs.
    "Proposition 42 is a fair and sensible method of helping to address the state transportation crisis because it uses taxes already being paid by motorists to fund solutions that will improve our mobility."
    Proposition 42 would permanently dedicate all the sales tax revenue from gasoline purchases toward transportation expenditures. This revenue amounts to about $1.3 billion annually.
    "The sales tax on gasoline equals just 1 percent of the state's general fund budget, but dedicating it to transportation would represent a substantial boost for California's highways and transit systems," Beal said. "Proposition 42 creates the basis for sound transportation funding in the state. Our mobility needs are too pressing to postpone -- Southern California's freeways are the most congested in the nation."
    Beal said the Auto Club supports an additional significant investment in California's transportation infrastructure because of tremendous needs. The state's licensed drivers have increased by 130 percent over the last 30 years and annual vehicle miles traveled have increased by 184 percent over that same period.
    At the same time, highway spending has dropped from about $60 per 1,000 vehicle miles traveled in the 1960s to less than $4 today after inflation is factored in.
    In addition to funding highway projects, Proposition 42 also provides money to operate, maintain and expand transit systems, which can help increase mobility and take pressure off state highways. Los Angeles County transit projects likely to benefit immediately from Proposition 42 include the successful Metro Rapid bus system and expansion of rail systems from downtown Los Angeles to Pasadena, West Los Angeles and East Los Angeles.
    The Auto Club is part of a large coalition of government and citizens' groups supporting Proposition 42. Other supporters include California Highway Patrol Commissioner Dwight "Spike" Helmick, Republican and Democratic lawmakers in the California Legislature, the governor, the California Police Chiefs Association, the League of California Cities, the California Chamber of Commerce and the City of Los Angeles.
    The Automobile Club of Southern California, the largest affiliate of the AAA, has been serving members since 1900. Today, the Auto Club's members benefit by roadside assistance, insurance products and services, travel agency, financial products, automotive pricing, buying and financing programs, automotive testing and analysis, trip planning services and highway and transportation safety programs.
    Information about these products and services is available on the Auto Club's Web site at www.aaa-calif.com.