I I I SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA RAPID TRANSIT DISTRICT I I FINAL REPORT MAY 1968 H AFINALREPORT to the people of the Los Angeles Metropolitan Area regarding a first-stage system of Rapid Transit, prepared in accordance with the provisions of the Southern California Rapid Transit District Law (Statutes of 1964, as amended) by the Directors and staff of: SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA RAPID TRANSIT 1)ISTRICT DIRECTORS: Don C. McMiHan, District President, retired Pasadena City Manager, Business Administrator, Pasadena Museum; Herbert H. Krauch, District Vice President, Editor (retired), Los Angeles Herald-Examiner; Kermit M. Bill, Mayor, Huntington Park, Realtor, Conway-Pinnell; Charles E. Compton, Mayor, Burbank, Realtor, Paul White Car- nahan Realty Co.: A. J. Eyraud, Jr., President, Asbury Transportation Company; Gordon R. Hahn, Businessman, former California State Assemblyman and Los Angeles City Councilman; H. Lee Hale, Mayor, Walnut, General Man- ager, First Thrift of America; David K. Hayward, Councilman, Redondo Beach, Owner, David K. Hayward Insurance Agency; Michael E. Macke, Realtor, Macke Realty; Douglas A. Newcomb, Superintendent (retired), Long Beach Unified School District; Dr. Norman Topping, President, University of Southern California. Former Directors include: Howard P. Allen, Mark Boyar, Dr. Robert F. Brandon, Allan F. Daily, Jr. (Deceased), Harry A. Faull, Leonard Horwin, and Martin Pollard. DISTRICT STAFF: Dale W. Barratt, General Manager; Jack R. Gilstrap, Assistant General Manager Rapid Transit Development; Raymond W. Gareau, Manager of Operations; Richard Gallagher, Chief Engineer; John Curtis, Director of Rapid Transit Planning; George W. Heinle, Principal Design Engineer; Reed 0. Christiansen, Director of Public Information; Milton McKay, General Counsel; Virginia L. Rees, Secretary; H. L. Black, Auditor and Treasurer. CONSULTANTS: Kaiser Engineers/Daniel, Mann, Johnson & Mendenhall, a Joint Venture, overall system general engineering and architectural consultants; M. A. Nishkian & Company, engineering consultants; Day & Zimmermann, Inc., airport express study; Coverdale & Colpitts, traffic, revenue and operating expense estimates; Stone & Youngberg, financing consultants; Stanford Research Institute, economic impact analysis; Simpson & Curtin, transit systems applica- tion; O'Melveny and Myers, bond counsel. Acknowledgement is made of an appropriation of tidelands oil revenue from the California State Legislature under Chapter 155, Statutes 1966 (1st Extraordinary Session). The preparation of this report has been financed in part through a mass transportation technical study grant from the U. S. Department of Housing and Urban Development under the provisions of Section 9 of the Urban Mass Transporta- tion Act of 1964 as amended by Public Law 89-562, 89th Congress, 1966. SOUTHERN CALIFO).N1A RAPID TRANSIT DISTRICT 1060 South Broadway, Los Angeles, California 90015 RTD-1 exists; and to operate a surface transit system which pro- vides more than three-quarters of the bus service within the District as well as bus service in Orange, Riverside, and San Bernardino Counties. The District, in all of its efforts, has worked in close cooperation with local, state and federal governmental agencies to insure the development of the best possible public transportation system for the metropolitan area. THE RAPID TRANSIT DISTRICT The Southern California Rapid Transit District was cre- ated in 1964 by an act of the California State Legislature. It is the public agency charged with the responsibility of providing most of the existing public transportation in Los Angeles County and planning, constructing and oper- ating a mass rapid transit system for the community. District boundaries coincide with those of Los Angeles PREFACE County, except for the exclusion of the Antelope Valley, much of Angeles National Forest and the offshore islands. All bus operating expenses, equipment replacement and debt service on outstanding revenue bonds are met solely from operating revenues. The District has no power to levy taxes for such purposes. The Legislature has empowered the District to levy a property tax for rapid transit construction after approval by 60 percent of the electorate voting on the ballot This is the Final Report on a rapid transit rail-bus sys- proposition. Additional legislation will be required to tem from the Southern California Rapid Transit District provide the public with any alternate method of financing to the cities of the District, to the County of Los Angeles rapid transit construction, such as a general sales tax. and to the citizens of the District for whose benefit the with engineer proposed system has been planned and designed. Funds which to plan and the initial stage of a rapid transit system and to develop the Master Plan The Board of Directors of the District has been guided Concept as presented in this report were provided by the in all of its endeavors by policies and objectives directed California State Legislature from state tidelands oil and toward determining and meeting the unfilled rapid transit dry gas revenue and by the United States Department and public transportation needs in the Los Angeles of Housing and Urban Development through a mass Metropolitan Area. transportation technical study grant. Under its legislative mandate, the District has proceeded to develop a Master Plan Concept for public transporta- DISTRICT BOARD OF tion; to identify and accomplish preliminary design engi- DIRECTORS neering on the five corridors where the greatest need One of the principal aims in the creation of the District RTD-2 was to make its governing board responsive to local com- munity needs and desires. To accomplish this purpose, the Legislature provided for the appointment of an eleven-member Board of Directors in which is vested all executive and administrative authority over District operations. APPOINTMENT OF SCRTD DIRECTORS The Directors are appointed as follows: five by the Board of Supervisors of Los Angeles County, of whom one must reside in each supervisorial district; two by the Mayor of the City of Los Angeles subject to confirmation by the City Council, both of whom must reside in the City of Los Angeles; and four by a City Selection Committee representing all cities in the District except Los Angeles, each of whom must reside in a different city and none of whom may reside in the City of Los Angeles RAPID TRANSIT DISTRICT LAW In establishing the District, the Legislature provided that the District proceed at once with rapid transit planning and preliminary engineering and that the results of this program be submitted to the community in a Preliminary Report, and that a Final Report be submitted after com- munity views and desires were received and considered. PRELIMINARY REPORT Official notice of this meeting was sent to every city in Both reports are required by law to include the estimated In the latter half of 1967, planning and preliminary the District and to the County of Los Angeles. Invitations construction and equipment costs of the system, the design engineering had reached the level at which the to attend were mailed to 1,812 public officials, State sources and estimated amounts of income from the sys- District could report recommendations to the people. officers, legislators, civic leaders, community groups and tem, the estimated cost of maintenance and operation, the Accordingly, the Preliminary Report was issued at a business and labor organizations. Extensive coverage of proposed method or methods of financing and other ancil- public meeting in The Los Angeles County Hall of this meeting by the newspaper, radio and television media lary information pertinent to the project. Administration on October 30. was of great value to the District in informing its citizens. RTD-3 INTERIM ACTIVITIES In this public meeting numerous cities, organizations and Technical studies continued during and after publication individuals offered comment on the proposed rapid of the Preliminary Report. Preliminary engineering and transit system. cost estimates were refined in the process leading to publi- COMMUNITY ATTITUDES cation of this Final Report. The District is grateful to the hundreds of elected offi- Immediately following the October 30 meeting a series cials, administrators, planners, engineers, organizations, of special community meetings was held throughout the civic leaders and citizens for their significant contribu- District to acquaint the people with the project and to tions to this project. obtain their desires, comments and criticisms. Advance The analysis qf community response since the Prelimi- notice of these meetings was given to the communities nary Report reveals several general conclusions reached through city councils, the local news media, chambers of by the public: commerce and civic organizations. At the meetings a presentation was made which included First, the people recognize the urgent need for a rapid a film strip with recorded narrative summarizing the transit system and desire it to be built without delay. material contained in the Preliminary Report. A team Second, there is broad demand for more first-stage of District staff personnel answered questions from the system than was proposed in the Preliminary Report public. and for an early development and implementation of Those who attended the meetings were given comment the Master Plan Concept second-stage. sheets to be completed and returned to the District for Third, the people insist that means of financing con-