Transportation headlines, Friday, Feb. 3

Here is a look at some of the transportation headlines gathered by us and the Metro Library. The full list of headlines is posted on the Library’s Headlines blog, which you can also access via email subscription or RSS feed.

Culver City Council acts fast on transit-oriented development site (Los Angeles Wave)
In the wake of the dissolution of redevelopment agencies statewide, Culver City moved quickly to make sure it could still convert an Expo-adjacent property into transit-oriented development. After soliciting proposals from a half-dozen developers, the city elected to go with Lowe Enterprises, which offered to purchase the five-acre property for $23 million and share some profits with the city. According to a letter sent out to developers, the project must “include a mix of housing, office, retail and restaurant use surrounding a large central open space amenity and connect seamlessly with the new [Culver City Expo Line] station.” Also of note: Lowe is proposing to build 1,500 parking spaces, which seems like way too much for a TOD.

California lawmakers keep school buses rolling (L.A. Times)
Gov. Jerry Brown had effectively eliminated nearly $250 million in state support for school bus operations as of January in order to close an emerging state budget gap. But the state legislature has stepped in and restored funding in response to an outcry from educators and families. The Times notes that this is particularly significant for small and rural school districts for which the state funding was a lifeline connecting students to their schools.

Editorial: In the House, a transportation train wreck (L.A. Times)

As we mentioned in yesterday’s legislative alert, the proposed federal transportation bill in the House of Representatives could critically undermine federal support for public transit. That’s how the L.A. Times editorial board sees it too, and they’re having none of it. Here’s a particularly strongly-worded part:

…[the bill] is less a serious policy document than a wish list for oil lobbyists, and its funding proposals are so radical that they have been decried even by such conservative watchdogs as the Reason Foundation, the Competitive Enterprise Institute and Taxpayers for Common Sense.