Other actions taken by the Metro Board of Directors today

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•The Board approved a $33.2-million, five-year contract with the California Vanpool Authority, Enterprise Rent-a-Car Company of Los Angeles and VPSI, Inc., to provide vanpool services to Metro. Metro staff report

•The Board voted to accept $26.1 million from the state of California’s Prop 1B to help fund the I-405 Sepulveda Pass Improvements Project. Metro staff report

•The Board did not take a position of support of state bills that would lower the threshold needed for voters to pass a transportation sales tax from two-thirds to 55 percent. Although there were not seven votes (a majority) against supporting the bills, a motion to move the item to next month failed, meaning that a Board Member would likely need to make a motion to bring it back.

The yes votes came from Board Members Richard Katz, Ara Najarian, Pam O’Connor, Mel Wilson and Zev Yaroslavsky. The no votes came from Michael D. Antonovich, Diane DuBois John Fasana and Don Knabe. Absent for the vote were Jose Huizar, Mark Ridley-Thomas, Antonio Villaraigosa and Gloria Molina.

Metro staff had recommended supporting the bills as a possible way to help accelerate transit projects in the future; several Board members had issues ranging from lack of public input to an unwillingness to seek a change because of the narrow loss of Measure J last fall. Metro staff report

•The Board approved a revenue-generating contract with InSite Wireless to install equipment in the Red and Purple Line subway and other underground portions of the Metro Rail system to provide cell phone service and, eventually, wi-fi service for Metro riders. Metro staff report and recent Source post

Categories: Policy & Funding, Projects, Transit Service

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4 replies ›

  1. No surprise there are some board members who have the gall to claim that over 65% support for Measure J is a mandate for change. That is the ultimate public input.

  2. The lack of support for the 55% threshold is shocking and I’m sure is about parochial agendas. Please write a column fleshing this out more.

    • Hi Roger;

      Here is how the voting went — I didn’t have the info yesterday. Sorry about that.

      Yes to support: Najarian, Yarosvlavsky, O’Connor, Katz, Wilson
      No: Fasana, Antonovich, DuBois, Knabe
      Absent: Huizar, Ridley-Thomas, Villaraigosa, Molina

      I’ll amend the post to include this information. Thanks for your interest!

      Steve Hymon
      Editor, The Source