L.A. mayor Eric Garcetti stops in Downey to pitch Measure M

Photo by Alex Dominguez

DOWNEY – Mayor of Los Angeles Eric Garcetti arrived in Downey today in order to show his support for upcoming ballot item Measure M.

The press conference was held at Wilderness Park, using the notoriously congested 605 Freeway interchange as its backdrop. 

Garcetti used the opportunity to urge voters to vote yes on M. 

“We’re here at one of the most choked arteries – not just in America – but the intersection of two arteries at the 605 and 5. Three hundred thousand cars and trucks pass through this intersection every single day,” said Garcetti. “That means traffic jams. That means air pollution. That means lost economic growth. And that’s why we must vote yes on Measure M –the Los Angeles County Traffic Improvement Plan – on November 9th.”

According to Garcetti, Measure M would immediately ease congestion along the 605 Freeway by fixing “bottlenecks” with $1 billion in funding available starting in 2018. The 605 “hotspot” interchanges at the 5, 10, 60, 91, and 405 interchanges would all be targeted to be fixed, officials said. 

Garcetti also commented that the county-wide traffic reduction plan would immediately deliver to each of the county’s 88 cities for local pothole filling, road repaving, and traffic improvements. 

“Measure M will reduce the time that we’re all stuck in traffic by 15 percent, and will create 465 thousand jobs across the region…good middle-class jobs, that can support families. Jobs that will build things right here in Los Angeles again,” said Garcetti.

According to a press release sent to the Downey Patriot, Measure M would modernize LA County’s aging transportation system and build a 21st century transportation network that expands subway, light rail, Rapid Bus, Metrolink, freeways, and highways. 

It would also add and accelerate transit lines and tie them together into a comprehensive system to work in conjunction with an improved freeway and local road network.

"The 605 is vital artery for our region, from the San Gabriel Valley through the Gateway Cities to our coast, and Measure M will get to work to unclog it immediately," said Garcetti. "With the L.A. County population increasing by 2.3 million in the coming years, we must pass Measure M now to deliver immediate and long-term traffic relief. We've got to vote yes on Measure M to move and improve L.A. County Traffic Now."