MEASURE R: IMPROVING THE SUBREGION’S HIGHWAYS

Measure R, passed by voters in 2008, is a half-cent sales tax used to finance new transportation projects and programs, and accelerate those already in the pipeline. The SBCCOG manages nearly $831 million in Measure R funds through the South Bay Highway Program.

Measure R funds in the South Bay are reserved for improvements on the state highway system or projects located on primary roadways generally within a 1-mile corridor of any state highway.

In 2020, the SBCCOG board established the South Bay Transit Investment Program, which transferred $400 million in measure R funds in unprogrammed funding from the South Bay Highway Program to fund transit capital projects in the subregion.

 

The SBCCOG contributed $49.3 million to Port of L.A. from Measure R funds to reconfigure a major interchange at State Route 47/Vincent Thomas Bridge and Front Street/Harbor Boulevard in San Pedro. This interchange connects to I-110, provides access to San Pedro, Wilmington and Terminal Island, and serves the West Basin Container Terminal. The reconfiguration will reduce travel times, alleviate congestion, and improve motorist and pedestrian safety at this highly traveled roadway juncture.

SUBREGIONAL PROJECTS
• $86.4 million to Caltrans for I-405 at 182nd Street/Crenshaw Boulevard auxiliary lanes and on/ off ramp improvements
• $49.3 million to Port of Los Angeles for Vincent Thomas Bridge on/ off ramp improvements at Harbor Boulevard
• $8.1 million to Caltrans for the design of the I-110 auxiliary lane from SR-91 to Torrance Blvd. and I-405/I- 110 connector
• $9 million to Caltrans for intelligent transportation systems (ITS) improvements on Pacific Coast Highway
• $22.85 million to Metro for I-105 integrated corridor management

CITY PROJECTS
• $5 million to Carson for traffic signal upgrades
• $9.1 million to Manhattan Beach for the seismic retrofit of the bridge at Sepulveda Boulevard/Rosecrans Avenue
• $7.55 million to Hawthorne for Hawthorne Boulevard improvements from El Segundo Boulevard to Rosecrans Avenue
• $20.5 million to Torrance for PCH/Hawthorne Boulevard intersection improvements

TRANSIT PROJECTS
• $12.4 million to Gardena Transit for bus purchases
• $35 million to Torrance Transit for Mary K. Giordano Regional Transit Center
• $32 million to Beach Cities Transit for a transit operations and maintenance facility
• $11.5 million to Carson Circuit for Fashion Outlet Regional Transit Center

MEASURE M:IMPROVING CONGESTION AND SAFETY
To facilitate additional funding and also more flexibility in how those funds are used, in 2016 Los Angeles County voters passed Measure M, a second half-cent sales tax, with 71.15% support. When Measure R expires in 2038, Measure M will become a one-cent sales tax.

In the South Bay, the SBCCOG also prioritizes and manages the spending and disbursement of these funds to member jurisdictions for local projects, many of which are smaller in cost and scale and take less time to implement than Measure R projects, which can take decades to plan and complete.

Measure M funds are used to fund projects to ease traffic, repair local streets and sidewalks, and expand public transportation with the goal of improving congestion and safety for motorists, pedestrians and active transportation, such as bikes and scooters.

The South Bay will receive nearly $2 billion in funding between 2017 and 2057, provided in annual allocations and approved by the Metro board each year in September.

El Segundo Boulevard underwent improvements with $4.05 million in Measure M funds.

Lomita will be among the next South Bay cities to launch the Local Travel Network through Measure M funding.

  TRAFFIC IMPROVEMENT PROJECTS
• $13.12 to City of Inglewood for Prairie Avenue dynamic lane control system
• $11.24 million to City of Gardena for Redondo Beach Boulevard arterial improvements
• $4.05 million to City of El Segundo for El Segundo Boulevard improvements
• $1.2 million to City of Manhattan Beach for Aviation Boulevard east bound left-turn improvements

BIKE, PEDESTRIAN AND MICROMOBILITY PROJECTS
• $10.54 million to City of Carson to install bike lanes
• $4 million to City of Redondo Beach for Riviera Village pedestrian and multi-modal enhancements
• $8.2 million to City of Torrance for school safety and accessibility program
• $15 million total to cities of El Segundo, Redondo Beach, Carson, Lomita and Lawndale to implement the Local Travel Network

INTELLIGENT TRANSPORTATION SYSTEMS (ITS) PROJECTS
• $17.71 million to City of Manhattan Beach to implement the advanced traffic signal system
• $13 million to City of Inglewood to implement the Downtown ITS Project
• $6.89 million to various South Bay cities to implement the South Bay Fiber Network
• $1.05 million to City of Torrance for Torrance Fiber Network and traffic signal optimization

To learn more visit southbaycities.org/measures-r-and-m