3 Area Freeways : Return Urged to Olympics Traffic Plan

A California Department of Transportation official has proposed that traffic control measures used successfully in Los Angeles during the 1984 Olympics--staggered work hours, off-peak truck deliveries and ride sharing--be permanently implemented to reduce freeway jams in the West San Fernando Valley and Ventura County.

David Roper, a Caltrans deputy district director, suggested the ambitious approach Tuesday in a meeting with the newly formed Ventura-San Fernando Valley Freeway Improvement Committee, a group that includes local officials and legislators representing the area.

“I’m issuing a bit of a challenge,” said Roper, who masterminded the traffic management plan that helped minimize freeway congestion during the Olympics. “Without the support of this group, I can guarantee one thing--this will never fly.”

Roper said Tuesday’s meeting was the first time he has suggested permanent use of the traffic management techniques to a group of officials.

Committee members asked Roper to report back next month with more details on how “the Olympic legacy,” as they dubbed the traffic plan, could be implemented in the area bounded by three heavily traveled freeways: the Ventura (101), San Diego (405) and Simi Valley (118).

But they noted that any attempt to alter driving habits of Southern Californians is politically sensitive.

“I don’t like imposing mandatory things on people,” said state Sen. Alan Robbins (D-Van Nuys). “We’ll see what is politically feasible and see what we can sell to the public.”

20-Member Committee

The committee, which has more than 20 members, was formed last month by Simi Valley City Councilwoman Vicky Howard to bring together officials from Los Angeles and Ventura counties to push for improvements on the Simi Valley Freeway. But it quickly broadened its scope.

In suggesting that the traffic measures be used in the West Valley-Ventura County area, Roper told the group, “We need an area with a well-defined employer center that is small enough to be workable and large enough to have an impact. To try to do this for the entire Los Angeles basin would just boggle the mind.”

As was the case during the Olympics, the plan would involve a campaign to get major employers in the area to stagger employee work hours and encourage car-pooling. They also would be urged to shift delivery times for trucks away from rush hours, Roper said.

Roper said many motorists probably would object to another feature of the plan, regular use of metered lights on all on- and off-ramps and the addition of such lights on freeway connector ramps.

The hardest part, Roper conceded, will be selling the plan to the public.

“It has to be presented to business with a bottom line,” he said. “They can increase productivity by decreasing the commute time for their employees.”