New Chairwoman Sees Traffic Woes Lessening

The new chairwoman of the Orange County Transportation Commission insisted Monday that traffic problems are being solved--and pledged to convince a skeptical public.

But before relinquishing the gavel, the outgoing chairwoman proposed a June, 1988, countywide advisory vote on growth, traffic-management techniques and tax increases to pay for new highways.

Brea Councilwoman Clarice Blamer, elected chairwoman Monday by the seven-member commission, said the agency will hire a special consultant to draft a plan to educate county residents about current traffic-improvement projects, and about what local transportation agencies do.

“Because of confusion, lack of understanding, distrust among our natural allies--and even a little lazy disinterest--we have not been able to win the public’s understanding,” said Blamer, 65, formerly the panel’s vice chairwoman.

The commission, which oversees county transportation programs and helps set priorities, is still reeling from the 1984 defeat of Proposition A, a proposed 1-cent countywide tax on retail sales that would have funded transit highway projects for 15 years.

Dissatisfied with Action

Post-election surveys showed that, among other factors, most voters opposed the measure because they believed that government had not done enough to solve transportation problems with existing funds.

The commission has struggled to change that opinion, partly by sponsoring regional public forums. They have been attended mostly by business and civic leaders already active on transportation issues, not the average citizen.

To help close that gap, Supervisor Harriett M. Wieder, the commission’s outgoing chairwoman, proposed Monday that the panel draft a June, 1988, measure that would seek voters’ opinions on growth, tax and transportation issues, and on such traffic-management measures as requiring major employers to meet specific work force ride-sharing goals.

The countywide vote would be advisory and not binding, Wieder said after Monday’s commission meeting. But she said it would help identify specific political constituencies that either support or reject various transportation options.

Model Traffic Law

Wieder said she was motivated partly by the reluctance of some cities in the county to adopt traffic-management strategies. The commission plans to unveil a model traffic-management law next month that may focus on incentives for ride-sharing.

At Monday’s session, the commission approved Wieder’s request that commission staff members provide a plan for placing the countywide advisory measure on the June ballot.

Also, Wieder won commission support for a study that could some day lead to a merger of several transportation agencies, including the commission and the Orange County Transit District, into one super agency controlled by a board of directors.

Legislative anger about allegations of mismanagement at the Southern California Rapid Transit District in Los Angeles has led to similar merger plans.

Learn from L.A.

Wieder said she is not out to scrap OCTD but believes that the Los Angeles experience should be watched closely. She said existing agencies should try to coordinate their activities and speak with one voice.

To show that the county’s traffic problems are being addressed, Blamer and Wieder joined other commissioners, as well as state and county civic and business leaders, at a ceremony marking the start of a two-year, $34-million widening project on Interstate 405 from Seal Beach to Costa Mesa.

The ceremony’s stated theme: “The solution is here and now.”