Bill Revised to Let L.A. Curb Truck Traffic

Deciding that Los Angeles has “unique and special traffic congestion problems,” an Assembly committee voted Thursday to exempt the city from key provisions of a bill designed to stymie Mayor Tom Bradley’s efforts to control truck traffic.

In a compromise prompted by Bradley’s personal appeal to the committee two weeks ago, the Assembly Ways and Means Committee agreed to alter the bill to allow California cities generally to impose permit fees on trucks at least until Dec. 31, 1990, and to allow Los Angeles, specifically, to ban truck traffic during rush hours.

“Basically this has been a happy day for cities,” said Los Angeles Transportation Coordinator William Bicker, who had been dispatched by Bradley to work out a final compromise with the bill’s author, Sen. William Campbell (R-Hacienda Heights).

Proposals to ban 70% of all trucks from city streets during peak traffic hours and impose a $60 annual city permit fee on truckers had been the last major unadopted elements of a Bradley plan to reduce traffic congestion and air pollution in Los Angeles.

Both proposals had strong opposition from trucking interests who got legislative leaders to promise to push a bill to limit local governments’ ability to restrict truck traffic and license truckers in return for the truckers’ support of an $18.5-billion transportation improvement plan.

Acknowledging that the Bradley proposal was the main reason for the bill, the truckers argued that it would be unfair for the city to impose a permit fee just as they were being hit by a 9-cent gas tax hike and hefty increases in truck weight fees. Those increases have been approved by the Legislature to help finance the transportation improvements during the next decade.

The state transportation program and the tax hikes cannot go into effect, however, unless voters approve modifications in a state spending limit next June.

But after a rare personal appearance by Bradley before the Ways and Means Committee, Los Angeles lawmakers threatened to kill Campbell’s bill unless the mayor’s concerns were addressed. Led by Assemblywoman Maxine Waters (D-Los Angeles) and Assemblyman Terry Friedman (D-Los Angeles), they argued that they were “not part of any deal” and therefore were in no way obligated to pass the legislation.

The committee agreed to “suspend” passage of the bill until a compromise was reached.

On Thursday the committee unanimously approved the bill after agreeing to the changes proposed by Waters and Friedman at Bradley’s request.

Campbell said the powerful California Trucking Assn. had not yet endorsed the changes. “I am going to have to do some more work on them but I am hopeful that by the time we’re through that they will be in support of this measure,” he said.

As the bill now stands, most cities--except Los Angeles--could not restrict truck traffic on local streets unless the restrictions were consistent with a congestion management plan. Part of the transportation program approved by the Legislature requires local governments to adopt plans for managing traffic congestion.

Also under the bill, cities could not collect local truck permit fees after Dec. 31, 1990, if the voters approve the June ballot measure that will trigger the gas tax hike. If the voters reject the measure, cities could continue to collect the fee after 1990.

Bicker said Bradley agreed to the compromise on the fees because any truck fee revenue the city would lose would more than be made up in additional revenue from the gas tax increase. The Legislature has directed that some of the gas increase be used for local street improvements.

As the truckers were suffering a setback in the Assembly committee, Gov. George Deukmejian was signing a measure that would put additional restrictions on them at the state level. The legislation by Sen. John Seymour (R-Anaheim) prohibits the drivers of heavy trucks from attempting to stop or slow down their vehicles by using the hand brakes on their trailers.