MTA Urged to Fix Street Damaged by Subway Work

A county supervisor has asked the Metropolitan Transit Authority to repair a two-mile stretch of Lankershim Boulevard damaged by MTA subway construction.

On Tuesday, Supervisor Zev Yaroslavsky urged MTA head Julian Burke to spend $1.3 million to fix the section of Lankershim between Bluffside Drive and Chandler Boulevard, said Joel Bellman, a spokesman for Yaroslavsky.

Construction of a Red Line subway station has damaged the street and created narrow detours and other inconveniences for motorists, discouraging shopping in the area, Bellman said.

“There has been a lot of economic pain and disruption to endure in addition to the damaged street,” Bellman said. “There needs to be some recognition of MTA responsibility to the city of Los Angeles.”

MTA spokesman Rick Jager said the MTA is working on a recommendation on repairing the street. Burke will present his recommendation at a MTA board meeting Thursday.