NOTE: A previous publication of this article inaccurately reported that Burbank City Council voted to turn a portion of Olive Avenue into a bus-only lane. The article was updated to reflect the changes made.
The Burbank City Council voted late Tuesday to enter a Cooperative Agreement with Metro on the creation of the North Hollywood to Pasadena Bus Rapid Transit Corridor Project, according to a press release.
The project would connect Metro's North Hollywood Red Line station with the Gold Line in Pasadena. One of the possibilities stemming from this project that has some residents concerned is converting one standard traffic lane on each side of Olive Ave. into a bus lane. In a 2022 letter to Metro, the city officials expressed concern that “removing a travel lane on Olive Avenue would increase congestion and delay for motor vehicles traveling along the street.”
That concern was echoed by one resident at the city council meeting on Tuesday.
“Removing lanes of traffic to prioritize buses would likely result in increased traffic congestion longer commute times and heightened frustration for commuters,” he said.
Residents in favor of the project believe that it will make the roads safer for everybody and that it will add jobs.
“We have members that live here in Burbank that are sick and tired of driving down the freeways for a good job,” one person said. “This will create a great job for them to be able to stay home…be able to coach a team, be able to be with their families and raise their families and I think this would be awesome.”
Another person favoring the proposal had a message for those concerned about increased traffic.
“I just want to close with a statement that a lot of the car drivers have made tonight, which is that they don't want to be stuck in traffic anymore,” he said. “And I think that's a silly assertion. You’re not stuck in traffic. You are the traffic.”
A decision on the final configuration of the lanes will be made after more discussion with a city council subcommittee and more input from the community.
“Removing lanes of traffic to prioritize buses would likely result in increased traffic congestion longer commute times and heightened frustration for commuters,” one man said at the meeting.
Those in favor of the project believe that it will make the roads safer for everybody and that it will add jobs.
“We have members that live here in Burbank that are sick and tired of driving down the freeways for a good job,” one person said. “This will create a great job for them to be able to stay home…be able to coach a team, be able to be with their families and raise their families and I think this would be awesome.”
“I just want to close with a statement that a lot of the car drivers have made tonight, which is that they don't want to be stuck in traffic anymore,” he said. “And I think that's a silly assertion. You’re not stuck in traffic. You are the traffic.”
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