Pauletta: Good evening, everyone.

And thank you for joining us for a live telephone town hall
meeting hosted by the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority, also known as
Metro. Im Pauletta Tonilas, Chief Communications Officer for Metro, and Ill be your moderator
this evening as we talk about Metros programs and services, and our plan to ease traffic; our
long-term plan to transform transportation to provide better mobility all across Los Angeles
County. Joining me this evening are Rick Clark, Metros Executive Director of Program
Management, Therese McMillan, who is Metros Chief Planning Officer, also Mark Linsenmayer
with the Planning Department, and Mike Sekirk with our Service Development Department. So
we are here all for you to answer your questions, to get your feedback on this expenditure plan
to transform transportation. We want to hear what you have to say, whats important to you as
we look to the future in how we move around Los Angeles County. What is it that we should be
planning for? What do you think of this plan? This plan would involve a half cent sales tax
increase to provide better bus service, and more rail lines, and express lanes, carpool lanes;
more improvements at the local level that go right back to you and your local communities, and
a host of other things that all integrate to provide better transportation. !

So if this is the first time on a telephone town hall meeting, heres how it works. To ask a
question you just press zero on your keypad and youll be transferred to an operator who will
then take down some basic information and put you in the queue so that you can ask your
question to us live. And since were here to hear from you, and we want to hear from as many
as possible, what we ask is that when we turn it over to you to ask the question that youre brief
in asking your question, and that you ask just one question, because we want to get to as many
folks as we can tonight. So I will call your name when its time for us to go to the question and
answer portion, and then youll just ask us your question live. All of your opinions are important
to us. Tonight we are going to be asking you some questions. Were going to be doing some
electronic polling where well ask a question and well ask you to correspond with the number on
your keypad that best represents your answer. And then a little bit later well tell you how you
collectively - as a community - combined for that answer. Tonights telephone town hall meeting
is focused on the Gateway Cities area. This is 27 cities and communities in the Southeastern
part of Los Angeles County. So that is the area were focused on during this town hall meeting.
But we have many more coming up over the next couple of weeks, and youre free to call in to
any of these telephone town halls. You can get all the information on our Metro Web site for
when all of these meetings are happening. Also, the call in number so that you can participate in
any of the meetings that we have over the next couple of weeks; if you would like to participate
online with us, you can go to our Web site at Metro.net/theplan, and click on the "interactive
town hall" link that is on Metros web homepage. So again, we thank you for being here tonight.
Press zero to get in the queue, and youll be able to ask us a question live on the air. So Im
going to turn it over now to Rick Clark, who is Metros Executive Director of Program
Management. Good evening, Rick. Thanks for being with us.!

Rick: Thanks Pauletta, and thanks for all of you for joining us on this call tonight. Im looking
forward to your questions, but first I want to share a few thoughts on whats going on now at
Metro, and why Metros efforts to create a transportation revolution are so important for the
entire region. Metro provides 450 million rides a year. So if we think we have traffic now, think
what itd be like if all those people on Metro buses and trains were instead driving. Thats why
our region is embarking on a transportation revolution. We need more options for commuters.
With the opening of the Gold Line extension to Azusa, and the upcoming opening of the Expo
extension to Santa Monica, Metro rail will increase from zero miles to more than a 100 miles of
rail in just 25 years. We also have over 2,200 buses serving 170 routes all over the county. But

cars are not the enemy. For car dependent parts of L.A. County, our highly developed freeway
system is the best way to go around. The Gateway Cities are highway dependent. Theyre
crisscrossed by the 5, the 710, the 405, and the 605 freeways. So the massive $1.6 billion
widening and carpool lane project on the I-5 freeway are now under construction right now by
Caltrans and Metro, and thats hugely important. Its part of a package of six construction
projects that will ultimately widen the 5 between the Orange County line and the 605 freeway.
The 5 freeway widening project is a great example of Metro, Caltrans, and also local efforts to
improve and modernize existing freeways, and illustrate how were working to take care of the
infrastructure we inherited. In fact, the Gateway Cities have about $14 billion in highway projects
that are in various phases. These include interchange improvements along the 605, 405, 91, 5,
605, and 60. That said, were looking forward to the future. And as we work towards a more
mobile region were also looking forward to the discussion tonight. So please press zero to ask
a question or to participate in our call. !

Pauletta: Thanks very much, Rick. Yes, as Rick said, were here for you. This is all about the
public. It starts and ends with the public, with our citizens out there. And its all of us in it
together, how were going to improve transportation all across the Metro area. So were going to
go ahead and go to our first question right now, and that is Derek in L.A. Derek, go ahead and
ask your question.!

Derek: Oh, its time for me to ask the question? My question is when are they going to start
running the three cars instead of the two cars on the Metro blue line? When youre catching the
train, the two cars are really loaded with people. Its not enough room for everybody to get on.
So you have to wait until the next car come by. By that time youre late to get to where your
destination is. Is it a way that you guys can rectify that?...!

Mike: Derek, are you there? Derek, were having a little glitch, I guess, on the operation of the
trains right now. As you may know, were starting to run some new rail lines, and although the
cars have been delivered, we are still testing some of those cars, and so we have been forced
to pull some of those cars off the blue line so they could be put on some of these other lines so
we can get the testing done. Thats only going to be a temporary thing. We are moving quickly
to reinstate the three car trains on the blue line as quickly as we can. We probably think within
the next week or so we should have that wrapped up.!

Pauletta: Thanks very much, Mike. And thank you very much, Derek, for your question. Were
going to go now to Petra in Long Beach. Petra, wed like to take your question.!

Petra: They told me something aboutbecause I like to havehow to get somewhere; like to
the doctor or grocery shopping. Im 91 years-old, but I'd like to know where I can get
transportation. But there was a man that called, but I cannot hear because Im hard to hear. !

Pauletta: Hello, Petra. Thank you for your question. And for those who would like to take
advantage of our services for seniors, you can call our access services. That number - if you
have a pen and paper handy, Ill mention the number for you - its 1-800-883-1295. Once again,
our access services number is 800-883-1295. 800-883-1295. And that is how you get in touch
with our access services. What I will tell you is that we have various services for senior citizens
at Metro, and one of them is teaching seniors how to use our system; how to buy their TAP card
- their discounted TAP cards, because we do offer discounts to seniors and to the disabled and
to students - and this is a significant program for us. So this plan that were talking about tonight

- our future plan to ease traffic - it does include funding so that we can keep fares, over the next
four decades, affordable for seniors, students, and the disabled. So thats part of the plan. Its a
funding pot that we want to make sure that we have access to. And so I want to make sure that
you knew that, Petra. But thank you very much for your question. Were now going to go to
Frank in Long Beach. Frank?!

Frank: Yeah. I was wondering if we can improve the way that the local buses can coordinate
when the rail line comes into town. I waited an hour and 15 minutes when I came on the blue
line down to Long Beach from Los Angeles to catch a bus to my house. As I was getting off of
the train, the bus left, and it was an hour and 15 minutes, and then I had to wait. And then when
I did finally catch a bus it took a half hour to get across town. I can just get in my car and drive to
where I was going in 45 minutes. I dont have to waste two hours. So, its fast, but the
connections on either end are just absolutely horrible.!

Mike: Hi, Frank. This is Mike Sekirk in Service Planning. Apologize for the connection problems
there. As far as the service, Im not sure you didnt indicate what line you were riding or where
you were going, but Metro tries to coordinate the schedule between the bus and the trains. Its
what we call our interface plan for each rail station. And so we try to maintain that connection so
itll allow for people to, when they get off the bus, to catch the train or vice versa. Again, Im not
exactly sure what happened in your case, but we apologize for that. But we do make an effort to
make sure that those buses and trains do connect to get people where they want to go.!

Pauletta: Thanks, Mike. And thank you, Frank, for your question. Listening to our Spanish
simulcast tonight is Roberto in Huntington Park. And Robertos question is, "If the Alameda
Corridor was constructed, why are the lanes still being used by cargo trains? That does not
seem to improve traffic." So again, hes asking about the Alameda Corridor, and why the lanes
are still being used by cargo trains. I think Im going to have Rick go ahead and respond to that.
Go ahead, Rick.!

Rick: Yes. The Alameda Corridor, as you know, was a grade separated line built for cargo trains
to go from the inland areas to the ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles. That is not necessarily
a Metro initiative, and the operation of that is separate from Metro. However, my understanding
is there still is a number of cargo trains using that line, and the trucks that are on it are going to
other destinations that are directly connected to the railroads. So I think that corridor still is
providing benefits. If you look at all the trains still using it that would be a lot of additional trucks
that would be on the roads that arent there now.!

Pauletta: Thanks for answering that, Rick. Were going to go now to Vincent in Long Beach. And
Vincent, what is your question?!

Vincent: Well I was wondering if you guys have any plans of bringing the trains closer to the
airport, or actual in the airport. Other states do that.!

Therese: Vince, hi. This is Therese McMillan, and Ill take your question; a very good one. And
just wanted to let you know that actually we have under construction right now a rail line called
the Crenshaw-L.A.X. rail line that would go from the current Expo line - that runs a bit in the
north and central part of L.A. right now - go down Crenshaw Boulevard through Inglewood, and
connect to a major new terminal at L.A.X. And then the airport itself is planning on a people
mover connection that then would go straight into the airport and into various areas around the

terminal. So thats actually under construction right now. Another part of that is that the
Crenshaw line would then also continue to the green line thats farther south. So actually you
could connect to the airport both from the north and from the south. So thats a major
improvement to the system connectivity of our rail system in L.A. County.!

Pauletta: Thanks very much, Therese. And that project is one that people all across the county
are really excited about; is taking the train to the airport and having that connection. As Vincent
was mentioning, a lot of other major cities do that. So its going to be great to have that
connection to the airport. And that project will open up in the 2019 timeframe, I believe it is. So
thats not that far away, folks. Thats only about three years. So I do want to mention that were
going to be marking a major milestone on the Crenshaw-L.A.X line this Saturday. Were going to
be having the Halfway There community celebration on the Crenshaw-L.A.X line. So this
Saturday, May 7th, we ask you to come out and join us at Leimert Park, off of Crenshaw there
on the Crenshaw line corridor. And well be having a little ceremony, lots of festivities, things for
the kids. So we ask you to come out. Its our way of saying thank you to the community for
enduring the construction. Whenever we go through these construction projects there are
impacts; we all know that. But, we like to say that short-term pain for long-term gain, because
we have to keep our eye on the prize of what thats going to mean when that rail line is done,
and the community there is going to be so happy when that Crenshaw-L.A.X line is done and
serves the community. We ask you, once again, to come out this Saturday and join us for the
Halfway There event on the Crenshaw-L.A.X. line. Next, were going to go to Ishmael in Los
Angeles. Ishmael, go ahead and ask your question. Others, please push zero to get in the
queue, but Im going to turn it over to Ishmael right now.!

Ishmael: Hi, thanks guys. I just wanted to know if Metro is planning to expand its rail service out
to the Gateway communities, such as Pico Rivera, Commerce, those areas?!

Mark: Hi Ishmael, this is Mark with Planning. We do have a number of projects that were
looking to expand down into the Gateway. I think the primary one were looking at is what we
call the "West Santa Anna Branch Corridor", which will be a light rail project going from
downtown Los Angeles through various communities in south L.A. and ultimately connecting
with the green line down towards the Orange County line in the southern part of Los Angeles
County, throughout the Gateway area. So we are planning on that extension to go forward.
Were also looking at the east side extension along Washington Boulevard going out towards,
again, the San Bernardino County line, on various alignments. So were trying to accommodate
several different rail projects, along with, of course, going through the community of Whittier. !

Pauletta: Thank you very much for your question, Ishmael, and Mark, for answering that
question. If youd like to ask a question to us, please press zero on your keypad and youll get in
the queue to ask your question live to our panelists. Right now were going to go, however, to
Christopher in Norwalk. Hi Christopher.!

Christopher: Hi, thank you for your time. This is in regards to the L.A. Metro route 460. There is
a proposal that is going to be removing the segment from Norwalk station to downtown Los
Angeles. Im hoping to get a reconsideration on that removal, just because people from Orange
County - to connect to downtown - the 460 is a perfect route, and as of right now theres a
proposal to remove the segment from Norwalk station to downtown Los Angeles. I was hoping
to get that reconsidered. !

Mike: Hi, Rick, this is Mike Sekirk. Or Im sorry, Chris. This is Mike Sekirk from Service Planning.
Youll be happy to know that that proposal to discontinue that segment of the rail has been
withdrawn. That was determined after we had a public hearing on this matter. And we did get a
number of people from the community that opposed that change. So we did reconsider it, and it
will not be cut back. So it will continue to operate like it has for the last 50 years. Thank you.!

Pauletta: Thanks very much Mike and Christopher for your question. If youd like to ask us a
question, press zero on your keypad. You also can push seven if youd like to leave your email
so that we can put you on our distribution list, so you can get information and updates from
Metro moving forward. Another question that we have received is, why is this ballot measure so
important? So Im going to ask Therese to address that, because there are lots of reasons.
Therese.!

Therese: Pauletta, thats a really important question, because there is such an extraordinary
demand for increased mobility here in L.A. County. As weve talked about before, theres a lot of
activity going on right now. Were in the middle of some significant construction: the regional
connector through downtown L.A., the purple line subway going from west past Beverly Hills,
the Crenshaw-L.A.X. line that weve already talked about. Rick, I think, did a great summary of
the major highway projects, many of them in the Gateway region that were sharing the evening
with right now. But the reason for all of that is that L.A. County is expected to grow by another
2.4 million people over the next 40 years. And if we want to build transportation improvements
that are going to allow - not only the current folks living here, but this expected growth in
population - to move around this county, to their jobs, to schools, to health care and the like, we
have to start thinking ahead about investment to meet that growth, as well as reinvesting in our
current system to keep it up to a state of good repair. So thats largely whats really motivating
us to bring forward this ballot measure in November. It's both of those tracks, not only the new
projects that we hear a lot about, but the reinvestment in our current system thats so important.
Folks worry a bit about, what would this ballot measure do in terms of impacting me financially?
And one way to think about it is we estimate it might be about $24 a year, out of pocket, if the
current structure of the measure were to pass, which as you know, is an extension of the current
Measure R plus a half cent sales tax. And if you want to have a way of keeping that in
perspective, if you were to buy a fancy coffee at your favorite barista every week for a year,
thats $260 out of your pocket. So, sometimes thinking about it in that way is a way of really
being able to say whats important to you. And one of the things we want to think about is, what
kind of mobility future and options are we leaving for our children and our grandchildren, 25, 40,
50 years from now.!

Pauletta: Thats really a great point, Therese. Its really important for us to think about not only,
how can we get some easing from the congestion right now? But how can we plan for those that
come after us? And I think thats part of the legacy that we can leave, just like folks who built out
the highway system many decades ago left that for us. And so it goes. Im going to go ahead
and read a question from Maria in Long Beach, whos been listening through our Spanish
simulcast. And Maria wants to know, why dont bus drivers wait for people? Sometimes we try to
get their attention before they pull off the curb but they do not wait. And so Im going to go
ahead and ask Mike if he can address that. Again, why some of our bus drivers dont appear to
wait for people. Mike, what do you think?!

Mike: I think thats a problem that we need to fix. Drivers know better than that. Theyre not
supposed to pull away from the curb like that when the passengers are near the bus.

Sometimes - because of maybe the traffic or whatever - they get distracted, and that can
happen sometimes. What would help in the future - if this should happen to you - if you can
write down the direction and the time that this occurred, and possibly write down the big number
thats on the back of the bus, that would help us track it down, and we can actually monitor it
and take the corrective action. But thats how we would normally handle it. And again, we
apologize for the pass-up.!

Pauletta: Thanks, Mike. Also, we had a question from Maria, listening to our Spanish simulcast.
And Maria from South Gates question isor her comment to start with is, I think its great that
Metros services are being expanded, but the question is will there be added security inside the
stations and the cars? Security is a great topic for us to talk about, because our number one
priority here at Metro is safety; the safety of our passengers, of our operators, of our staff, of the
general public, and we work very hard to make sure that we have safety measures and security
measures in place for that. Our safety enforcement has been redeployed recently to areas
where we want to make sure that we have more of an increased presence. So our security
strategy really is to look at whats happening out there on the system, and they change up the
operation weekly depending on whats happening out there in the system. What we do ask of
you is that if you see a problem, or, "if you see something that you say something" and that you
let us know as soon as that happens. One easy way to do that is to download our transit watch
app, and that is a way that you can call, or even text. You can even take a picture and text it
right to us, and it goes right to our dispatch. So thats part of being safe is all of us having that
role in safety and security. So thats a great question Maria. Thank you very much. Were now
going to go to Connie. And Connie, ask us your question please.!

Connie: Yes. This is Connie. I was calling to find out exactly about this ballot measure. I keep
hearing about this half cent. Ive read about it. Is that something that were going to be voting on
in November?!

Pauletta: Thats a great question, Connie. Actually what were doing is taking in feedback right
now, because well be going back to the Metro Board of Directors in June with our staffs final
recommendation on this future transportation plan. Then the Metro Board will be deciding at
their Board meeting in June whether or not to put this half cent sales tax measure on the ballot
in November. So we dont know for sure yet, because that will be the purview of the Metro
Board. But they will be considering that, and then making a decision on that in June. And so
well have more information for you at that time. But if you want to learn more about Metros plan
to ease traffic you can go on our Web site and download all kinds of information at our web site
at Metro.net/theplan. If youd like to ask a question here tonight during this meeting, press zero
on your keypad, and youll go in the queue to ask us a question, and wed love to hear what you
have to say. Right now were going to go to Virginia in Whittier. Virginia, whats your question?!

Virginia: I was just wondering if there was any plans to have an earlier train from L.A. to Irvine.
Right now I have Metrolink monthly pass and I have to drive to Fullerton to catch the Amtrak
because I can catch the 644, and I can get off work a little bit earlier. I know theres a lot of
riders going from Fullerton that would like to actually leave from Norwalk that would love to get
to work earlier. And if there was a train about six oclock that would be really great.!

Mike: Hi this is Mike Sekirk in Service Planning. What youre referring to is actually a Metrolink
service, and this is something thats really under their purview. Id suggest, or recommend, that
maybe you call them and request that they think about providing an earlier trip.!

Rick: This is Rick. I want to add to that. Metro is a big funder of Metrolink, and part of our plan is
to allocate additional funding to Metrolink so that they can work on expanding their services, and
provide more efficient and reliable services. So thats also a key part of our plan is the additional
funding for Metrolink.!

Pauletta: Thanks very much Rick and Mike. Were going to go to our first electronic polling
question tonight. So this is a chance for you to give us immediate feedback, as a community, on
how you collectively feel about a couple of different issues. So tonight weve been talking a lot
about the new projects that we would like to build out with more local investment. So its one
thing to build out these projects. Its another thing, though, for us to be able to keep them in
good condition. We call that "state of good repair". Therese was mentioning this a little bit
earlier. But our question for you - and we would like you to push the number on the keypad that
corresponds with your response - but the question is, after we build out these projects would
you support Metro keeping part of the tax to continue to keep our system in good working
condition? Press one if you say yes, two for no. So again, after out projects are build out, would
you support Metro keeping part of the tax to keep our system in good working condition? One
for yes, two for no. We appreciate hearing what you have to say. Right now were going to go to
Peter in Long Beach. Hello, Peter.!

Peter: Hi, yes. Good evening. I just want to start by saying Im a big proponent of using the tax
increase for mass transit and transit related project in Los Angeles County, because I generally
dont support putting more lanes of freeways in at all, basically. I ride the blue line a lot, through
Long Beach, and its super overcrowded sometimes - the cars are, which I know you guys are
trying to work on. But theres a stretch of the 710 freeway thats right there that runs along the
same corridor, from downtown Long Beach to the 405 freeway - Im speaking specifically about that theres heavy, heavy truck traffic on there, and its always congested every hour of the day,
with trucks and passenger cars. It seems to me they could easily add lanes to that freeway, that
stretch, and its really necessary in a big way. I know that's theyre everywhere, but in that
stretch they could do it with no land acquisition necessary, because theres plenty of land. I dont
see why they havent done that.!

Rick: Peter, thats a good observation. Were actually working on that right now. We have an
environmental impact statement on the 710, specifically in that area, which is looking at
expansion, and again, specifically to address the heavy truck traffic thats coming out of the
ports. That environmental document is underway. It should be complete next year. Once thats
complete were going to get rolling with some early action plans on 710. Were going to be
addressing specific interchanges where congestion happens every day, and focus on those
areas to start the improvements as quickly as we can. Again, thats a great observation. Weve
seen that, and we have those plans underway right now.!

Pauletta: Thanks very much, Rick. Were going to go now to Erica in Whittier. But before we get
your question, Erica, if you would like to ask a question of us please press zero on your keypad.
So Erica, go ahead and ask the question.!

Erica: Hi. Thanks so much for taking my call. I was wondering what plans there are, if any, to
expand Metro into the Whittier area.!

Mark: Yeah. We talked earlier about a possible expansion of the east side Gold Line, going out
from downtown to the Whittier area toward Lambert Boulevard. So we do have plans to service
that area in Whittier. Its one of the possible alignments. Theres also a northern alignment to
that east side extension that would go a little bit further north along the SR-60. But at one point either sooner in the expenditure plan, or in the future - we do plan on having that east side
extension of the Gold Line going out towards Whittier.!

Pauletta: Thanks Mark, and thanks Erica for that question. Want to give you the results of the
question that I asked you a couple of minutes ago. The question was, once these projects are
built out, would you support Metro keeping part of the traffic to keep the system in good working
condition? Eighty-eight percent of you said yes, that you support that concept. Thirteen percent
of you said no. So we really appreciate all of your feedback. This is our public input process
through May 20th, so thats valuable for us. Thank you very, very much. We have a question
that came in from Delphina, whos listening on our Spanish simulcast. Delphina, in Huntington
Park, said that shes handicapped, and that she sometimes is passed up at her bus stop by the
bus, and that the bus does not stop to pick her up. And will Metro address this issue? If this
happens we definitely want to know about it. So we ask you to notify Metro, and if theres a way
that you can tell us which bus it was - the time of the bus, or if you have the bus number, thats
very helpful for us. So if something is happening - whether its you being passed up, or
something else that you believe that you should be reporting to Metro - we sure ask you to do
that. We try very hard to uphold excellence in service and support. That is actually our agency
mission; providing excellence in service and support. So we want to know about these things.
So we appreciate Delphina bringing that to our attention. Im going to turn it over to Darlene,
now, in Long Beach. And Darlene, its time for you to ask the question. What would you like to
ask?!

Darlene: Thank you. Hi. I live in Long Beach, and my sister lives in Corona. I was wondering if
there was a Metro line that connects that I could take all the way over there.!

Mark: Its a bit of a tricky connection since youd have to cross the county. Right now we could
provide green line service towards Norwalk, and then theres a bit of a gap between the Norwalk
green line station and the Norwalk Metrolink station. And itd really be a Metrolink, our sister
agency, who as Rick mentioned earlier, we are planning additional funding to as part of the
proposed expenditure plan. But itd be the Metrolink connection from, say, Norwalk or Fullerton,
that would connect you more closely to the Corona station.!

Pauletta: I want to bring up a topic that I think people oftentimes find fascinating, and that is how
long it takes to bring these projects to fruition. From the time that we actually start the planning
process - when we start thinking about, "You know what, we need to have some kind of a transit
improvement in an area." to the time of when that gets constructed and actually opens to the
public, it takes years for that to happen. And sometimes what weve seen in the past is that
when we put forth plans people will say, "Well, jeez. I dont see this rail line happening yet". And
that is because it does take years. And Im going to ask Rick to weigh in briefly on just what is all
involved. These are very complex projects to plan and to build out. So Rick, why dont you
provide some insight to that?!

Rick: Yeah. Pauletta, to start a project we have to do a lot of planning. We have to look at a
number of alternatives. We have to present those alternatives to the stakeholders, to the
citizens, to the communities. And thats a good process, because we do get public input, and it

gives us ideas where best to route the lines, how to minimize the impacts to the public, and
generally develop our engineering and cost estimates. Once thats done, and it's approved, we
go into design and construction. Again, these are very complicated lines. As Pauletta said, we
have utilities we have to relocate. We have soil conditions. We have seismic conditions that we
have to design for. So the design process itself could take a year or two for the engineers to
complete those designs. And then, of course, we go into construction; also a very extensive,
elaborate process - especially if we do major structural work, such as tunnels or bridges. The
tunneling, especially. We have to excavate deep; sometimes up to 60 feet deep for the stations.
We have complex tunnel boring machines that basically mole through the ground to minimize
the disruption. So we go through all that. We do our electrical systems, which is a whole other
complex situation we do. And finally, we go through an extensive period of testing the trains. We
put the trains out there without passengers. We run them through various tests to make sure
everything is working. And then, when were finally done, we go through a safety certification
process that we go through at Metro to make sure the checklist of all safety requirements are
achieved, and submitted to the California PUC, who finally gives us permission to open. Thats
the end process that were going through on the Expo line right now. Theres trains out there
running without passengers. Thats primarily to test the systems and to train the operators. So
thats a nutshell of what happens. There is a lot that happens behind the scene. But its all done
with a lot of outreach to the community, and involvement and input from the community.!

Pauletta: Great explanation, Rick. We oftentimes hear that, that, "Well, jeez. We voted on this
three years ago. How come these rail lines arent open yet?" And its just important for
everybody to understand the complex process. If you would like to ask a question, its not too
late. Press zero on your keypad and you can get in the queue to ask us a question. Were going
to take Daves question now. So Dave from Long Beach, whats your question?!

Dave: Hi. I live in Long Beach and I occasionally take a blue line, and I have noticed over the
last year or so there seems to be station closures and delays, and Im wondering whats going
on on the blue line.!

Mike: Hi Dave, this is Mike Sekirk in Service Planning. Whats been going on in the blue line is
that weve been undergoing a series of refurbishments. That line is about 25 years old, and over
the years theres been some upgrades that needed to be made. And thats what were doing
now. Thats just an ongoing program. Started in the southern part of the line, were moving
north. A lot of the improvements include the tracks and everything have been redone. Were
also putting improved passenger amenities, and so forth. So this is the type of improvements
that were trying to do to bring the blue line back up to where it really needs to be. Thank you.!

Pauletta: Were going to go to our next live electronic polling question for the night. So Im going
to ask a question, wed very much appreciate you giving us your feedback by pushing the
number on your keypad that corresponds with your response. So were talking about Metros
plan to ease traffic. This is our long-term transportation plan that weve worked on with our
regional partners all across L.A. County. We are proposing this to the public. And this is a half
cent sales tax increase to fund many transportation projects over the next 40 or 50 year period.
So the question is, if the election were to be held tonight would you vote for the proposed sales
tax for transportation? Press one on your keypad if you say yes, two if you would vote no. If the
election were to be held tonight, would you vote for Metros proposed sales tax for
transportation? Press one for yes, two for no. And we thank you for your input. Ill share that with

you in just a couple of minutes. Were going to go to George now. George, go ahead and ask
your question.!

George: Hi. Yes. I frequently drive on the 605, and its highly congested. Are there any proposed
improvements to fix that?!

Rick: Yes, George. A number of improvements, some of whichI mentioned the environmental
studies. Some of those studies are already underway. So the focus of the 605 improvements
are what we call "605 hotspots". These are primarily interchange improvements of interchanges
that, again, are known to congest every day. And were trying to address the worst conditions on
the 605. Some of those interchanges are the 605 and 5 interchange, the 605 and the 60
interchange, and the 605 and the 91 interchange. All those projects, right now, are in
environmental studies. Once the environmental clearance is received - hopefully by throughout
this year and next year - we plan to start an early action program, which is to use the funding we
have available and start making improvements at specific locations on those interchanges;
adding things like accel/decel lanes, and overall provide a priority set of improvements on those
I-605 hotspots.!

Pauletta: Thanks, Rick, for your answers. One of the things that people dont understand about
Metro is that not only do we fund major highway projects, and transit projects, and we keep our
rail and bus operations moving, and we also fund our municipal operators, so the bus operators
that operate around the cities, we provide funding for them. We also provide a tremendous
amount of funding at the local level that goes back to the local communities. And Im going to
ask Therese to weigh in on that, because this is a component of this plan that were putting
forward that we want to make sure that youre aware of. Right, Therese?!

Therese: Absolutely, Pauletta. And I think it is really critical for everyone to understand that to
deliver the breadth and diversity of improvements to move people more easily throughout this
region, and provide them options, involves a partnership with a number of different parties. As
you pointed out, one very important part of our current - actually Measure R, as well as the
ballot measure plan that were pulling together right now - is this investment program called
Local Return. We direct funding directly back to our partner cities, in particular, to deliver real
neighborhood, local improvements - such as repairing local streets and roads, dealing with
those pot holes that can be so infuriating for people in their neighborhoods. As well, we
definitely need to work with our sister transit providers in different cities. And its that
collaboration with the services they provide, as well as the transit services that Metro provides.
We talked a lot about the need to, for example, work better to link Metro services and Metrolink.
But those types of partnerships are very essential. They work, I think, because in this region
weve recognized, for some time, that effective collaboration is going to mean success, in terms
of delivering this program, not only to raise the necessary revenues - and that involves a big
collaboration with the general public were talking to today - but also just for delivering the
projects. A lot of what Rick talked about. Theres a lot that goes into working with communities,
working with agencies like Caltrans to deliver these big highway projects. So we cant do it
alone. We need to work together, and that recognition is a big part of what makes delivering
transportation improvements in this county a success.!

Pauletta: Thanks for adding that, Therese. Want to go ahead and give you the responses to the
question that we asked you just a couple of minutes ago. You may recall the question was, if the
election was to be held tonight on this sales tax measure that Metro is considering putting forth,

would you vote for it? Seventy-seven percent of you said yes, and 23 percent of you said no. So
we appreciate your feedback. This is going to be included in the public input that we collect, and
report back to the Metro Board of Directors, as they consider whether to put this sales tax
measure on the ballot this next November. And the Board will be making that decision in June at
their Board meeting. So we ask you to stay informed and engaged. You can get all the
information about Metros plan to ease traffic on our web site at Metro.net/theplan. Theres lots
of detail there, if you want to drill down to see what kinds of projects are included in this plan in
your area, thats all in the detail. So we ask you to learn more, to stay engaged. Because really
folks, this is all about you. It all starts, and it all ends, with you, the traveling public. Thats why
were on these telephone town hall meeting, because we want to hear from you. And these town
hall meetings - these telephone town halls - are a way to give you more of a convenient way to
engage with us. Because while we have physical public meetings, we know that that may not
work out for all of you. So this is another way that we want to make sure were providing
opportunities to get input from you. So, we are going to go now to Barbara in Seal Beach.
Barbara, go ahead and ask your question.!

Barbara: Hi. I frequently take the 710. I live in Seal Beach, and I take the 710; thats a direct
road for me. But theres so much truck traffic on there. Its dangerous, and the trucks spew out
all kinds of garbage into the air. Do you have any plans to make any improvements in that area?!

Rick: Yes, Barbara. This is Rick. Its tough battling those trucks on the 710. I know that. We
actually have a major environmental study going on right now to address the truck traffic on the
710. That environmental study is expected to be complete next year. Theres two alternatives
under consideration; a major effort. I would encourage you to go onto the Metro web site, and
you could find information about how to be involved, and how to provide input to that study. But
youve identified a major mobility need that weve seen for the region, and thats the trucks
coming out of the ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles. So were working. Thats a major
priority. Also, once that environmental study is complete we plan to get started right away with
some early action programs to address some of the hotspots on the 710 also.!

Pauletta: Thanks very much, Rick. Were going to go now to Leelee in Downey. So Leelee,
youre up next. Whats your question?!

Leelee: Yes. I live in Downey and I see on the 5 freeway signs that say Brought to you by
Metro. Theres a lot of construction going on. I want to know when that will be completed.!

Rick: Sometimes, Lilly, it seems like construction on the highways never ends. And I know that
frustration. But that work is going very well. Its expected to be complete by 2018. So thats two
years from now. Some sections will be earlier than that, and the contractors are working very
fast. Were working really closely with Caltrans on that. But understand the frustration while
constructions going on, but thats a necessary thing so we can make those permanent
improvements on the 5.!

Pauletta: Thanks, Rick. And yes, you do see those signs out there that say Metro. And you know
what? Were actually proud to take credit for that, because were showing you that that is your
local tax dollars at work. And as Rick was saying, sometimes putting up with the impacts of
construction can be a pain, but again, one of my favorite things to remind people about is shortterm pain for long-term gain, because its our collective investment that makes improvements
like that. So you will see our signs up across the metro area. And we want to make sure that you

know that that is us, and that that is us putting your tax dollars to work as you have directed us
through different plans that we have put forward. So thats just one important thing for you to
remember. If you would like to ask us a question, its not too late. We still have about seven or
eight minutes. So go ahead and press zero on your keypad, and we can try to hurry up to get
you in the queue. Were going to go now to Hymie in Huntington Park. Go ahead, Hymie.!

!
Hymie: Hi. I was just wondering if theres any improvements planned for the 710 freeway.!
!

Rick: Yes, Hymie, there definitely are. We have an environmental study underway right now.
Were looking at two alternatives. That environmental study is planned to be complete next year.
So its open. If you want to provide input Id encourage you to go to the Metro Web site,
Metro.net, and look at the information on the environmental studies for the 710, to get
information and be connected to that study. Once that environmental study is complete and
approved we plan to get started really fast and start with some early action items on the
hotspots - the areas of priority congestion on the 710 - to get that work started and moving so
we can make some permanent improvements for the motorists out there.!

Pauletta: So when we try to keep this whole plan in context, were talking about a county that
already has 10 million people, and L.A. County is projected to grow by another 2.3 million
people over the next 40 years. Thats a lot more people that we have to plan for. And we dont
start in 20 years planning for that growth. We actually have to start today, planning for that
growth. That is why Metro is coming to you with this plan to ease traffic. And our plan includes
nearly 40 major transit and highway projects, over about the next 40 years. And this plan will
include not only major transit and highway projects, but also improvements in our bus
operations, and the bus operations of our municipal bus operator partners, improvements at the
local level. That means better streets, improving the condition of your streets, repairing pot
holes, building out bicycle and pedestrian connections in your community. And that is called
active transportation. Perhaps youve heard that. And Therese, Im going to ask you, real
quickly, to just weigh in on the importance of us having active transportation as a part of this
plan, because its really growing in popularity.!

Therese: Well, Pauletta theres a number of reasons why active transportation is beginning to,
sort of, catch fire as a concept and a priority, not only here in L.A. but in a number of the other
areas of the country. One area - gets back to a point, I think, folks have raised - is the difficulty,
sometimes, in connecting to our transit system. We term this, sort of. the First mile, last mile
challenge". That getting to the transit system can often be difficult, and then the point when you
reach your destination, getting to your final destination sometimes can be a challenge too. So
there is a lot more attention thats being paid to bicycle connections, effective and safe
pedestrian connections. Most people get to their bus, or transit service, by walking, and we
need to make sure that were presenting a safe and accessible way to do that. Another
recognition, quite frankly, is the fact that active transportation can be good for your health, in
terms of walking and biking, and that type of thing. And so we are very actively, here at Metro,
exploring how to best integrate those into the larger concept of mobility and transportation, and
looking at various ways that this can be addressed up front, on the same playing field as our
highway improvements, our road improvements, our transit improvements.!

Pauletta: Thanks, Therese, very much for that. Appreciate your wisdom. We only have about
five more minutes so were going to ask people to ask their questions quickly, and well try to
answer them quickly. Were going to go to Monica next, in Paramount. Monica.!

Monica: Good evening. My question was regarding a later extension as far as the 117, the 120,
or the green line out on the east end. Theres a lot of people that actually do commute from
L.A.X. to the east side, and theyre pretty much stuck. After 10 theres no service to Lakewood,
Paramount, Cerritos. So I was wondering if they would consider expanding, possibly the green
line, or any other line that goes eastsouth -!

Mike: Hi Monica, this is Mike Sekirk with Service Planning. In answer to your question, yes.
Metro is planning to increase bus service on, specifically, those lines that you mentioned. We
realize that some of those are actually ending a little too soon, so they will be operating later
service and so forth. Now a lot of this, by the way, is going to be tied into the operation of the rail
lines; the opening of these new lines. Metro has a very comprehensive plan that were
developing right now that will basically restructure virtually the entire system. And what we will
be doing is were going to be focusing on creating this network of what we call a "15 minute
network". That means that all the lines that are included in that network would be running at
least 15 or more during the peak hours. A lot of these corridors will be operated with rapid bus
service, as well as the BRT, for example, on the Silver line and the Orange line. Theyll be a lot
of service back into the Gateway here, a little bit. We will be providing additional service, also,
like on the 266 line, which is a Rosemead service. We recognize the need to actually provide a
faster service, and more frequent service, for our riders, particularly with the trains, because the
trains are operating about every six minutes in the rush hours, and about 12 minutes or so in the
base, or the non-rush hours. So this is something that we really need to work on, and I think the
plan that were talking about here today is going to help provide the seed money to provide
some of these improvements that we need.!

Pauletta: You know folks, its great getting your feedback, your input and your questions tonight,
because, really, as weve said before, this is really all about you. And this plan that were putting
forth, we are committed to delivering this plan, if the board does plan to put this before voters in
November. And if the public then decides that this modest investment is worth it for us to plan
for our transportation future. One of the other things wed like you to know about is that the
transparency included in this plan is at the forefront, in terms of us making sure that we have a
taxpayer oversight committee, that makes sure that the funding is spent as intended. We hear
that from the public, that, "Yes, we need to do something about the traffic congestion and about
the future. But we want to know that the money is being spent as intended." And so built into
this plan is the taxpayer oversight component. And so I think thats probably important for you to
know as well. So by the clock on the wall it tells us that our telephone town hall meeting is just
about over. We thank you so much for joining us tonight. If you did not get a chance to ask your
question live you can stay on the line and leave us a message. If you would like to leave us your
email so that you can continue to get email notifications from us, you can press seven, and you
can leave your email for us. Otherwise, we invite you to participate in the other town hall
meetings that will be coming up over the next few weeks. You can find the list of those on our
web site at Metro.net/theplan. And you can proactively call in to any of these meetings. So we
invite you to do that. And they also are available in Spanish. We thank you again for joining us,
for taking time out of your evening. For all of us here; for Rick, Therese, Mike, Mark, and all of
us at L.A. Metro, good evening.!