On Thursday, October 19, 2023, the City of Culver City learned that ‘Friends and Families for MOVE Culver City’ filed a lawsuit challenging the legality of the City’s recently approved changes to the MOVE Culver City pilot project.
At its meeting on Monday, September 11th, 2023, the City Council voted 3-2 to ratify plans to modify the MOVE Culver City pilot project, including California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) exemptions. MOVE Culver City is a city-led effort that reimagines and prioritizes moving people more efficiently and safely in the design of the street. The goal of the pilot program is to improve the infrastructure and services for mobility alternatives and to offer the community equitable, convenient, and sustainable mobility options.
After the implementation of the Downtown Corridor pilot in November 2021, the City conducted a year-long pilot evaluation period that involved extensive data analysis as well as collection of public feedback. Following this pilot evaluation, the City Council directed staff to modify the project’s design to incorporate a shared bus/bike lane in both directions and return a second lane of vehicle traffic where it is feasible and necessary to reduce traffic congestion.
New features include bike boxes that will be added at seven locations along the corridor. A bike box is a designated area at the head of a traffic lane at a signalized intersection that provides bicyclists with a safe and visible way to get ahead of stopped traffic. Another addition is human-scale traffic lights, named “bike buddy” signals, for enhanced visibility, as well as continental crosswalks, which are longitudinal stripes designating where to walk across the road, in strategic locations and downtown.
The pilot project was also extended 0.6 miles east on Washington Boulevard between La Cienega Avenue and Fairfax Avenue and on Adams Boulevard between Washington Boulevard and Fairfax Avenue.
In order to allow for coordination with the City’s annual street resurfacing program, the project was split into two segments. The western segment, located on Culver Boulevard between Duquesne Avenue and Canfield Avenue, and on Washington Boulevard between Canfield Avenue and La Cienega Boulevard, is planned to start construction in the next several months. The eastern segment, located on Washington Boulevard from La Cienega Boulevard to Fairfax Avenue and on Adams Boulevard from Washington Boulevard to Fairfax Avenue, is scheduled to start in 2024, with a completion target date of August 2024.
The lawsuit filed on October 17th alleges the City of Culver City and City Council do not have the authority to modify the pilot project as it exists today, including challenging the legal validity of finding the modifications exempt from CEQA. The City is evaluating the lawsuit.
City of Culver City
