Yesterday, Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti announced an executive directive intended to advance Los Angeles' version of the "Green New Deal."

The proposed action plan is intended to steer Los Angeles toward carbon neutrality, and makes policy proposals regarding the city's use of electricity and water, as well as its approach to waste management.

“The science could not be clearer and the stakes could not be higher. We must act this decade to save the planet and create a more equitable, prosperous, and healthy future for our children and grandchildren,” said Garcetti in a statement. “There is literally no time to waste — because what we do in the next ten years will determine the health of our planet and whether there’s a job, a paycheck, and a place for everyone in our economy.”

Garcetti's executive directive also includes several initiatives regarding transportation which may dovetail with ongoing efforts to speed the regional bus network and coax Angelenos out of their cars.

By July 1 of this year, the Los Angeles Department of Transportation has been directed to propose a network of bus infrastructure improvements such as bus-only lanes, queue jumpers, and signal priority with the aim of speeding travel times on transit corridors by 30 percent. Implementation would begin by October.

This effort would go hand-in-hand with Metro's NextGen Bus Plan, which aims to stem declining ridership across Los Angeles County. In addition to shifting service patterns to offer more frequent buses on higher-performing routes, the NextGen Bus Plan also calls for spending $750 million to build bus-only lanes and synchronize traffic lights to speed travel times.

The Mayor's directive also calls for the Department of Transportation to develop a "rail transit priority program," which could lead to improved traffic signal preemption for light rail lines. The City is already studying improved signal priority for the Expo Line, which is often forced to stop for cars at intersections. The rail transit program is slated to be unveiled in July and be ready for implementation in January 2021.

Additionally, the directive instructs the Department of Transportation to develop a congestion pricing pilot program with the goal of unveiling a joint proposal by January 2021. This effort would also occur in coordination with a Countywide Congestion Pricing Feasibility Study now being conducted by Metro.

Other transportation proposals contained within the executive directive include:

an implementation plan for a Citywide network of active transportation corridors;

weekly open streets events such as CicLAvia by 2022; and

improved management of the public right-of-way to encourage walking, transit usage, cycling, and micro-mobility options.

Read the full text of the executive directive here.