After long considering the heavily congested and major arterial road for the San Fernando Valley, a major stretch of Van Nuys Blvd will be the site for a new Metro Rail line that would connect the Eastside Valley communities of Van NuysPacoima, Panorama City, Arleta, Sylmar,  and the City of San Fernando (Metro's Proposal). For once the Valley has a shot for a transit option other than a Bus Rapid Transit system (BRT) after years of being promised a rail line other than the Metro Red Line to Downtown Los Angeles.

While the Valley and the rest of Los Angeles welcomes the idea of Metro Rail connect the Valley communities to the Orange line, Metrolink's Ventura County, and Antelope Valley lines for greater connectivity, Metro is putting forward a plan for trains to run at-grade. An at-grade option (in the middle of the street with traffic) would be a lot like the current Metro Expo, Blue, Gold (the East LA portions) which run on heavily congested streets with little to no signal prioritization. The combination of traffic, moving cars, and the lack of signal prioritization would essentially create a disaster for the true intention of Metro Rail, which is to move people as fast as it can, as safely as possible. Metro needs to learn from the past and develop a safe and sound solution to an important corridor. Commuters from the communities of Long Beach(Blue line issues), Compton, South LA, Santa Monica, Culver City, Exposition Park (Expo Line example), and East Los Angeles can attest that the at-grade solutions (East LA Train-Car accident) at their respective Metro Rail lines have caused delays and service interruptions. Currently, the mostly at-grade Blue line is due for a major renovation and upgrade involving the replacement of train tracks and the long-awaited (bureaucratically delayed) safety upgrades(Click here for more info). In the course of its 27-year history, the majority of the Metro Rail incidents and service disruptions come from the lack of signal preemption, grade separation, and the lack of safety coming from vehicles.

Los Angeles deserves a world-class transit system that is safe and reliable for decades to come. The Crenshaw and Inglewood communities for years advocated for grade separation of their future Crenshaw/LAX line. Both Crenshaw and Inglewood fought a great battle to get Metro to reconsider their plans for a light-rail line to intersect their neighborhoods and build a well-done subway and elevated portions with limited street at-grade crossings (The Fight for the Crenshaw Line). After sometime Metro reconsidered their original plan taking consideration for the concerns for the community. The Valley needs to draw the lessons from the Crenshaw and Inglewood communities in order to create a Metro Rail line that commuters will use.

Therefore, we the undersigned demand an evaluation for having a grade separated solution that would involve elevated and underground solutions so that the Valley can enjoy a swift, reliable, safe, and convenient alternative to the car. We want rail, we just want it done correctly!