Mass Transit Won Big on Election Day. But It Could Still Lose.

In a country marked by ever-deepening divides, there are only so many ways that Americans from different walks of life come together anymore. Public transportation is one of them, and on November 8 urban voters signaled that they want more of it. Mulling hundreds of billions of dollars in public transportation investment across referenda nationwide, voters approved 33 of 48 local and statewide public transit measures—a 69 percent passage rate (based on results as they currently stand). Los Angeles, Seattle, and Atlanta were three major cities that gave the thumbs-up to better public transit.

With nearly 70 percent voting yes on Measure M, Los Angeles County is set to see a dramatic transit transformation over the coming decades with a permanent half-cent sales tax hike. The plan will rake in some $121 billion for proposed and ongoing projects such as a rail connection to LAX and a subway tunnel through the Sepulveda Pass. Long-disconnected neighborhoods in the region’s southeastern reaches are also slated for rail and bus-rapid transit connections. The tax increase will also pay for badly needed sidewalk upkeep, pothole repairs, new bike lanes, and bike-share stations, as well as a clutch of greenways. The plan’s greatest potential may be in improving mobility for the people who already use transit in L.A.: predominantly lower-income bus riders. And if enough rail connections are built, it could also persuade more Angelenos to get out of their cars, helping to keep the city’s famously snarled traffic at bay—at least for awhile.