Funding cuts threaten the future of Los Angeles County's CicLAvia
Potential funding cuts could spell the end for Los Angeles County's CicLAvia as Metro looks for ways to fund events for the 2028 Olympics.
Since 2010, CicLAvia has hosted 67 open-street events that allow people to bike, walk and skate around car-free roads throughout LA County. Organizers said the events have allowed hundreds of thousands of people to reconnect with the neighborhoods where they live, work and shop.
"It made me realize that there was something magical going on, which was this appetite for connection and community," CicLAvia executive director Romel Pascual said.
CicLAvia and other open street events heavily relied on Metro's funding to host the gatherings, which organizers have claimed helped increase public transit use throughout the county.
"Transit ridership had gone up, not only during a CicLAvia event," Pascual said. "This is data that Metro itself had put out.
Metro will vote on the funding cuts on Thursday after its Planning and Programming Committee voted 4-1 to use the money to pay for fan zones during the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles. Supervisor Lindsey Horvath was the only person to vote against the move.
"Metro must find the funding to keep CicLAvia and Open Streets alive," Horvath said in a statement. "As we've seen with the World Cup, when we build transit-accessible public spaces, Angelenos come. If Metro is serious about sustainable transportation and reducing traffic, it must invest in the programs that make that vision real."
CicLAvia organizers urged supporters to attend Metro's meeting and push the board to continue funding open street events. Organizers said the meeting will be at 10 a.m. on Thursday at One Gateway Plaza, Los Angeles, CA 90012, 3rd Floor, Metro Board Room. CicLAvia also posted directions for supporters to join by phone on their website.
