EPISODE · Oct 5, 2020 · 45 MIN
The Past, Present, and Future of Traffic Congestion in Los Angeles
from The History-Politics Podcast: Putting the Past to Work · host UCLA Luskin Center for History and Policy
Los Angeles is infamous for its ubiquitous, sprawling, and congested roads and freeways. Whether driving south on the 405 freeway in the morning, east on Olympic Boulevard in the afternoon, or north on Vermont Avenue in the evening, bumper to bumper traffic defines our streets. But has traffic in Los Angeles always looked this way? What policy efforts have city leaders pursued over the years to alleviate traffic? And what can we learn from history to make it better?Noted traffic expert Martin Wachs, Professor Emeritus of Civil & Environmental Engineering, former Chairman of the UCLA Department of Urban Planning, UCLA history PhD candidate Peter Chesney, and UCLA Master of Urban and Regional Planning Candidate Yu Hong Hwang join Then & Now to discuss these questions. Professor Wachs, Peter, and Yu Hong were LCHP Research Fellows from 2019-2020 and recently completed a research report highlighting these questions.Find the report here.
What this episode covers
Los Angeles is infamous for its ubiquitous, sprawling, and congested roads and freeways. Whether driving south on the 405 freeway in the morning, east on Olympic Boulevard in the afternoon, or north on Vermont Avenue in the evening, bumper to bumper traffic defines our streets. But has traffic in Los Angeles always looked this way? What policy efforts have city leaders pursued over the years to alleviate traffic? And what can we learn from history to make it better? Noted traffic expert Mart...
NOW PLAYING
The Past, Present, and Future of Traffic Congestion in Los Angeles
No transcript for this episode yet
Similar Episodes
Mar 26, 2026 ·1m
Mar 19, 2026 ·34m
Feb 18, 2026 ·11m
Feb 11, 2026 ·45m