August 4, 2025 #1 Local News, Information and Event Source for the Century City/Westwood areas.

UCLA Study Offers Strategy for Freeway Congestion Pricing That Reduces Burden on Low-Income Residents

Claudia Bustamante/UCLA Newsroom 

Among transportation experts, congestion pricing is the gold standard policy for managing traffic on freeways and highways. The strategy involves charging drivers tolls to use a road, and charging more during the busiest times — morning and evening rush hours, for example.

The intention is to discourage drivers from using their own cars and nudge them toward alternative forms of transportation, thereby unclogging traffic. But charging people to use busy roads raises questions about fairness, especially for low-income drivers.

A new report by UCLA transportation experts outlines ways that California could implement congestion pricing while minimizing the financial burden on those residents.

The study suggests that if congesting pricing were enacted in California’s six largest urban areas, about 13% of households in those areas might be unduly burdened because of the combination of their travel habits and low incomes. But while tolls could create an equity problem, the report suggests that the revenue generated by tolls could ultimately solve that problem.

The report was produced by the UCLA Institute of Transportation Studies, and its authors are Michael Manville, an associate professor at the UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs; Gregory Pierce, co-director of the UCLA Luskin Center for Innovation; and Bryan Graveline, a UCLA graduate student.

“Traffic congestion imposes real costs on a wide segment of society, with some of the most severe consequences falling disproportionately on the most vulnerable people,” Manville said. “Congestion pricing has the potential to alleviate many of those harms. But it’s important when we price roads to do so in a way that won’t unfairly burden low-income people. Fortunately, with a little political will, we should be able to do that.”

In the report, the authors defined “vulnerable” residents as those with household income below 200% of the federal poverty level (for example, $55,500 or less for a family of four) and at least one household member driving during peak congestion periods on a freeway. The study focused on Los Angeles, San Francisco, the Inland Empire, San Jose, San Diego and Sacramento.

The authors write that some of the ways to mitigate cost burdens on low-income drivers would come with pitfalls that dilute the goal of reducing traffic. For example, subsidizing public transportation and providing free transit passes for low-income residents wouldn’t help those who must still drive.

Another option would be lowering toll prices or making them free for low-income drivers, but that would risk negating the primary goal of congestion pricing: If the cost of driving isn’t high enough, people would likely continue to use their vehicles.

The most promising solution, they write, would be to provide direct cash assistance to low-income residents from revenue collected by the tolls.

“Similar policies already exist that help low-income people afford crucial goods and services, such as California’s CARE for energy, the federal SNAP program for food and groceries and vouchers for housing,” Pierce said. “We should build on these models rather than reinvent the wheel.”

Another benefit of the strategy, the authors write, is that residents who receive money through the program could use the funds for any number of purposes — helping to cover the costs of congestion pricing when they drive or paying for public transit or other alternate transportation if they’re able to switch.

The report also suggests that county governments could identify people who are eligible for such a program by looking at which households are eligible for existing programs like SNAP or housing and utilities subsidies.

The authors acknowledge that there would be administrative and political hurdles to beginning a cash assistance program for transportation costs. They write that introducing congestion pricing to roadways one lane at a time would help demonstrate the strategy’s benefits, which could help overcome public skepticism about the policy.

Related Posts

Cary Grant’s Former Beverly Hills Estate Hits Market for $77.5M

August 3, 2025

August 3, 2025

Rebuilt by His Widow, the Home Now Offers Sweeping Views Once owned by Hollywood legend Cary Grant, a Beverly Hills...

LA Housing Permits Rebound in Q2: Wildfire Rebuild and Fast-Tracked Reviews Spur Modest Growth

August 3, 2025

August 3, 2025

New Data Shows a 37% Quarterly Jump in Residential Permits, Long-Term Uncertainty Looms Residential development in Los Angeles picked up...

Federal Court Upholds Stay on Trump-Era Immigration Raids in California

August 3, 2025

August 3, 2025

Detention Horror Stories and Legal Pressure Keep Feds at Bay  A federal appeals court on Friday upheld a temporary order...

Despite Billion-Dollar Fortune, Beyoncé and Jay-Z Double Down on Real Estate Debt

August 3, 2025

August 3, 2025

Superstar Pair Is Now Paying Over $637,000 per Month in Mortgage and Taxes Music power couple Beyoncé and Jay-Z have...

Two LA County Deputies Charged in Off-Duty Scheme Tied to Crypto ‘Godfather’

August 2, 2025

August 2, 2025

Deputies Accused of Abusing Law Enforcement Powers for Beverly Hills Mogul One Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department deputy pleaded guilty,...

Metro Releases Draft Environmental Report for Sepulveda Transit Project, Public Comment Now Open

August 2, 2025

August 2, 2025

Six Route Alternatives Under Review for Valley-To-Westside Connection The Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (Metro) has released its Draft...

National Night Out Returns to Beverly Hills With Police Demos, Kids’ Activities, and DJ Music

August 1, 2025

August 1, 2025

Beverly Hills Police and Fire Departments Invite Public to Family-Friendly Night Out  The City of Beverly Hills will transform the...

City Installs Crosswalks In Sawtelle District After Residents Paint Their Own

August 1, 2025

August 1, 2025

Los Angeles Begins Official Safety Upgrades Near Stoner Park City crews began installing official crosswalks Friday near Stoner Park in...

HARD Summer Returns This Weekend With New Sound Strategy After 2024 Noise Complaints

August 1, 2025

August 1, 2025

Sold-Out EDM and Hip-Hop Festival Runs Saturday and Sunday at Hollywood Park The HARD Summer music festival is set to...

Trump Administration Freezes $200M in UCLA Research Funds Over Student Protests

August 1, 2025

August 1, 2025

UCLA Says Freeze Harms Life-Saving Research With No Connection to Stated Reason Donald Trump’s administration has blocked $200 million in...

LAPD Honors Sgt. Shiou Deng as ‘Gold Standard of Selflessness’ at Memorial Service

July 31, 2025

July 31, 2025

Veteran Officer Remembered After Being Killed While Aiding Crash Victims in Brentwood Family, colleagues, and fellow officers gathered Thursday morning...

1,000 Additional National Guard Troops Withdrawn From LA as Federal Presence Continues to Shrink

July 31, 2025

July 31, 2025

National Guard Presence in Los Angeles Slashed Again Amid Ongoing Rollback Roughly an additional 1,000 National Guard troops have been...

Luxury Watches Stolen From Keanu Reeves Recovered in Chile, To Be Returned to Actor

July 31, 2025

July 31, 2025

Six Rolex Watches Worth Over $120,000 Were Seized in Santiago Police Raid Six high-end watches stolen from actor Keanu Reeves’...

Aging Mindfully: Zen-Inspired Senior Living Takes Shape in Simi Valley

July 31, 2025

July 31, 2025

Two Zen-inspired senior living communities are embracing the reality of aging — consciously. Ensō Village, open since 2023 in Sonoma County,...

The Getty Unveils Trellis Bar & Lounge: Sip Art-Inspired Cocktails with a Gorgeous View

July 31, 2025

July 31, 2025

New Alfresco Experience Offers Seasonal Drinks, Light Bites, and Stunning Architecture Visitors to the Getty Center can now unwind with...