Metro is unique among the nation’s transportation agencies. We serve as transportation planner and coordinator, designer, builder and operator for one of the country’s largest, most populous counties. More than 9.6 million people – nearly one-third of California’s residents – live, work and play within our 1,433-square-mile service area.
Transportation is an essential level to enabling access to opportunity. There exist vast disparities among neighborhoods and individuals in Los Angeles in their ability to see and seize opportunity – be it jobs, housing, education, health, safety or other essential facets of thriving in vibrant, diverse communities.
With its Equity Platform, Metro will have a new basis to actively lead and partner in using our transportation system to address and overcome those disparities. We can make decisions that consider racial equity implications, lift up voices that have not been part of our decision-making process, and realize our mission of providing excellence in service and support.
To reach toward racial equity, Metro must fully embrace and implement the four pillars of the Board-adopted Equity Platform. Specifically, we will (1) Listen and Learn; (2) Define and Measure; (3) Focus and Deliver; and (4) Train and Grow. We have the political leadership to do this work through the Metro Board and a committed Senior Leadership team. We have staff across the agency committed and willing to be ambassadors and trainers in this movement. Most importantly, through Measure M, we are the planners, designers, funders, builders and operators of the largest public infrastructure investment in the Country.
At Metro, we have the tools to transform the lives of Los Angeles County residents. We can and will leverage these tools with our partners – other operators, municipalities, labor, philanthropy, businesses, and community-based organizations – to make racial equity a defining vision for our work, and ultimately, we will enhance the quality of life and access to opportunity for all Angelenos.