California lawmakers added language late Friday to a transportation bill that would prevent Los Angeles from narrowing Forest Lawn Drive without additional approvals, according to LAist. The provision applies only to roads providing sole access to two or more adjacent cemeteries in cities exceeding two million residents, a category that currently includes only Los Angeles.
City transportation officials and the council office of Nithya Raman have advanced plans since 2022 to convert a one-mile segment of the road to three lanes, including a center turn lane. The change would also add plastic posts separating cyclists from vehicles near the entrances to Forest Lawn Memorial-Park Hollywood Hills and Mount Sinai Memorial Park.
Data from the Los Angeles Department of Transportation show more than 95 collisions on the stretch since 2013, including four fatalities. A recent incident left one driver dead after the vehicle struck a tree and caught fire, prompting renewed calls for safety measures.
Both cemeteries have opposed the lane reduction from the outset, arguing it would produce severe traffic backups. Forest Lawn Memorial-Parks and Mortuaries has directed substantial lobbying expenditures at state and local officials to stop the project, with records indicating payments exceeding $125,000 in a single quarter to one firm alone.
The measure has surfaced as a point of contention in the mayoral runoff between incumbent Karen Bass and Raman. Bass requested a pause on the work citing community concerns, while Raman has defended the safety initiative as preserving nearly unchanged travel times.
If enacted before the Aug. 31 deadline, the bill language would require City Council and mayoral approval plus a public hearing before any future lane reductions on the affected road. A joint statement from the two cemeteries described the provision as an important safeguard for access.
This report is based on coverage by LAist: https://laist.com/news/transportation/forest-lawn-lobbying-lanes