The following Letter originally appeared in the Los Angeles Daily News on Tuesday, December 31, 2013.

Letters: Unlike Measure J, this one a grass-roots approach

By Supervisor Michael Antonovich

Re “Metro considers asking voters for a sales tax hike to pay for transportation” (Dec. 26):

Your article is helpful in bringing public attention to the efforts to create a regional transportation plan for all of Los Angeles County.

This year, as chairman of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, I asked all of the 88 cities to list their transportation priorities to develop a plan that accurately reflects the needs of their communities — which was not the case with Measure J’s failure. Measure J was developed through a “top-down” approach where MTA and the city of Los Angeles dictated transportation needs without considering local input. Unlike Measure J, this grass-roots approach creates a comprehensive regional plan that includes rail connections to our airports, upgrades to Metrolink and projects benefiting communities previously neglected including the San Fernando, Antelope, Santa Clarita and San Gabriel valleys, and the South Bay and Gateway cities.

— Michael D. Antonovich, Los Angeles
The letter writer represents the 5th District on the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors and is a MTA board member