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.For all other incomegroups, the share of households with a single vehicle is much lower.In contrast, households with two or more vehicles would still be ableto drive on a daily basis under the restrictions.In the lowest incomeTable B17.11999 Auto Ownership, by Income Group in L.A.County1999 Household-Income Group$50,000 $100,000Household Characteristic $150,000 All GroupsNumber of households 1,785,480 877,080 276,975 196,755 3,136,290Percent of total households 57 28 9 6 100Percent owning no vehicle 19423 12Percent owning 1 vehicle 48 27 15 13 37Percent owning 2 vehicles 25 45 48 50 35Percent owning 3 vehicles 6 17 22 23 11Percent owning 4+ vehicles 2 7 12 11 5SOURCE: Compiled by the authors from FHWA (2008). Driving Restrictions 379group, just 33 percent of households have two or more cars.For higherincome groups, the share of households with two or more cars is muchlarger, ranging from about 69 percent for the $50,000 $100,000 cat-egory up to about 84 percent for the $150,000+ category.Unfortunately, driving restrictions do not generate revenue thatcan be used for other transportation improvements to alleviate theseequity concerns.Mitigation would require significant investment intransit and other alternative modes, but who would provide the neces-sary funding for such investments is unclear.Stakeholder ConcernsRating: High/difficult to address >high.Different stakeholdersmight raise different objections depending how implementation is pro-posed.If the restrictions cover a relatively small center-city area, busi-ness and neighborhood associations in that area might object, claimingthat the restrictions would cause undue hardship on employees andresidents.Associations just outside the area, meanwhile, might be con-cerned about spillover traffic.For a much larger area, trucking groupsmight raise concerns about access.Given that significant driving restric-tions have not to date been implemented in the United States, thatthey have been unsuccessful and perhaps even counterproductivein such cities as Mexico City and Athens, and that many areas in L.A.County lack access to high-quality transit as an alternative to driv-ing, we would anticipate that the stakeholder objections would bestrenuous.Note that substantial investments in transit could alleviatesome concerns about access and spot congestion, though currenttransportation-funding shortfalls at the state and county levels makethis unlikely.There would also need to be some flexibility given totrucks to avoid long lines of trucks waiting to enter a restricted area;however, some of these concerns might be alleviated with the use ofpeak-hour rather than full-day restrictions.General Political ObstaclesRating: High/difficult to address >high.Driving restrictionshave generally been used in cities in developing countries.The only 380 Moving Los Angeles: Short-Term Policy Options for Improving Transportationcity in a developed country to adopt such a policy is Athens, and it hasbeen in effect for more than 25 years.When first introduced, accord-ing to one observer,The immediate public reaction was one of horror.The authoritieshad in effect barred half the population of Attica from crossingthe Dactylios, or Athens ring road, on any given weekend.Policewere stationed on the entrance to the restricted area and issuedhigh fines to those who transgressed.The law was so unpopularthat the opposition Socialists (Pasok) promised to scrap it whenthey came to power.In fact, the scheme was revised and extendedunder Pasok, and in 1982 the car ban was introduced on week-days too.(de Quetteville, 2003, p.3)The reversal was likely in response to the worsening of air pollution,which was, by the early 1980s, the worst in Europe (Howe, 1983) andwas accompanied by other restrictions on industry.In Bogotá, while the restrictions were at first unwelcome, votersin 2000 approved a stringent ban on all private vehicles during peakhours, to begin in 2015.Only about 20 percent of the population ownsvehicles, however, so the majority would not be personally inconve-nienced (Montgomery, 2007).Driving restrictions have not been introduced in the United Statesexcept in some limited cases of pedestrian malls and emergencies.It isdifficult to imagine that L.A.motorists would receive this policy well,and many drivers would probably just purchase or use second vehicles.Voters with access to only one vehicle would likely complain about theunfairness that others already have multiple vehicles and can effectivelyavoid any restriction.Political issues might vary depending on whether restrictions wereadopted on an areawide basis, as in Mexico City; in a center city, as inAthens; or along arterials, as in Santiago.If the area were fairly small,restrictions might increase traffic along its perimeter, which happenedin Athens.This would mean political battles over where the perimeterwould be drawn, although fewer jurisdictions would be affected.If alarge area were affected, it would require a high degree of interjurisdic-tional coordination. Driving Restrictions 381Institutional ObstaclesRating: Low.Institutional obstacles are not expected to be signifi-cant
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