Bacharach, Jacqueline

Biography / Administrative History

The Los Angeles County Transportation Commission (LACTC) was created by the California State legislature in 1976 as part of the County Transportation Commissions Act. The privately owned and operated companies which had dominated public transit in Los Angeles since the 1890's had given way in the 1960's to an array of uncoordinated and disconnected publicly held agencies operating at state, county and local levels. The mandate of the commissions was to oversee mass transit planning and policy setting at the regional level, coordinating the previously disparate efforts of the various local agencies and government bodies involved in mass transit construction and operations.

The LACTC consisted of elected representatives from both county and municipal governments and a private citizen appointed by the LA mayor and approved by the city council. In 1980 LA County voters approved Proposition A, which established a half-cent sales tax to fund regional transit planning and construction. 35% of the revenues were to be allocated to rail, 25% to local cities for their local transit needs, and the remaining 40% were designated as discretionary funds that would be allocated as the LACTC saw fit. Due to legal wrangling, the tax did not go into effect until 1982.

Jacqueline Bacharach came on board the commission in April of 1982. In 1980 she had been elected to the city council of Rancho Palos Verdes, where she would serve as mayor for three terms. Jacqueline was born in Chicago and raised in the San Fernando Valley. She attended UCLA and graduated with a degree in Political Science. While at UCLA she was active in the Young Democrats.

Bacharach was an active and committed commissioner. She chaired the Planning and Mobility Improvement Committee for most of her years on the LACTC. She was part of the inter-county agency that spearheaded commuter rail in the five counties of Southern California. Later she was its first chairwoman when it became the Southern California Regional Rail Authority (SCRRA) in 1991 (SCRRA today operates Metrolink service). Jacqueline also headed the Rail Construction Corporation and the Blue Line Committee at the time that Los Angeles was just beginning to rebuild its passenger rail service.

During her term as LACTC Chairwoman, Bacharach prioritized system integration and good public relations. In 1985, shortly after being elected Chairwoman, she stated in ProMotion, the LACTC newsletter, her belief that "the key to progress...is a high degree of cooperation and coordination among the other agencies involved with transportation, such as SCRTD, SCAG, CTC, and Caltrans. Therefore, more understanding and consideration of each other's needs and perspectives is one of my highest priorities for my term as Commission chair". Bacharach also understood that LA's transportation system was more than government business, it impacted every citizen of the county. According to her, "everyone in this county, no matter who they are, is affected by our transportation system. Therefore, we must share the message of our activities as often as we can". Underlying her goals and principles, was a keen awareness of the unique and important role that transportation played in weaving together the urban fabric, " The transportation network is the spine upon which the body grows. Housing, air quality, water availability, goods movement, commercial and industrial success - all depend on adequate transportation".

Since leaving the LACTC, Jacqueline Bacharach has continued to be involved in transit planning and design. She has served as Executive Director of the South Bay Cities Council of Governments (SBCCOG), is part of the Executive Committee of Mobility 21, a transit advocacy group in Los Angeles County, and is also involved in Compass, an organization dedicated to sustainable development in Southern California. In addition, Bacharach launched her own transit consultation firm, Jacqueline Bacharach & Associates.

List of Abbreviations CTC - California Transportation Commission LACMTA - Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority LACTC - Los Angeles County Transportation Commission SCAG - Southern California Association of Governments SCRRA - Southern California Regional Rail Authority SCRTD - Southern California Rapid Transit District

List of Sources - Compass Southern California, http://www.socalcompass.org/index.php (accessed May 5, 2006). - Dorothy Peyton Gray Transportation Library, Los Angeles Transit History , available at http://www.mta.net/about_us/library/transit_history.htm , (April 6,2006). - Los Angeles County Transportation Commission records, 06-DPGTL. Dorothy Payton Grey Transportation Library. - LACMTA, "Goodbye Jacki, Ray, Judy and Jinny - We'll Miss You!", Inside Moves , n. 3, March 1993, Dorothy Payton Grey Transportation Library, LACTC Publications. - LACTC, "New Commission Chairwoman Jacki Bacharach Looks Ahead - Discusses Her Objectives and Priorities for the LACTC's Next 12 Months", Promotion , v.1, n.2, Winter 1985, Dorothy Payton Grey Transportation Library, LACTC Publications. - Mobility 21, http://www.mobility21coalition.com/overview/index.html (accessed May 5, 2006). - Palos Verdes Library District. - South Bay Cities Council of Government (SBCCOG), http://www.southbaycities.org/ (accessed May 5, 2006).

From the guide to the Jacqueline Bacharach office records, 1982-2000, (Dorothy Peyton Gray Transportation Library and Archives.)