Streets for All, an LA nonprofit focused on safer, more sustainable streets, has launched a campaign to amend the City Charter and overhaul how the city manages its roads and sidewalks. The group argues that the system is broken, pointing to crumbling streets, hazardous sidewalks, and mounting liability costs from injuries and collisions that could have been prevented. Their proposal calls for structural reforms that would reshape the way Los Angeles builds, maintains, and funds its public right of way.

At the heart of the campaign is a push to consolidate responsibility for streets under a single department. Currently, street design and traffic management fall under the Department of Transportation, while street construction and maintenance are handled by the Bureau of Street Services within Public Works. This split, according to Streets for All, creates delays, inefficiency, and confusion about accountability. By folding the Bureau of Street Services into the Department of Transportation, Los Angeles would join other major cities that manage both infrastructure and mobility under one roof.

The group is also calling for a guaranteed funding stream dedicated to streets and sidewalks, similar to the funding formulas that support parks and libraries. Streets for All proposes tying the department’s budget to a small percentage of the city’s assessed property value, which would generate hundreds of millions of dollars annually and ensure that maintenance keeps pace with the city’s growth. The organization argues that the lack of consistent funding has fueled decades of deferred maintenance, leaving only about half of the city’s streets in good condition and many sidewalks dangerously neglected.

Another key recommendation is to shift the city’s budget process to a two-year cycle and require a formal five-year capital improvement plan. Streets for All says this would allow better long-term planning and prevent projects from stalling when political or budgetary priorities shift year to year. They also propose replacing the century-old Board of Public Works with a more streamlined, director-led department that reports directly to the mayor, a change they believe would improve efficiency and accountability.

Underlying all of these recommendations is the belief that Los Angeles cannot meet its safety, mobility, and climate goals without addressing how it manages its streets. Every five hours, someone in the city is killed or severely injured in a traffic crash. Tens of thousands of streetlights are out of service, and sidewalks are so damaged that the city has paid hundreds of millions of dollars in settlements since 2019. Meanwhile, Los Angeles spends far less per resident on street infrastructure than other large cities. Streets for All argues that without a structural fix, the city will remain trapped in a cycle of neglect, liability, and piecemeal repairs.

The proposed charter reforms would require voter approval, making the path forward politically challenging. But the organization sees the effort as essential, framing it as a once-in-a-generation opportunity to modernize how Los Angeles invests in its most visible and widely used public asset. For residents who walk, bike, drive, or take transit, the stakes are immediate: safer crossings, smoother roads, working lights, and a city government capable of maintaining them.