SAN FERNANDO VALLEY : City Council Votes Support of Subway Across Valley

Bolstering the supporters of an underground transit system across the San Fernando Valley, the Los Angeles City Council voted Tuesday to support the subway they favor rather than a rival elevated line over the Ventura Freeway.

Following the lead of several Valley council members, the council reaffirmed the position it adopted five years ago in favor of a mostly subterranean line paralleling Burbank and Chandler boulevards for a mass transit project to be built in the coming century.

The decision, by an 11-1 vote, was a blow for those led by County Supervisor Mike Antonovich who want the Metropolitan Transportation Authority to build a monorail above the Ventura Freeway.

The council’s action swung the focus of the long debate to Mayor Richard Riordan, an MTA director who also appoints three others to the agency’s 13-member board. As mayor, Riordan has not committed himself to either option, although he backed the freeway monorail in his election campaign.