Like families across the nation, the city of Los Angeles has had to tighten its belt, do more with less, and think outside the box over the past few years. Necessity may be the mother of invention, but here in L.A. urgency and exigency are the parents of innovation.

When forced to think creatively, we have found new ways to look at old problems, and this rings especially true when it comes to our most pressing needs: jobs, economic growth, cleaner air and better transportation options.

When closing a 10-mile stretch of freeway in Los Angeles garners worldwide attention, we know that Angelenos need and deserve more mass transit options to help kick our addiction to the single-passenger automobile. The weekend-long 405 closure reminded us all to think outside our cars. But our transportation agenda is about more than just reducing traffic; it's about addressing some of L.A.'s toughest challenges: sky-high unemployment, stifling congestion and -- despite gains in the last decade -- the lingering pollution that poses serious health risks to children and adults alike.

The anchor of our transportation agenda for the 21st century is America Fast Forward (AFF), an innovative financing plan that has bipartisan support in Congress and the endorsement of both the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and the AFL-CIO. With federal support, AFF will create 160,000 jobs here in L.A. alone. By leveraging the money that local taxpayers overwhelming voted to raise through Measure R, we can expedite a dozen transit projects -- including the Expo Line, the Orange Line and the Westside Extension -- building them much faster than 30 years.

But we are not stopping there. We are exploring other creative, transit-oriented initiatives to address our high unemployment, such as project labor agreements and MTA job fairs to ensure that local residents benefit from county tax dollars, and that local companies are the ones to benefit from the uptick in construction.

We are putting Angelenos to work by doubling the miles of rail, building more car-pool lanes, adding 1,600 miles of new bike paths, synchronizing our traffic signals and improving our bus service.

With 350 million boardings every year, our bus system -- the largest clean-energy fleet in the nation -- is the backbone of our transportation network. In fact, 99 percent of L.A.'s low-income neighborhoods are served by transit. But despite that saturation, the typical L.A. resident can reach only 36 percent of area jobs. That is why on Thursday, during my first meeting as MTA chairman, the board approved my motion to improve bus service and complete a universal fare system so transit users can seamlessly navigate from city to county bus systems.

Furthermore, we are exploring the creation of a Bus Rapid Transit network - vehicles that operate with rail-travel quality and road-travel flexibility - to make commuting faster, safer, more convenient and more affordable. We also adopted a Green Construction Policy that would reduce harmful construction equipment emissions on some current and all future transit and highway projects.

It is the most forward-thinking policy among transit agencies, making the MTA an industry leader.

Without a doubt, L.A.'s historic car culture and our current habits make it difficult to envision our city as a place where mass transit is simply a way of life for a majority of residents. This isn't just about investing and building - it's about changing attitudes and actions, something that will take time.

Although job creation is job No. 1, our transportation agenda is a comprehensive plan that will address concerns beyond unemployment alone.

With a 360-degree approach, we can link people to jobs more efficiently and sustainably and reduce commute times. We can create more walkable and bikeable neighborhoods to increase our quality of life and the time we spend with our loved ones.

Above all else, we can ensure the success of our economy well into the future. A strong transit network with links to county and regional transit systems will move people and goods as quickly and efficiently as possible, keeping L.A. and the Southland globally competitive for generations to come.

[As printed on Daily News, August 8, 2011]