Month: November 2009

More headlines at Streetsblog Capitol Hill

Here's something to be thankful for over this holiday break: Kids on bicycles. A beautiful thing. We got so many submissions for this one, it was truly inspiring.

Over the last several weeks, Mayor Villaraigosa and his new police chief, Charlie Beck, have been holding community meetings and town halls throughout the city.  At nearly every stop, they were met by cyclists who are concerned with the rising violence on the streets and the worsening relationship between some riders and the LAPD.  In West Los Angeles, Alex Thompson pigeonholed his Councilman, Bill Rosendahl, and questioned the Chief on street justice.  In the Valley, Bike Advisory Committee Chair Glenn Bailey organized cyclists to get out for the meetings.  Downtown, it was the Bike Coalition and representatives from Echo Park Bicycles, who have organized meetings on bike theft in recent weeks.  These are just a small sampling of the mobilization efforts cyclists underwent city-wide.

The Obama administration’s proposal to raise auto fuel-efficiency (CAFE) standards to 35.5 miles per gallon by 2016 could have gone even further in order to reap the maximum environmental and economic benefits of cleaner cars, according to a new analysis [PDF] released today by the Consumer Federation of America. In his analysis, Consumer Federation research … Continued

More headlines at Streetsblog Capitol Hill

Before I sign out for the holidays, I wanted to give you some homework to help me out.  One thing that Sammy responds to when we're trying to get him to sleep is singing.  Being a good Streetsblogger, I'm trying to give him as many songs about transit or biking as possible.  I haven't found a song yet that celebrates dense urban development.

The myth that U.S. roads "pay for themselves" thanks to user fees is a subject that's likely familiar to many Streetsblog Capitol Hill readers -- but just how much of the nation's highway funding is provided by charging drivers?

Reps. Pete DeFazio (D-OR) and Ed Perlmutter (D-CO) are working on a broader version of the former lawmaker's plan to pay for U.S. infrastructure investment by imposing a small tax on stock transactions, despite a note of caution sounded last week by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA).

How many people would be surprised to discover that California's roads were ranked as the third worst in the nation?  According to a recent survey of truckers by Overdrive Magazine who make cross-country trips, only two states have worse roads, and none have worse drivers.  Locally, the I-5 and I-10 were listed as "unspeakably bad" roads.