Month: February 2010

Thanks to an excellent submission by Enci Box last year, we've had a couple of great discussions on women's safety on the streets, both for cyclists and pedestrians.  However, we haven't spent nearly as much energy discussing safety for bus riders, especially women bus riders.  Fortunately, Planetizen Editor Tim Halbur sat down to have an in-depth discussion of this issue with UCLA Professor Anastasia Loukaitou-Sideris.  You can read the full interview at Planetizen, and I strongly recommend it for anyone interested in this issue as both Halbur and Loukaitou-Sideris do a great job.  For those without the time to read the full interview, here's an except.

Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus (D-MT) and his panel’s senior Republican, Chuck Grassley (IA), today offered a job-creation proposal designed to garner enough GOP votes to overcome an anticipated filibuster. Senate Finance Committee chief Max Baucus (D-MT), at left, with GOP ally Chuck Grassley (IA) at right. (Photo: Baucus Press) The measure’s transportation provisions … Continued

Last Thursday, KPCC's Patt Morrison aired a piece showcasing the Backbone Bikeway Network as presented by guests Alex Thompson and Mihai Petieu. I chuckled when I saw Alex Thompson’s tweet announcing that he was appearing “opposite” guest Michelle Mowery the LADOT Sr. Bike Coordinator because I knew the exchange would get fiery and rightfully so.  Mowery has come under a lot of fire from the cycling community for not being an outright bulldog for cyclists. One gets the feeling she is afraid for her job should she get too rowdy over there at the LADOT. After eight to ten minutes of show debilitating glitches with the KPCC call in system things were finally on their way.

Since the maps for the Backbone Bikeway Network burst on to the scene last week, it seems that the discussing the maps, the Backbone, and the concepts and theories behind it is all anyone in the cycling movement wants to do.  Following up on Tuesday's story, I had the chance to speak with, or email with, many of the advocates and leaders of the bicycling movement in Los Angeles.  The near unanimous verdict?  They love it.

The American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO), the trade group representing state DOTs in Washington, yesterday unveiled a website and report billed as a one-year "progress report" on the White House's $34.3 billion in formula-based transportation stimulus spending.

As we noted the other day, First Lady Michelle Obama has launched a multifaceted initiative to reduce child obesity in the United States called Let's Move. It's a campaign that emphasizes the ways in which getting children up and active can help to improve their health for a lifetime.

More headlines at Streetsblog Capitol Hill

(Chart: Oregon DOT) The prospect of an eventual move away from the gas tax and towards a fee on vehicle miles traveled (VMT) has sparked consternation from some well-known bloggers this week, with Matt Yglesias asserting that “a VMT [tax] has no advantages whatsoever over higher gasoline taxes” and Andrew Samwick suggesting that declining fuel … Continued

As Transportation Reformers continue to wait for the Senate to join the House of Representatives with a sense of urgency for re-authorizing the federal transportation spending bill; Senator Barbara Boxer and Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood will hold a "Town Hall" type meeting at Metro Headquarters from 9:30 A.M. to 3:45 P.M.  The draft agenda for the day, available via the announcement on The Source, can be found here.