Month: December 2011
Streetsblog LA
Gabbard: High Speed Rail Route, Business Plan, Deserve a Chance
As a long-time observer of the California high speed rail project who advocated in favor of the 2008 bond, to me one interesting recent trend is that the original hotbed of support (the Central Valley) of late has become much more skeptical and critical. Some of that is due to the dynamics of large projects -- early on excitement holds sway whereas when construction begins to approach folks begin to confront the downside impacts of such ventures, causing a backlash. And frankly, until recently, I think it can be fairly said the Authority's outreach and handling of politically sensitive aspects has been less than stellar.
December 14, 2011
The Cincinnati Streetcar: Triumphing Over an Anti-Transit Governor
Cincinnati -- you really just can't give this town enough credit. The Queen City and its streetcar coalition can't be stopped, despite the best efforts of Ohio Governor John Kasich to stamp out all traces of a passenger train in the Buckeye State.
December 14, 2011
Today’s Headlines
Featured Headline: The Reason Foundation is known for its views that passenger rail is a waste of money compared to bus service or road service. To make their point, they hired a comedian to ride Metro rail from LAX to an interview in Burbank. While the video is full of stats, there's also a lot of things that don't make sense if you think about it. Check it out, if you want to be annoyed.
December 14, 2011
No Accountability for State DOTs on Highway Projects
Complete a project on-time and on-budget. Or blow deadlines, run into setback after costly setback, only to return to the funding source with outstretched hands.
December 13, 2011
Senate Banking Committee to Vote on Transit Section of Transpo Bill Friday
If the Banking Committee is going to make any progress on the transit section of the Senate transportation bill, it's going to have to happen before this weekend, when Congress leaves for the holiday recess and doesn't come back till late January. Indeed, on Friday, the very last day of the session, Banking is planning to vote on its part of the bill.
December 13, 2011
FTA: Metro Deficient in Five of 12 Civil Rights Categories
Yesterday, the Federal Transit Administration publicly released its Title VI Civil Rights Review of Metro that was completed earlier this year. The FTA outlines a series of deficiencies in almost half of its twelve civil rights categories. Metro insists these are minor issues that can be easily fixed while critics of the agency call the report "a crushing indictment of the MTA." The document is available as a word document off the FTA's website and a pdf off Streetsblog's Sribd Page.
December 13, 2011
Bike Lane-less Dallas Inches Forward
Competition between cities is a healthy thing when it comes to bike infrastructure. Of course, the thing about competitions is, somebody's going to wind up being the loser, for lack of a better word. And in the race for bike-friendliness, Dallas, Texas is bringing up the rear.
December 13, 2011
Today’s Headlines
FTA Releases Report Hitting Metro on Civil Rights Violations (Daily News, LAT) Dear Metro, Please Combine the Sepulveda Blvd. and Van Nuys Transit Project (Ride the Pink Line) LB’s Gerald Desmond Bridge Going to Have Some Serious Bike Infrastructure (Bikeable Communities, LADOT Bike Blog) Sac Bee: It’s Not Time to Abandon High Speed Rail Why … Continued
December 13, 2011