Tanya Snyder

Adam Snider of BNA's Transportation Watch publication is reporting that the Senate Finance Committee has figured out where the additional $12 billion needed for the Senate transportation bill will come from, and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid is clearing the way for the bill to be considered after the August recess.

The House and Senate are getting close to voting on a deal, reached over the weekend, to raise the debt ceiling and cut spending.

For much of this week, the House has been debating next year's appropriations bill for Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies. The bill includes harsh cuts to many key safety and environmental programs, including the EPA's Smart Growth Office. According to the Obama administration's statement of policy on the bill, "The bill terminates funding for EPA's Smart Growth program, which contributes to efforts to assist communities in coordinating infrastructure investments and minimizing environmental impact of development."

You can always count on The Onion to call attention to the sorry state we're in. Today's story: "Al-Qaeda Claims U.S. Mass Transportation Infrastructure Must Drastically Improve Before Any Terrorist Attacks."

The Chamber of Commerce released its annual Transportation Performance Index (TPI) last week [PDF], and you can tell it's due for a total overhaul, because according to the Index, recession-battered 2009 was a banner year for transportation performance.

We've written quite a bit about Raquel Nelson over the past week or so, but now, we'll let her speak for herself. The Today Show devoted an eight-minute segment to her case this morning, including an interview with Raquel.

Last week, we reported on the horrific story of Raquel Nelson, whose four-year-old son was killed as she attempted to cross the street with him to reach their home. Nelson was convicted of reckless conduct, improperly crossing a roadway and second-degree homicide by vehicle, all for the crime of being a pedestrian in the car-centric Atlanta suburbs. The conviction carried a sentence of up to 36 months, while the driver who killed Nelson's son -- who'd been drinking and using painkillers before getting behind the wheel -- got off with six months on a hit-and-run charge.

At today’s hearing, the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee celebrated the bipartisan consensus it has reached on a new transportation reauthorization – but details of that consensus are still not public. Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-CA) did confirm that dedicated federal funding for bicycle and pedestrian programs remains in the bill. Addressing LA Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa:

The summary of the House Transportation Committee’s reauthorization bill – no legislative text has been released yet – includes several provisions for “streamlining” project delivery. While on its face, a little streamlining could help reduce excessive delays and bring costs in line, environmentalists are concerned that underlying the “streamlining” provision is a desire to gut environmental review processes and stifle public input.

The Senate EPW Committee just posted a transportation bill outline on their website, and despite previous assurances by committee chair Barbara Boxer (D-CA), there appears to be no dedicated funding for bicycling and pedestrian programs in the bill. The outline focuses on the consolidation of programs and streamlining project delivery, much like the House bill. The performance measures mentioned in the outline – while not necessarily a comprehensive list - don’t include emissions reductions, undoubtedly at the insistence of climate-denier Sen. James Inhofe (R-OK), ranking member of the committee.