Transportation Policy
Streetsblog LA
The Bailout: Won’t Someone Please Think of the Car Dealers?
Cap'n Transit pointed out the other day how US Senators, including Majority Leader Harry Reid, were pushing Bailout 2.0 by emphasizing the precipitous drop in new car sales and the slowing of highway construction as indicators of national crisis. (Mayor Bloomberg, by the way, also alluded to empty dealer showrooms during yesterday's third term pitch.)
October 6, 2008
Bailout Bill Includes Bike Commuting Benefit
Remember Oregon Congressman Earl Blumenauer's
long-sought $20 per month tax credit for bike commuters, intended to
extend a benefit to cyclists that motorists have received for decades?
The measure ridiculed by North Carolina Rep. Patrick "Give Me Fossil Fuels or Give Me Death" McHenry?
It didn't make it into law last year, but it seems the bike commuting
credit has found its way into the latest version of the financial
bailout package.
October 2, 2008
Where They Stand: Obama and McCain on Transportation
With a few hours to go until what will be the season's first presidential debate, we're looking over a report from the Brookings Institution, which outlines each candidate's positions on transportation.
September 26, 2008
Brookings: Feds Should Stop Giving Transit Projects the Run-Around
Americans are moving to areas with better transit access, but their options are limited.
September 18, 2008
California’s Senators Want Better Signals for Rail Safety
In the wake of last week's Metrolink disaster there has been a lot of discussion about what impact more modern signals could have had in preventing the crash. Today, the Times revealed that Metrolink had been an outspoken critic of Congressional efforts to require better signalization for all train tracks.
September 17, 2008
Urbanism: Not Just for Lefties
The American Prospect reports
on a bi-partisan panel at the University of Minnesota last week where
some dyed-in-the-wool Republicans declared their affinity for urbanism
and opposition to sprawl:
September 15, 2008
U.S. Senate Getting Serious About Transit Stimulus
The Wall Street Journal reports that momentum is building in the Senate for additional federal transit funding:
September 9, 2008
Metro Leaders Talk Freight, Funding at Boxer Hearing on Federal Policy
Barbara Boxer and John Kerry's Ear Rally Against Greenhouse Gas
September 5, 2008
Sarah Palin, Transit Advocate?
John McCain may not be big on public transportation, but as mayor of a small town in Alaska, his running mate Sarah Palin secured millions in federal earmarks for rail and bus projects.
September 3, 2008
How Do We Make Clean Transportation Part of the National Discussion?
Like Joe Biden, Barack Obama also mentioned Amtrak in his acceptance speech to the Democratic National Convention, but only in reference to his running mate's preferred mode of transportation.
August 29, 2008