Transportation Policy
Streetsblog LA
Obama Quietly Gets Federal Agencies Involved in Transport Planning
When President Obama signed an executive order in October requiring federal agencies to craft strategies for reducing their greenhouse gas emissions, he described the mandate as Washington "lead[ing] by example" on the pollution-reduction front.
January 19, 2010
CBO Echoes Obama’s Candor on the Pitfalls of ‘Shovel-Readiness’
During last month's White House jobs summit, President Obama carved out
some common ground with critics of his first stimulus law's $47 billion
in infrastructure spending -- which was distributed mainly by the book
through state DOTs. "The term "shovel-ready," let’s be honest here,
doesn’t always live up to its billing," he acknowledged.
January 19, 2010
Enviro Group Sees State DOTs’ Transport Predictions — and Raises Them
Just before New Year's, the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO), the Washington voice for state DOTs that's often dubbed the "road lobby," counted down 10 hot topics for 2010.
January 15, 2010
LaHood Wants More TIGER Aid in the Congressional Jobs Bill
Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood made a splash yesterday by announcing that the U.S. DOT would look at the environmental and community-building benefits of transit projects, not just their adherence to a government cost-effectiveness standard.
January 14, 2010
Statewide/Local Advocates Slam Schwarzenegger’s Rumored End-Around Cut on Transit Funding
Local transit advocates are reacting with fury to the Governor's rumored plan to skirt a court ruling requiring that the state stop robbing transit funds dedicated in the gas tax by completely revoking the tax and reinstating it as an excise tax.
January 7, 2010
The U.S. Transportation Financing Crisis: A Snapshot From the States
Washington transportation policymaking can often resemble an
unwieldy soup of anywhere between 50 and 535 local perspectives, as
lawmakers from different states and districts vie for a fixed (or even shrinking) amount of federal funding.
January 7, 2010
House Jobs Bill Answers Some Key Transportation Questions
The $75 billion House jobs bill, expected to pass later today before the chamber adjourns for the holidays, includes $27.5 billion for roads and $8.4 billion for transit, largely mirroring this year's first economic stimulus law.
December 16, 2009
The Footnote to All Those Complaints About Tax Cuts as Stimulus
Transportation reformers and status quo-lovers alike smacked their
foreheads in frustration when the White House's first stimulus plan
lowballed infrastructure to make
room for tax breaks that had little demonstrable effect on job creation
-- particularly the $70 billion adjustment of the alternative minimum
tax (AMT).
December 15, 2009
White House Backs $50B For ‘Merit-Based Infrastructure Investment’
President Obama today threw his weight behind significant new
transportation spending as part of a broad jobs bill taking shape in
Congress, with $50 billion slated for transit, roads, bridges, and
ports and the administration endorsing "merit-based infrastructure
investment that leverages federal dollars."
December 8, 2009