Month: August 2012

Well, Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney declined to get into details about his plans for the nation's transportation system during his big speech in Tampa last night. Romney has been tight-lipped about actual policy recommendations throughout his campaign, although a platform released by the GOP this week was basically a worst case scenario for sustainable transportation and had the hallmarks of a Big Oil-fueled propaganda campaign.

More headlines at Streetsblog Capitol Hill

We should never have to report about a traffic injury in Golden Gate Park, but as long as cars are allowed, there will be stories like this one.

In the late eighties and nineties, every traffic issue the Tennessee Department of Transportation faced was assigned the same solution: a bypass. But over the years, the department has come around to a new way of doing things, according to 40-year TDOT veteran Ralph Comer. Comer says the current commissioner, John Schroer, wants to become known as the “no-bypass commissioner.” He simply believes there are usually more cost-effective ways of solving transportation problems.

Cincinnati, a midsized river city in the generally anti-urban state of Ohio, is -- surprise! -- becoming a real leader in sustainable urban development. Work on the city's hard-won streetcar project is underway now, to the ire of the state's governor and the region's congressman.

More headlines at Streetsblog Capitol Hill

More good bike news from the California legislature this week: The extensive and costly environmental reviews required for on-street bike lanes would be streamlined under a bill approved unanimously by the State Assembly on Monday. The bill, AB 2245, would relieve planners of needing to conduct environmental impact reports (EIRs) for bike lane projects, which are required under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). The bill is expected to be signed into law by Governor Jerry Brown next month.

A two-way protected bikeway along the Embarcadero could get a trial in the coming months. The SF Municipal Transportation Agency is considering implementing a temporary two-way bikeway along the waterfront during the next America's Cup events in October, according to an agency report. The agency is also developing plans for a more permanent bikeway along the Embaracdero near Pier 39, from Kearny to Powell Streets.

In all issue areas, the Republicans outdid themselves on far-right-wing pandering with their new platform, approved yesterday in Tampa. Transportation is no exception.