State DOTs: We Back National Transport Goals — If We Get to Write Them
Congressional efforts to set national goals for the American transportation system are stalled
for now, but the U.S. DOT said today that it is preparing for an
eventual transition to a world where performance targets are the norm
for transit, roads, bridges, and ports.
January 13, 2010
Bailout Beneficiary Wells Fargo Loses Transit Tax-Shelter Lawsuit
The tax tricks known as SILOs
-- in which major banks snapped up rail cars and other pieces of public
infrastructure from cash-strapped localities, only to lease them back
and claim a tax write-off -- has prompted an outcry from the Hill as Wall Street's biggest players invoked obscure claims to wring money from local transit agencies.
January 13, 2010
Pelosi: Gas Tax Hike Doesn’t Have Majority Support in Congress
After touring the Detroit Auto Show yesterday with fellow lawmakers,
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) took one question yesterday: Why are
Democrats not pursuing a federal gas tax hike, given its potential to cut carbon emissions and its support from auto industry players aiming to stoke demand for efficient cars?
January 12, 2010
Baltimore Rolls Out Free, Fully Funded Downtown Bus Service
Baltimore Mayor Sheila Dixon is on her way out of office, thanks to a deal
with prosecutors pursuing a corruption case against her, but she's
leaving something positive in place for local transit riders.
January 12, 2010
White House and Congress Take Issue With AP’s Transport Stimulus Claims
The Associated Press published a piece
today that, after putting "economists and statisticians" to work on
analyzing $21 billion in federal stimulus money for transportation,
reached a volatile conclusion:
January 11, 2010
Should a Climate Bill Even Try to Fight Sprawl?
The potential for a cap-and-trade climate bill to set aside significant
amounts of money for reforming local land use and transportation
planning is often touted by Democrats, environmental groups, and this particular Streetsblogger.
January 11, 2010
Obama Administration Working on Its Own Six-Year Transportation Bill
The annual powwow of thousands of transportation workers, planners,
and wonks that's known as the Transportation Research Board (TRB) conference
kicked off in the capital yesterday with a candid admission from some
senior U.S. DOT officials: reorienting American transport planning to
accommodate the overlap with housing and environmental sustainability
is proving pretty difficult.
January 11, 2010
Does Transit-Oriented Development Work Even Without Transit?
Yes, says urban planner Neil Payton. From his guest column today on Reconnecting America's blog:
January 8, 2010
Transport Economist Challenges Claim That ‘VMT Causes Growth’
The claim to a link between economic growth and vehicle mileage --
that, in other words, auto travel is essential to keeping U.S.
productivity high -- remains controversial and much-debated in
transportation policy circles.
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