Inhofe Questions Transit and Bike-Ped Investments in House Transport Bill
The senior Republican on the Senate environment panel today criticized
the House's six-year transportation
bill, lamenting that the measure "focus[es] very heavily on
transit, bike paths, and sidewalks" and carves out a strong federal role
in "decisions historically left to the state level."
March 19, 2010
McCaskill Asks LaHood to ‘Put an End to’ Transportation Earmarks
When House leaders agreed last week to ban earmarks to for-profit
entities, tax and transportation projects got a
notable exemption. But that doesn't mean Congress has no appetite
to curb transport earmarks, as Sen. Claire McCaskill (D-MO) showed in a
letter sent this week to U.S. DOT chief Ray LaHood.
March 18, 2010
As Geithner Touts Infrastructure, Skepticism Persists on $4B ‘I-Fund’ Plan
Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner, considered a skeptic of
transportation stimulus spending by
some lawmakers, yesterday joined two other White House economic
advisers in endorsing new infrastructure investment as a means to
jump-start the economy.
March 17, 2010
Villaraigosa Steps Up Case for Federal Investment in “30/10″ Transit Plan
Days after pitching
the Senate environment committee for federal help with expediting
his ambitious "30/10"
package of new transit projects, Los Angeles Mayor Antonio
Villaraigosa was back on the Hill yesterday meeting with lawmakers as
part of a broad campaign for more investment in California
infrastructure.
March 17, 2010
Brown Offers Senate Plan For More Federal Operating Aid to Local Transit
Local transit officials seeking more federal operating aid during lean
budgetary times got a new ally today in Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH), who
introduced legislation in Congress' upper chamber to give rail and bus
agencies more flexibility to spend funding from Washington on averting
service cuts and layoffs.
March 16, 2010
Environmental Group Offers Congress a Map to Cleaner Freight
The federal government can reap significant pollution-reduction
benefits by focusing on a national freight plan that replaces older
diesel equipment with newer, cleaner-burning train cars while building
out regional networks more efficiently, the Environmental Defense Fund
(EDF) said yesterday in a new report [PDF].
March 16, 2010
House and Senate Split on Approach to Obama’s Transit Safety Plan
After a year marked by discord between the House
and Senate
over the timing of the next federal transportation bill, another split
emerged yesterday over the timetable for taking up the Obama
administration's plan for
federal involvement in transit safety oversight.
March 16, 2010
LaHood Reaches Out to Transit Industry, Lamenting ‘Lousy Economy’
Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood sought to commiserate with the
cash-strapped transit industry today, declaring the Obama administration
an ally of local rail and bus agencies even as the "lousy economy"
clouds prospects for passage of a new long-term federal transportation
bill.
March 15, 2010
Is 2010 the Year for Federal Bike Aid? The Answer: A Big ‘Maybe’
This week's National
Bike Summit culminated in an ambitious new campaign to recruit a
million bike advocates and the
unveiling of a new Google Maps bike feature. But in a Wednesday
session dedicated to the outlook for federal bike investments, cycling
advocates hesitated to declare that they could secure new commitments
from Washington.
March 12, 2010
U.S. DOT Cagey on Funding New Transport Bill as Senators Seek Solutions
Senators began searching today for new strategies to connect local
planners with an ever-dwindling pot of federal infrastructure dollars,
even as a senior U.S. DOT aide declined to say whether the White House's
upcoming
principles for the next long-term transportation bill would include
funding specifics.
March 11, 2010