Report: Raising the Gas Tax Is Not Enough
S.B.1's gas tax increase was smart, welcome and overdue. Ultimately though, the gas tax alone is not the right long-term solution for funding California transportation.
May 1, 2017
CA Legislative Update: Transit Passes, Transportation Commission Representation, Automated Speed Cameras
A bill to create a statewide youth transit pass program passed the Assembly Transportation Committee, as did one that would require that at least one member of the California Transportation Commission represent low-income communities. Another bill, to create a pilot program to use automated speed enforcement cameras in San Francisco and San Jose, was put off for a year.
April 26, 2017
Projects Throughout State Awarded Sustainable Transportation Planning Grants
Caltrans just awarded $9.3 million in Sustainable Transportation Planning Grants to 41 projects, including complete streets plans, studies of connections for bicycle, pedestrian, and transit travel, and community engagement. Over 132 projects applied for the grants.
April 25, 2017
What is with the California Transportation Commission?
The CTC is responsible for programming and allocating money for most of the state's transportation projects, so it's a pretty important body. But Governor Brown must either believe that things are going well on the commission, or that decisions made by the CTC don't really matter.
April 21, 2017
Time to Eliminate “Jaywalking” as a Crime
Are people who cross streets where it makes logical sense really destroying the integrity of our communities? Are they causing a wave of crimes that put us all in danger? No, they are not.
April 19, 2017
Transportation Equity Summit Coming Up: April 24 and 25 in Sacramento
The Transportation Equity Summit, hosted by TransForm and the California Bicycle Coalition, will offer conversations on transportation justice topics, including funding and public participation. And there will be awards.
April 14, 2017
Ticket Diversion for Bike Riders 101
Different places have different approaches: an online course in Davis, a class taught by police officers in Gilroy. However they are run, bike classes benefit the entire community, and if diversion programs help create a wider educational program, so much the better.
April 13, 2017
Transportation Funding Bill Passes with Closed-Door Deals and Public Posturing
All afternoon the Senate and Assembly had hosted “debates” on the bill, but those served mainly as an opportunity for grandstanding. Most minds had been made up, and the real negotiations, to convince the few undecided votes, was going on behind closed doors.
April 10, 2017
Appeals Court Rules That Cap-and-Trade Is Not a Tax
The court ruled that California's cap-and-trade system involves voluntary participation and the purchase of a commodity with value—neither of which are “the hallmarks of a tax.”
April 7, 2017
What’s in the Gas-Tax-Raising Transportation Funding Bill?
There are a lot of good things in S.B. 1, including raising gas taxes to better reflect how much wear and tear vehicles actually impose on California roads. But then there's that dirty truck amendment.
April 6, 2017
