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Obama Adviser: If EPA is Blocked on Emissions, Forget About CAFE Deal
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) chief Lisa Jackson extended an olive branch
this week to lawmakers who are pushing to block her from regulating
carbon emissions in the absence of a congressional climate bill, but
Jackson's promise to delay action until next year appears to have made no headway with Republicans and coal-state Democrats.
February 23, 2010
U.S. DOT Offers Sample Distracted Driving Bill — With a Potential Loophole
The Obama administration today offered a one-page sample proposal to
crack down on texting behind the wheel, aimed at helping guide states
through the process of crafting their own distracted driving
legislation.
February 22, 2010
How Can Transit Backers Sway Conservatives? Oberstar Joins the Debate
In the years before partisan warfare became the norm in Washington,
transportation tended to unite both ends of the ideological spectrum.
Can rationality return to infrastructure policy debates that have
become subsumed by culture clashes between cyclists and drivers,
urbanists and suburbanites -- and, of course, Democrats and Republicans?
February 2, 2010
New Report Links Homeowners’ Auto Dependence With Foreclosure Risk
Homeowners in car-dependent areas without access to alternative transportation are at greater risk of foreclosure, according to a report
released yesterday by the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) that
calls for mortgage underwriting standards to begin taking so-called "location-efficiency" into account.
January 28, 2010
EPA Strengthens Nitrogen Dioxide Rules for First Time in 35 Years
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) today announced
a new "one-hour standard" aimed at limiting Americans' short-term
exposure to nitrogen dioxide (NO2), a pollutant created by cars, power
plants, and other industrial sources.
January 25, 2010
EPA Air Chief: We Need to Do More to Reduce VMT
Obama administration officials "need to align together" to work on
reducing the nation's total vehicle miles traveled -- work that should
go beyond a pending congressional climate bill -- the Environmental
Protection Agency's (EPA) air-quality chief said today.
January 14, 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
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
New Report Finds American Auto Fleet Shrinking
Could the nation be turning away from its decades-old yen for auto
ownership? Americans got rid of more cars than they purchased in 2009,
reversing a trend that saw total U.S. vehicles exceed the number of
drivers more than 35 years ago, according to a report released today by the Earth Policy Institute (EPI).
January 6, 2010
A Step Towards Pricing of Pollution? 11 States Back Low-Carbon Fuel Rules
While many in Washington spent their holiday breaks wondering if Senate Democratic opposition would deal a major blow to progress on a climate change bill, 11 northeastern governors were agreeing on a deal that suggests otherwise.
January 4, 2010