Streetsblog USA

They call their mission "The Cause." And they say it's critical to solving Michigan's woes. Fortunately, though, the solution they have in mind is a simple one, and their name should make it obvious: "Michigan Needs More Parking."

After fighting to maintain reasonable funding levels in the transportation bill – and for the inclusion of dedicated transit funding in the first place – the Federal Transit Administration now finds itself up against almost certain funding cuts that imperil rail and bus expansion projects, as well as the agency's own staffing.

When the federal gas tax was set at 18.4 cents per gallon, it represented 17 percent of the cost of a gallon of gas. Now it's barely 5 percent.

Yesterday, we couldn't help poking fun at Glenn Beck's red alert about the words he associates with an imaginary UN plot to take away our cars and our freedoms. But it gets better: Everyone's favorite conspiracy-monger is touting his newest project -- a "city-theme park hybrid" called Independence, USA that in some ways bears a shocking resemblance to the urbanism he sneers at, and in other ways seems far more coercive than the planning ideas he wants people to fear.

The Republican co-chair of the Congressional Bicycling Caucus is getting a leadership position with some real gravitas. Rep. Tom Petri (R-WI) was just named the new chair of the Highways and Transit Subcommittee in the House -- the epicenter of the chamber's surface transportation legislation.

Today is Day Three of the Transportation Research Board’s annual conference. Interested in pavement composition and performance? There are 200 workshops with your name on them.

If you’ve had your head stuck inside street design manuals or engineering guides – if you’ve been thinking at the level of the bulb-out or the bollard – I’ve got a present for you.

While governors debate raising (or eliminating) their states' gas taxes, buzz is building about mileage-based fees, or a vehicle-miles-traveled charge. A House provision to ban U.S. DOT from studying such a fee has gone away (along with its sponsor), while Rep. Earl Blumenauer is trying to get the Treasury Department to look into how it could work. And a new report from the Government Accountability Office says that would be a good idea.

Here's a transportation funding idea that aligns incentives nicely: taxing parking lots to pay for transit.