All posts from the month of January 2011
Today’s Headlines – 1/31/11
January 31, 2011By Transportation for America
Some Republicans are embracing the President’s proposed rail investment, at least in the Northeast corridor. (The Hill)
Buses were the fastest-growing mode of intercity travel in 2010. (USA Today)
The House transportation committee will hold listening tours in West Virginia, Philadelphia, Portland, Fresno and Rochester, among other stops. (Streetsblog Capitol Hill)
Peter DeFazio, a key House Democrat, said infrastructure is a needed and “enduring investment.” (Daily Astorian)
A pair of bills in the Virginia House would cripple Arlington’s livability efforts. (Streetsblog Capitol Hill)
And, mayoral contender Rahm Emanuel has plans to expand Chicago’s bike network. (Sun-Times)
Today’s Headlines – 1/28/11
January 28, 2011By Transportation for America
House transportation committee chairman John Mica praised the Northeast Corridor high-speed rail, but remains cool to other routes. (Streetsblog Capitol Hill)
Members of the Connecticut Congressional delegation are strategizing about how to preserve rail funding. (Hartford Courant)
Rahm Emanuel has been cleared as an eligible candidate for mayor of Chicago. (Tribune)
Channeling President Obama’s address, Geoffrey Anderson identifies a Sputnik Moment for smart growth. (Huffington Post)
The DC Metro system now has a permanent chief executive, former New Jersey Transit chief and current interim leader Richard Sarles. (WP)
And, a new upstate New York Republican has history in Portland and is “happy to look at” mass transit. (Streetsblog Capitol Hill)
Today’s Headlines – 1/27/11
January 27, 2011By Transportation for America
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce and AFL-CIO issued a rare joint statement in support of the President’s infrastructure push. (WP)
The House transportation committee got started on a bipartisan note, and will tackle aviation before surface transportation. (Streetsblog Capitol Hill)
Senate EPW chair Barbara Boxer said Congress needs take care of a new transportation bill “soon,” without doing further extensions. (Streetsblog Capitol Hill)
Boxer will meet House counterpart John Mica in Los Angeles after sitting next to him at the State of the Union. (Los Angeles Times)
Rahm Emanuel, fighting to remain an eligible candidate for Chicago mayor, has a very pro-transit set of priorities. (Transpo Nation)
And, Eric Jaffe outlines why cutting rail funding would hurt America’s transportation future. (Infrastructurist)
President Obama calls for fixing 20th century infrastructure while building for the 21st
January 26, 2011By Sean Barry
The theme of President Obama’s State of the Union address last night was winning the future, and investing in America’s infrastructure was an integral part of it.
“The third step in winning the future is rebuilding America,” the President said, after discussing his vision for innovation and education. Other nations have outpaced our investment in roads and railways, and our own engineers have graded our infrastructure a “D,” he noted.
President Obama rightly emphasized the need for a 21st century transportation system on top of fixing what we built in the 20th. He also pointed out that we create more jobs and greater opportunity when we embrace an array of transportation options. The transcontinental railroad, rural electrification and the Interstate Highway System did not just put Americans to work in construction, he said. Jobs also came from “businesses that opened near a town’s new train station or the new off-ramp.”
“We were thrilled to hear the President come right out and say that investment in transportation and other infrastructure is central to rebuilding and growing our economy,” said Transportation for America Director James Corless. “An upfront investment in the most needed, clean transportation projects is a great opportunity to create near-term jobs and lay the groundwork for the future economy.”
The President also reiterated his strong support for high-speed rail, with the goal of giving 80 percent of Americans access to the system within 25 years. “This could allow you to go places in half the time it takes to travel by car,” he said.
“For some trips, it will be faster than flying –- without the pat-down,” he added, to laughter.
Although he did not identify the program by name, President Obama endorsed the principles behind an infrastructure bank, saying we ought to “pick projects based (on) what’s best for the economy, not politicians.” And he vowed to harness private capital to help pay for new projects, a goal shared by House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Chairman John Mica, a Florida Republican.
A number of groups, including business and labor, hailed the President’s focus on investing in the future. U.S. Chamber of Commerce President Tom Donohue echoed Obama’s call for “a world class infrastructure” and called for “common ground to ensure America’s greatness into the 21st century.” ALF-CIO’s Richard Trumka said, “We strongly support the President’s vision on infrastructure to create good jobs and succeed in a global economy, and working people are ready to work with him and hold him to his promises.”
AASHTO, the trade group representing state departments of transportation, was “encouraged that President Obama supports investing in America’s transportation infrastructure – recognizing the role it plays in creating jobs, growing the national economy and balancing the federal deficit,” according to Executive Director John Horsley, who added that he looks forward to working with the Administration and Congress on a reauthorization bill.
The Equity Caucus at Transportation for America said that “smarter transportation investments can unleash the under-realized economic power of communities across America.”
T4 America echoes these sentiments, and we are especially pleased with the President’s dual commitment to job creation today and economic prosperity tomorrow.
“The President’s vision for infrastructure is not just about near-term construction jobs,” Corless said. “It is, as he said, about growing new businesses, livable neighborhoods and dynamic regions that can attract a young and mobile workforce and compete internationally.
“It’s about jobs associated with new transportation technologies and manufacturing modern transit vehicles, everything from real time information systems to make our highways and transit corridors smarter, to the new rail cars being built today by United Streetcar in Oregon that can breathe new life into our cities and suburbs,” he added.
You can read T4 America’s entire statement here. You can learn more about the Equity Caucus at Transportation for America and read their entire statement here.
Photo: AP
Today’s Headlines – 1/26/11
January 26, 2011By Transportation for America
Transportation groups, including T4 America and AASHTO, were thrilled with President Obama’s emphasis on infrastructure investment in last night’s State of the Union. (The Hill)
House transportation committee chair John Mica may face some uphill fights in his Republican caucus over new investment. (WSJ)
Mica sat with California Democratic Senator Barbara Boxer, his Senate counterpart on transportation, during the President’s speech. (San Francisco Chronicle)
Members of Congress from Illinois, Oregon, Minnesota, Michigan and New York weighed in. (Sun-Times, Statesman-Journal, MPR, Midland Daily News, North Shore Sun)
Top USDOT officials are previewing the Obama administration’s key proposals for a new transportation bill. (Streetsblog Capitol Hill)
And, New Jersey Governor Chris Christie is refusing to return federal funds for the canceled ARC tunnel project. (Transportation Nation)
America’s broadest transportation coalition applauds President Obama’s call to fix 20th century infrastructure while building for the 21st
January 26, 2011By Transportation for America
WASHINGTON, DC — In response to Tuesday’s State of the Union address, Transportation for America Director James Corless issued the following statement:
“We were thrilled to hear the President come right out and say that investment in transportation and other infrastructure is central to rebuilding and growing our economy. An upfront investment in the most needed, clean transportation projects is a great opportunity to create near-term jobs and lay the groundwork for the future economy.
“The President acknowledged that money will be tight and we have to make the best of use of it. That requires fixing the 20th century infrastructure – our crumbling roads and bridges – as we build out the infrastructure for the 21st. That certainly includes high-speed rail, but it also means helping communities get moving on long-planned networks of light rail, street cars, rapid buses, and making progress on road reconstruction to make our streets safe for people walking, biking and driving.
“The President’s vision for infrastructure is not just about near-term construction jobs. It is, as he said, about growing new businesses, livable neighborhoods and dynamic regions that can attract a young and mobile workforce and compete internationally. It’s about jobs associated with new transportation technologies and manufacturing modern transit vehicles, everything from real time information systems to make our highways and transit corridors smarter, to the new rail cars being built today by United Streetcar in Oregon that can breathe new life into our cities and suburbs. We eagerly await the ‘flesh on the bones’ that must come with the Administration’s proposal for the overdue, six-year transportation package, and the President’s continued leadership in ensuring that Congress adopts it this year.”
Today’s Headlines – 1/25/11
January 25, 2011By Transportation for America
President Obama’s expected push in tonight’s State of the Union for infrastructure investment faces political obstacles. (NYT)
Both business and labor groups are listening closely for details in the President’s speech. (The Hill)
Wisconsin Congressman Paul Ryan is expected to call for an end to “Washington’s spending binge” during the Republican response. (Politico)
Texas has relied heavily on federal Recovery Act funds to fill its budget hole, while Governor Rick Perry insists “we can take care of ourselves.” (Think Progress)
And, San Diego transit advocates are calling for a 50/10 plan, citing Los Angeles as an inspiration. (Streetsblog LA)
Tell President Obama to call for smarter transportation policy tomorrow night
January 24, 2011By Stephen Lee Davis
Since September 2009, Congress has passed one extension after another to the expired transportation law continuously punting difficult decisions about reforming the way we fund and build our transportation system. We’ve heard that President Obama is ready to change that and could be including a big push for a new transportation bill in tomorrow’s State of the Union address.
This bill is the single most important piece of legislation for surface transportation – from roads and bridges to rail and bike infrastructure. After more than a year of Congressional inaction, Presidential leadership could help make it happen. Help us make sure the President follows through – email his office today and tell him to make a bold statement in the State of the Union about transportation.
If President Obama is serious about passing transportation reform this year – his administration is planning to release a proposal with the budget in February – he needs to kickstart it with a strong call for action and a clear plan for reform in Tuesday’s address.
We need your help to make sure the message is clear: we need a new plan for the future. We need Presidential leadership in order to take a step forward with transportation, and we need to start now.
Today’s Headlines – 1/24/11
January 24, 2011By Transportation for America
President Obama will call for increased infrastructure investment in tomorrow’s State of the Union, and Republicans say they will oppose it. (WP)
Low interest rates on government borrowing make this an opportune time to pursue needed investment. (WP)
Some former transportation officials question the feasibility of Secretary Ray LaHood’s reauthorization bill timeline. (DC Velocity)
Fresno’s Republican mayor returned from Washington DC after seeking reassurances on high-speed rail funds. (ABC 30)
Several organizations have pointed to flaws in the Texas Transportation Institute’s congestion findings. (Infrastructurist)
And, transit pioneering and socially-conscious Portland is spoofed in a new show called “Portlandia.” (NYT)
So what do you want from transportation?
January 21, 2011By Stephen Lee Davis
We noticed that the folks at AASHTO are asking all their visitors to weigh in and “tell Congress” what they want to see in a transportation bill, and more broadly, what they think we need to be building and doing with our transportation dollars.
During the six-week campaign, people can use AASHTO’s Facebook page to post YouTube videos and written comments about their transportation priorities, ideas, and personal stories. Already a number of people have weighed-in on their concerns, from traffic congestion and safety, to high-speed rail and job creation through greater investment in transportation projects.
To view or post your comment, go to http://www.transportation.org/IToldCongress.
We like their idea and encourage you to weigh in with them.
As some of our polls and other groups’ polling have shown, Americans have a pretty good idea what we want to spend our money on. We want to have more options for getting around. Nobody wants to be stuck with only one way to get where they need to go. We need to do a better job of fixing what we’ve already got before we spend money on a lot of expensive new things. Travel should be safe, no matter whether we’re in a car, on a train or on foot or bike. Our communities need to have the power to build what we need to get us where we need to go.
-
- The more they see, the less they like: 10 reasons why opposition to the House transportation bill is growing
February 21, 2012 - Crucial amendment could improve Senate bill, restore local control and help make streets safer
February 14, 2012 - Oppose House bill that slashes public transit funding, falls short on repair and axes bike & pedestrian safety
February 7, 2012 - T4 coalition announces opposition to House energy and transportation bill
February 6, 2012 - House committee ignores broad opposition, decimates transit funding anyway
February 3, 2012
- The more they see, the less they like: 10 reasons why opposition to the House transportation bill is growing
Connect with T4 America
Interactive Features and Reports
T4 America on Twitter
