• Senate Democrats go to work on Climate Bill hoping to draw in all 60 votes. (New York Times)

• House lawmakers ignored one solution for reducing greenhouse gas emissions; public transit. (The Washington Independent)

• D.C. Metro’s red line continues to run slow as NTSB investigators continue probe. (Washington Post)

• Secretary LaHood breaks ground at Colorado’s $32 million highway and bike path (CNBC) repair stimulus project and plans on celebrating the unveiling of a new streetcar in Oregon later today. (Daily Journal of Commerce via Streetsblog)

• Could Midwesterners see high-speed rail before Californians? (AP)

• Protecting our climate and gaining more energy independence begins, and doesn’t end, with the climate bill making its way through Congress. (Reuters)

• The speed of spending federal stimulus dollars remains a contentious issue. (USA Today)

• Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Chairman James Oberstar looks to make his mark with the next transportation bill. (Congressional Quarterly)

• Members of the Senate’s Environment and Public Works Committee argue against looking at immediate transportation reform. (Streetsblog)

• House Rep. Edward Markey sees the climate bill getting signed before 2010. (National Journal)

• Driving numbers could be low again for the summer of 2009. (Wall Street Journal)

• DC’s Metro tragedy makes clear the need for repair work on America’s aging rail system. (New York Times)

• Some city officials say the distribution of stimulus funds favors small towns and rural areas. (Los Angeles Times)

• Representative John Mica, the ranking member of the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, discusses the new transportation bill. (PBS)

• Health researchers note that obesity and climate change have many of the same roots — including an auto-dependent lifestyle. (Grist)

• The unpredictable nature of climate change could have dangerous effects on our transportation system. (ClimateBiz)

• Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood asks for an 18-month extension on the current transportation bill, as Rep. James Oberstar releases an outline of a new one. (Wall Street Journal)

• Streetsblog breaks down Oberstar’s outline.

• A new study shows that sidewalks encourage walking and make us healthier.

For those readers brave enough to wade into 90 pages of policy detail, we know have Rep. James Oberstar’s full outline proposal for the next transportation bill. At a press conference to discuss the release this afternoon, John Mica, the Republican Ranking Member of the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, said that the bill will be “the most critical jobs bill before congress in the next year,” with Oberstar adding that there is “bipartisan unanimity to move ahead in the public interest.”

As we continue to read through these 90 pages, we’ll keep offering some thoughts on various pieces of the proposal and how they could impact the future of our transportation system.

UPDATED: The 11 a.m. press conference has been moved to 2 p.m., due to “House votes” according to Rep. Oberstar’s Twitter feed. In addition to posting the short 10-page document, we’ve also now included the full 86-page outline of the proposal.

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A 10-page summary of the transportation bill draft is out this morning from the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee. The bill outline, entitled the “Surface Transportation Authorization Act of 2009,” is available at right, alongside a second document that describes the myriad programs which being recommended for consolidation under the new bill.

Rep. James Oberstar, chairman of the T & I Committee, is holding a press conference in about one hour at 11:00 a.m. in which a more detailed, 100-page outline of the bill will be released. (Check back here for a link or download.) No word yet on how LaHood’s recommendation that the current bill be extended for 18 months will affect the legislation coming out of the House.

As we speak, our policy experts are diving into the bill to get all the good details and analysis — so stay tuned for more information throughout the day.