Proposal to fix bridges by taking away safety money won’t solve the problem
Senator Rand Paul (R-KY) got a lot of play in the media for joining President Obama in Kentucky last week and unveiling his own plan to prioritize bridge repair by taking away a tiny amount of funding that helps improve safety for people walking or biking and redirecting it to bridge repair. But Senator Paul’s proposal is built on a series of false premises.
Oklahoma mayor stands up for investing in infrastructure
Oklahoma City mayor voices his support for the President’s efforts to bring the condition of U.S. infrastructure into the spotlight. John Robert Smith, our T4 America co-chair and former Mayor of Meridian, Miss., is fond of saying that there are no Republican or Democrat potholes or bridges or roads. Fixing and updating our country’s transportation […]
President Obama’s Ohio visit again highlights the vast and growing need to address America’s aging and deficient bridges
President Obama’s visit to the Brent Spence Bridge bordering Ohio and Kentucky today calls much-needed attention to the urgency of bridge repair and rehabilitation throughout the country. Those needs are clearly visible in these detailed state-by-state reports and county level bridge data — including an interactive, searchable map of every deficient bridge in America.
Today is the “Don’t X Out Public Transportation” day of action
15 events around the country today highlight the devastating impact of the House’s initial transportation proposal that would make a 35 percent cut to public transportation. Today is the “Don’t X Out Public Transportation” day of action to highlight the crippling impacts of the proposed 35 percent cut to public transit. The events are being held in 15 cities in cooperation with the American Public Transportation Association and a number of key partners to let Congress know that deep cuts mean Americans losing their jobs or their ability to get to their jobs, as well as groceries and essential services.
In wake of Ohio River bridge closure, NBC Nightly News examines the sorry state of U.S. bridges
At least one person somewhere in the U.S. is driving over a structurally deficient bridge every minute, according to T4 America director James Corless in a report on the woeful condition of our nation’s bridges on NBC Nightly News Sunday evening. Watch the segment and learn more about our country’s bridges.
Closure of Ohio River Bridge Highlights Need for Robust Investment in Infrastructure
Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels’s prudent decision to close the 49-year-old Sherman Minton bridge over the Ohio River between Louisville, Kentucky and New Albany, Indiana last Friday after cracks were found in support girders, is powerful evidence that our country’s infrastructure needs cross both party lines and state lines and that we need strong federal investments in fixing our country’s infrastructure.
Correcting some misinformation on bicycle and pedestrian spending
Bike and pedestrian projects get less than 1.5 percent of federal transportation funding — despite recent misinformation to the contrary. There’s some misinformation percolating about the size of the transportation enhancements program — the small dedicated program that has funded projects to make biking and walking safer and more convenient for 20 years. Some misleading […]
Structurally deficient bridges and President Obama’s jobs bill
Last night after President Obama’s speech to Congress, attention turned to analysis of the speech and the President’s plan to take it on the road to the districts of key Representatives and Senators. Chris Matthews of MSNBC referenced Transportation for America and our data on structurally deficient bridges as an important part of making the […]
House appropriators make deep cuts to transportation for 2012
The House Appropriations Committee released their draft bill for 2012 spending in the transportation program, and the cuts are severe, with some key programs facing more of a reduction than others. The Transportation, Housing and Urban Development spending bill, or THUD, as its called, contained similar cuts for transit and road/bridge spending that we saw […]
700 days since expiration of last transportation bill, Congress urged to pass an extension
President Obama gave a short speech in the Rose Garden Wednesday calling on Congress to come together quickly to pass a “clean” extension of the federal transportation bill to ensure that there’s no interruption in federal funding for transportation projects while they debate a longer-term reauthorization. The clock starts ticking after Labor Day.
Photos of dangerous streets have been streaming in
After putting out the call far and wide for pictures of streets designed for speeding traffic at the expense of safe travel by people on foot or bike, we’ve been getting some great — and by great, we mean frightening and terrible — photos of inconvenient, poorly-planned, dangerous and downright hostile conditions for pedestrians. Here […]
Governor Cuomo signs Complete Streets legislation as New York Times surveys pedestrian safety in Orlando
NY Governor Andrew Cuomo’s decision to sign complete streets legislation is a step forward for pedestrian safety, though a Times report out of Orlando yesterday illustrates how much further we have to go. The status-quo for most people on foot or on bike around the country is woefully unsafe and insufficient, though perhaps nowhere more so than in Florida.
Raquel Nelson’s story may be rare, but the dangerous conditions are not — show us
Many of you were shocked by the story of Raquel Nelson, the single mom in Atlanta charged with vehicular homicide when her son was killed while crossing an unsafe street with her. While shocking, head-scratching stories like hers are thankfully rare, it’s emblematic of the road design in many places that we live, and we want to make sure that Congress gets that picture loud and clear. We want to show them that roads like Austell Road by Raquel Nelson’s apartment — 4 lane speedways with few considerations for pedestrians — are far too common. So send us your photos of dangerous, unsafe and poorly planned streets out there across America.
“Passengers” documentary features diverse voices on transportation
A newly-released documentary available both on radio and online surveys a variety of Americans about their perspectives on the nation’s public transportation system. “Passengers,” as the program was dubbed, aired on WAMU (D.C.’s NPR affiliate), a number of public radio stations in most major U.S. markets and nationwide on NPR World and NPR’s Sirius XM […]
Ensuring economic prosperity for the future by investing in transportation
We’ve fallen behind the world on investing in transportation and our physical infrastructure, but Building America’s Future lays out a clear path forward to help restore America’s prominence and lay a strong foundation for our economic future. Falling Apart and Falling Behind lays out the economic challenges posed by our ailing infrastructure, provides a comparative […]
Protect, don’t prosecute, pedestrians — Raquel Nelson seeking a new trial
The story of Raquel Nelson, the Atlanta mother charged with vehicular homicide when her son was killed while crossing a street with her, continues to make waves in the local and national media. It’s been a galvanizing story, as people across the country were shocked to see a grieving mother convicted and facing jail time […]
What does the debt ceiling deal mean for transportation?
With just hours to spare before the deadline, the House, Senate and President Obama have agreed (in principle) on an agreement to raise the debt ceiling. While the details of that agreement are circulating in the media, the implications for the ongoing efforts to reauthorize the transportation bill — as well as funding for current […]
Tell your story: 15.5 million seniors will have poor or non-existent transit access in 2015. How will it affect you?
By 2015, more than 15.5 million Americans 65 and older will live in communities where public transportation service is poor or non-existent. That number will continue to grow rapidly as the baby boom generation “ages in place” in suburbs and exurbs with few mobility options for those who do not drive. How will we address […]
T4 America will address Senate panel on senior transit access
Transportation for America Director James Corless will testify before a key Senate panel this week about the need for better and expanded transit options for seniors. The Wednesday hearing of the Senate Banking Subcommittee on Housing, Transportation and Community Development comes on the heels of T4 America’s recent finding that 15.5 million older Americans will […]
New York Complete Streets clears legislature, awaits Governor Cuomo’s signature
Complete streets legislation passed both the New York State Senate and Assembly unanimously this week and awaits Governor Andrew Cuomo’s signature. Once the legislation becomes law as expected, New York State will follow in the footsteps of hundreds of other states and municipalities that have already started prioritizing the needs of all users on their […]
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