The Georgia Department of Transportation has been (finally) moving towards plans for a commuter rail line south from downtown through the southern suburbs to the city of Lovejoy. This week, they got some bad news from the Federal Transit Administration, according to the Atlanta Journal Constitution. But the most alarming nugget in the story was completely buried in the closing paragraphs of the story. “…DOT’s Intermodal Division has 23 employees handling rail, transit, aviation and waterways, in an agency of 5,400…”

A new deal between the state of Massachusetts and a transportation company will bring the state’s residents improved commuter-rail service and help reduce congestion in the region. (Providence Business News — Susan A. Baird)

California moves ahead with a proposal to extend Bay Area Rapid Transit service into San Jose with a $239 million spending plan. (San Jose Mercury News — Gary Richards)

Oklahoma Senator Tom Coburn blocks legislation to improve safety for the nation’s trains, objecting to the bill’s $14 billion price tag and a provision giving a funding boost to Amtrak. (Wall Street Journal — Christopher Conkey)

Detroit residents get their first look at an ambitious plan to connect the city and its suburbs over the next few decades with a network of light rail, commuter rail, and hybrid buses. (Detroit News — Tanveer Ali)

Two weeks after the tragic Metrolink crash in Southern California that killed at least 25 people, Los Angeles Times transportation writer Steve Hymon looks into some of the commuter rail agency’s biggest issues and says that it “gets little money and even less political respect.”

As the costs of flying and driving look less and less appealing, residents in Arizona are taking a second look at passenger rail, and a few proposals are gaining momentum as a result. (Arizona Republic — Glen Creno)