The Senate Commerce Committee passed a package of bills to create and implement goals and objectives for the overall transportation bill, update our federal freight transportation policy, and an amendment to help ensure that federal dollars help build streets that are safe for all users. These bills (including others not mentioned) represent the majority of this committee’s contribution to the overall Senate transportation bill.

WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Senate Commerce Committee today adopted two key policy measures for the upcoming authorization of the federal transportation program. The “Surface Transportation and Freight Policy Act of 2011” establishes policy goals for the federal surface transportation program, such as addressing congestion, improving access to multiple travel options, supporting domestic manufacturing and reducing [...]

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.

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 [...]

Last week, we released Aging in Place, Stuck without Options, documenting the more than 15.5 million Americans 65 years and older who, by 2015,  will live in places with poor or non-existent public transportation. The report ranked metro areas according to the percentage of seniors projected to face poor transit access, and asked: How do [...]

In last month’s Dangerous by Design 2011 report, we documented the 47,000 preventable pedestrian deaths between 2000 and 2009, along with the 688,000 injured. This is equivalent to one American being struck by a car or truck every 7 minutes for the past ten years. The majority of these deaths occur on roadways that are dangerous by design — engineered for speeding traffic with little to no consideration for people walking, biking or using public transit. None of us should have to deal with losing a child, friend or loved one simply because they were walking in the wrong place at the wrong time.

With the echo of the latest pedestrian fatality figures still ringing, a city in the deep South became the latest, albeit unlikely, place to adopt a Complete Streets policy. To paraphrase the song: if it can happen there, it can happen anywhere. When people think of “infrastructure,” images of roadways and grids tend to come [...]

Yesterday’s release of the bipartisan Safe and Complete Streets Act of 2011 is an affirmative step toward ensuring the safety and convenience of America’s streets for everyone. H.R. 1780, sponsored by Representatives Matsui of California and LaTourette of Ohio, would require state transportation officials to consider the needs of pedestrians, bicyclists, transit riders and people with disabilities, as well as motorists.

In a program whose competitive and merit-based project selection should serve as a model for the next transportation authorization, the USDOT today announced 75 winners for $600 million in competitive grants for innovative transportation projects that address economic, environmental and travel issues at once.

Rep. Steve LaTourette (R-OH) probably learned the hard way earlier this year that safe, accessible streets for bikers, walkers and all users don’t tend to have any party affiliation, and he is to be commended for proving his support for complete streets by signing onto the House complete streets bill last week, becoming its first Republican cosponsor.