Gannett “uncovers” the fact that federal transportation dollars are given out to states with little accountability for how the money is spent. (LoHud.com)

Does MAP-21 mean big changes for freight in the U.S.? (Tri-State Transportation Campaign)

Apathy from lawmakers could be the reason that the pretax transit benefit could get slashed in half come January 1. (Politico)

Traffic fatalities reach record low as pedestrian fatalities rise. Relatedly, 12 pedestrians were struck in a suburban D.C. county in less than 72 hours. Two died. (Governing, Washington Post)

Politico’s Adam Snider reports that “Rep. Steve LaTourette, at a private transportation meeting yesterday with stakeholders and staffers, said House leaders had approached Transportation & Infrastructure Chairman John Mica to suggest paring down the highway bill to two or three years, according to several sources at the meeting.” (Politico Morning Transportation)

A conservative think-tank writer says that the GOP plan for expanding oil drilling and depositing revenues in the Highway Trust Fund is a bad idea, though not necessarily for the reasons you might think. (National Review)

Despite what naysayers often suggest during state and local discussions over the policy, Complete Streets aren’t too expensive. (Streetsblog)

A former Montana DOT director and current gubernatorial candidate suggests that government should get out of the way of the private sector in regards to transportation. (Missoulian)

NYC DOT: Commuter Biking in NYC Doubled in Last Four Years. (Transportation Nation)

Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell outlines his transportation plan, including increasing transportation’s share of the state sales tax. Not mentioned in this article is a fact mentioned at the same conference: Virginia will be out of money for new capacity and focused 100% on maintenance within 5 years if no new revenue is found. (Bloomberg)

Public transit ridership continues its upward trend with a 2 percent increase in third quarter compared to 3Q last year. Agencies still planning fare increases and service cuts. (USA Today)

Former MassDOT vet believes that America should move to a per-mile road tax, believing that new technology can help “open the door” to more investment and smarter roads. (CNN)

A bipartisan group of House members sent a letter to the President asking him to help move a long-term reauthorization with between $400 and $600 billion for transportation investment, taking a few subtle shots at the Senate’s two-year reauthorization plan. (The Hill)

Michigan Rep. Gary Peters suggests that postwar America can teach today’s America a lesson about investing in transportation (and transit specifically) to help grow our economy and put us on the path to prosperity. (Detroit Free Press)

The controversial Columbia River Crossing, a multi-billion dollar bridge replacement in Portland for Interstate 5, crossed a crucial federal hurdle. The state is looking to the feds to pick up half the cost of the $3-billion-plus project. (The Oregonian)

Five former U.S. Secretaries of Transportation talked about the future of investing in America’s transportation system at an event sponsored by the UVA Miller Center here in Washington, D.C. (Miller Center, Streetsblog)

Kaid Benfield of NRDC profiles some  the winners of the EPA’s Smart Growth Awards that were selected this week, including T4 America partner Normal, Illinois. (Atlantic Cities)

Big changes loom on the horizon for TIFIA and the other federal credit programs that can help finance infrastructure. House and Senate may have different proposals, but TIFIA will likely make it into any final bill. (Transportation Issues Daily)

Sen. Claire McCaskill has offered a proposal to take money from the defense budget for Afghanistan infrastructure programs and redirect it to U.S. transportation infrastructure, likely into the Highway Trust Fund. (Huffington Post)

Walkability is a major selling point in the successful real estate markets surrounding New York City. (New York Times Real Estate)

The Senate’s MAP-21 transportation bill proposal would make some interesting, positive changes that could benefit rural residents. (Public News Service)

The gas tax stories continue to circulate. Grover Norquist is quoted again in a CNN story suggesting that there could be opposition to extending the gas tax when it expires in September, or a there could be a movement of states to opt out of paying it. (CNN)

And Ezra Klein examines the gas tax issue and its potential impacts on infrastructure spending. (Washington Post)

Should localities be able to change the speed limits on their local roads to make them safer without having to go to the state to ask for permission? (Seattle Times)

The FAA shutdown has been ended, at least temporarily. (Politico)

Streetfilms partners with NACTO to produce a short film about the phenomenal success of Capital Bikeshare in Washington, DC. (Youtube)

With the gas tax set to expire the same day as the latest SAFETEA-LU extension September 30th, Matt Yglesias at Think Progress points to comments from Grover Norquist that suggest its extension could be contested. (Think Progress)

BNA Transportation Watch reports that Sen. Baucus and the Senate Finance Committee have found a source for the $12 billion needed to fully fund the Senate EPW 2-year transportation bill. (Via our tweet, BNA is subscription only.)

The Raquel Nelson story continues. NPR examines some of the larger issues, namely the auto-centric design of suburbs not matching up with the lifestyle of many living in them who are walking and taking public transportation. (National Public Radio)

Who’s riding our intercity buses? The rise of the low-cost city-to-city carriers has driven much of the growth, and nearly 50% of all intercity bus travelers are age 18-25. (Transportation Nation)

Migration matters, but there’s more to determining the story of change in our cities, suburbs and boomtowns than just the numbers of people moving in or out of them. Aaron Renn explains. (The Urbanophile)

A writer based in Amsterdam examines some of the cultural attitudes about cars and biking between the two countries. (New York Times)

Flags are flying at half-staff today in Minnesota as the state marks four years since the Minneapolis I-35W bridge collapse and dedicates a memorial garden. (MinnPost)

Fueled by a combination of stimulus money, bond funds and low bids, an almost unprecedented explosion in big-ticket projects is happening across the Bay Area, helping to boost the economy. (San Jose Mercury News)

New Walk Score tools will provide a Transit Score in 30 U.S. cities, along with nationwide commute reports and more transparent data on the cost of a home based on location. (Jonathan Hiskes at Grist)

Through stimulus spending and a series of smarter spending decisions, the “T” in Boston finished in the black for the fiscal year. (Boston Globe)

The Metro-North commuter service is considering buying double-decker rail cars to help address the booming ridership on the New York area’s commuter rail line. (New York Times)

Americans are taking advantage of the “cash for clunkers” program to trade in their trucks and SUVs  (Detroit Free Press)

Arlington (VA) has secured $1.5 million in stimulus funds to buy hybrid buses, upgrading from a diesel-powered fleet.  (Washington Business Journal)

Southern California transit officials are stressing the need for additional transit options to reduce congestion.  (Press-Enterprise)

• 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)