As Congress is finally close to passing a transportation bill more than 953 days after it first expired, many places have charged ahead with transportation funding and construction and are taking steps to make those needed investments today. But will they be enough without the strong federal partner we’ve had for the last 50 years leading the way? That remains to be seen, according to this compelling new report from the Urban Land Institute

The House has not yet released the full text of a transportation bill proposal, but the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee has released an outline of the principles that will be included in the bill. We posted an analysis of the outline here. This is one in a short series of posts looking into some [...]

Thousands rallied last Friday at the Los Angeles City Hall to tell Washington to help speed up LA’s 30/10 Plan –- a plan to build 12 major local transit projects in 10 years rather than 30. The plan would spur economic growth and protect the environment, create 166,000 jobs, ease congestion, and reduce air pollution and dependency on oil.

Transportation secretary Ray LaHood responds to criticism from columnist George Will during his appearance at the National Press Club. (Streetsblog) Community opposition kills a planned highway expansion in Los Angeles. (Los Angeles Times) The American Lung Association looks at the country’s most polluted cities. (City Mayors)

When people think about Los Angeles County, images of high-speed subway lines extending to the sea and sleek light-rail cars passing through dense transit-oriented development are generally not the first things to pop into their heads. But thanks to the November 4 approval of Ballot Measure R – a half-cent sales tax increase expected to [...]

Despite a steep drop in gas prices over the past couple months, ridership on the Los Angeles Metro has remained at record levels. (Los Angeles Times — Steve Hymon)

The Los Angeles Times editorial board backs a ballot measure which, if passed, will bring the county sales tax up half a cent in order to fund various transportation improvements.

Taking inspiration from a recently-enacted law in San Francisco, a Los Angeles councilwoman is considering introducing legislation that would require employers to let workers pay for mass transit on a pretax basis. (Los Angeles Times — Steve Hymon)

Voters in Los Angeles County could decide in November to increase their sales tax by half a cent to pay for transit improvements — that is, if their Board of Supervisors gives them a chance to decide.