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Written by

Michael Russell

Published on

September 25, 2015

Good afternoon. Here are a few curated stories we’re reading and talking about this week.

 

Members-only stories

How to use performance measures: Performance measures for members, part IV
Performance measures should be used to prioritize and account for public spending and, through this, demonstrate to the public that their dollars are being used wisely. There are four ways to deploy performance measures: 1) create a dashboard, 2) prioritize projects, 3) optimize investments and 4) check on the performance of past investments.

From the T4A blog

Pilot program to support smart planning around new transit lines will benefit 21 different cities
It’s important that communities make the best use of land around transit lines and stops, efficiently locate jobs and housing near new transit stations, and boost ridership — which can also increase the amount of money gained back at the farebox. 21 communities today received a total of $19.5 million in federal grants from a new pilot program intended to do exactly that.

How can MPOs and citizens better engage with each other?
Building on the range of new ideas for metropolitan planning organizations outlined in our Innovative MPO Guidebook, join us on September 30, 2015, at 3 p.m. EDT for the fourth webinar in our series as we address a common complaint from both metropolitan planning organization (MPO) staff and citizen activists: how to best engage one another to shape the regional planning process.

Headlines

House lawmakers push to increase transit tax break
The Hill
“With 2.7 million commuters using the transit benefit to get from home to work, Congress should take action to ensure that riders of public transportation are provided with the same benefits as other commuters,” the lawmakers, lead by Reps. Dan Lipinski (D-Ill.) and Pete King (R-N.Y.), wrote in a letter to leaders of the House Ways and Means Committee.

Is Uber’s ultimate goal the privatisation of city governance?
The Guardian
This continual growth – new services, new regions, new markets – has many wondering about Uber’s ultimate goals. Uber is flush with cash, explicitly expansionist across the globe, and engages in strong-arm politics. Its goals, and its methods for achieving them, will make an impact.

Former Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour says highway bill needed to boost economy
The Clarion-Ledger
“We should be focused on transportation infrastructure, not just for the construction jobs, but for the economic competitiveness it gives us and all of the jobs that accounts for in the economy,” Barbour said. “This is about global competitiveness… A big part of this is about economic growth.”

House Dems: We Won’t Support a Transpo Bill That Cuts Bike/Ped Funding
Streetsblog
House Democrats won’t stand for any cuts to federal funding for walking and biking infrastructure. That was the gist of a letter signed by every Democratic member of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee last week.

VP Joe Biden In Detroit Linking Mass Transportation To Breaking Cycle Of Poverty
CBS Local Detroit
Citing a Harvard study as to the best way for populations to break the cycle of poverty — Biden said: “It’s not early education, it wasn’t other things … they wrote transportation is the single strongest factor in the changes that someone can move up the economic ladder.”

Bonus: Check out these cool parklets from PARK(ing) Day 2015 – Streetsblog

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