Stories worth reading – October 15, 2015
Good afternoon. Here are a few curated stories we’re reading and talking about this week.
From the T4A blog
USDOT proposes to remove restrictive design guidelines that make safer streets more difficult to build
The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) took an encouraging and surprising step today that will make it dramatically easier for cities and communities of all sizes to design and build complete streets that are safer for everyone by easing federally-mandated design standards on many roads.
Announcing a new academy for local leaders who want to dig in on performance measures for transportation
In partnership with the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA),T4America is announcing a new yearlong training academy for metro regions that are hoping to learn more about the emerging practice of performance measurement, and applications are open now.
Headlines
Poll: 70 percent of US residents want more road funding
The Hill
Seventy percent of U.S. residents want Congress to increase the amount of money it spends on transportation projects, according to a new poll released on Tuesday by the AAA auto club. The finding comes as lawmakers are facing an Oct. 29 deadline for renewing federal infrastructure spending. The AAA poll showed 70 percent of U.S. residents think “the federal government should invest more than it does now for roads, bridges and mass transit systems.”
Larry Summers: Fixing America’s roads would essentially pay for itself
Washington Post
There are many compelling arguments for increasing American infrastructure investment. Capital costs are exceptionally low. Construction labor is highly available. Materials costs are low as commodity prices have fallen. Investment is low by historic standards. Investing today relieves the burden of deferred maintenance for future generations. Here is another one. Maintaining our infrastructure directly benefits American families and businesses because with fewer potholes they have to spend less maintaining their vehicles.
A small city embraces walkability and reverses decline
Congress of New Urbanism
After three decades of 20th century population loss and commercial decline, Birmingham, Michigan, committed to building a new identity: “The Walkable Community.” Now, thanks to forward-thinking planning across multiple sectors, the city has grown steadily since the turn of the millennium—even in the midst of economic decline across its region.
Lyft’s Search for a New Mode of Transport
MIT Technology Review
How Uber’s archenemy plans to make the world a better place by building a kind of public transit system from private cars.
Learning to ride mass transit equals independence for older people
Washington Post
“Transportation comes up as a high-priority area because if you want older people to live and thrive in their communities, they must have good transportation,” Virginia Dize, co-director of the National Aging and Disability Transportation Center, said.
Salt Lake City Wants to Put Buildings In the Medians of Its Extra-Wide Streets
Gizmodo
This last part is the most interesting piece of this concept: Instead of trying to procure potentially expensive real estate to build housing or public space, medians already belong to the city. In essence you’d be taking land that was once allocated to cars—or oxen and carts, if you will—and giving it back to the people.
Boston Transit Goals Include Addressing Transportation Inequality
Next City
According to Boston radio station, WBUR, the plan calls for public transit options located within 10 minutes of every home, a reduction of traffic deaths in the city, and on-times service 90 percent of the time.