Drop in driving growth is likely permanent, FHWA acknowledges, compounding the threat to transportation revenues
Following years of the gas tax losing its value due to inflation and a vehicle fleet becoming more efficient, a federal transportation agency has finally issued a more realistic projection of future driving that ensures that today’s gas tax won’t be a sustainable funding source for transportation investment.
Second proposed performance measure from USDOT makes some important improvements
You may have missed it amidst the flurry of holidays and the beginning of a new year, but after a long wait, the Federal Highway Administration finally released the second of three proposed rules to measure the performance of our nation’s transportation investments. Unlike the first proposed rule for safety, the news is much better this time around.
Last-minute budget deal holds good news for the safety of all who use our roads
In a rare weekend session, the U.S. Senate finally passed the FY2015 Omnibus Appropriations Act, sending it to the President and avoiding a government shutdown. Buried deep within the legislation, was a simple paragraph enacting a proposal that Transportation for America and many others have long advocated for.
Transportation for America’s year in review
As 2014 draws to a close, we are taking a look back at our five most popular posts over the last year.
As Michigan legislators race the clock on a transportation deal, other states plan initiatives
We tapped a nerve in November with the Capital Ideas conference in Denver. More than 30 states sent representatives – some of whom went right back to their states and got to work helping their communities make progress.
Three metro planning leaders help make T4America’s MPO guidebook launch successful
Transportation planning is hot, hot, hot! Or so it would seem, after more than 700 people registered for last week’s online seminar to launch The Innovative MPO, a guidebook for metropolitan transportation planning.
Budget compromise keeps highways and transit steady, cuts TIGER
The $1.01 trillion spending agreement reached by House and Senate negotiators on Tuesday night freezes highway spending at $40 billion while avoiding the big cuts to transit projects in the House proposal.
Who’s leading on transportation planning? Find out in ‘The Innovative MPO’
America today is a metropolitan nation: More than 85 percent of us live in metro areas large and small, and that makes planning for metropolitan areas more critical than ever.
GOP Rep. Petri joins bill to raise the federal gas tax
The Highway Trust Fund, our nation’s key infrastructure funding source, has been teetering on the edge of insolvency for the past few years, with legislators from both parties unable to secure a long term funding source.
House bill extends transit benefit through 2014, leaving permanent extension in doubt
Transit commuters would get two weeks’ worth of additional tax benefit under a House bill introduced yesterday.
Northeast Ohio plans ahead for a new network of transportation options
How can a place like the Cleveland region attract and retain talented young people, and how can good transportation options help? That was a core question posed to our Beth Osborne when she was invited to keynote a multimedia event dubbed “Cleveland Connects: Getting Around”.
Metro areas on the cutting edge of transportation planning: Introducing The Innovative MPO
On Dec. 10, Transportation for America will release a one-of-a-kind guidebook showcasing leading-edge approaches to regional transportation planning, called “The Innovative MPO.” We will launch it with a webinar the same day, open to all. To learn more and register, click here. In this post, we provide a preview of the kind of topics you’ll encounter in the guidebook.
Join us as we unveil “The Innovative MPO”
Join us for the launch of The Innovative MPO. The last several years have seen a surge in innovative thinking and practice among MPOs nationwide, and their work has inspired a new guidebook to help MPO staff, board members, and civic leaders find innovative ways to make communities prosper.
T4America launches new state transportation network during ‘historic’ gathering in Denver
Representatives from 30 states – business leaders, legislators, local elected leaders, advocates and others – gathered in Denver’s historic Oxford Hotel and its newly reopened Union Station for our Capital Ideas conference to learn how states can raise money for smart, 21st century investments in transportation. Judging by the enthusiastic engagement over two days last Thursday and Friday, it felt like the start of something big.
UPS chief and other business leaders urge Congress to pass a bill that helps both commuters and freight
An editorial from the head of one of the world’s most important freight companies — based in the city where we hosted a policy breakfast on the same issue two weeks ago — puts a bright line under the importance of Congress updating our country’s outmoded freight policy in the next federal transportation authorization.
As funding battles loom in legislatures, Transportation for America launches network to support state efforts to fulfill visions for economic success
With representatives from 30 states convening in Denver for a strategy conference, Transportation for America today announced the launch of a new network to support state efforts to pass legislation to raise transportation funding while improving accountability for spending it.
Capital Ideas begins two-day look into what’s next for state transportation funding
This morning we kicked off our long-awaited Capital Ideas conference in Denver, Colorado. As the federal government continues to kick the can on addressing the insolvency of the Highway Trust Fund, more states are taking it upon themselves to secure stable transportation funding and ensure the money is spent wisely.
With GOP victories, SAFETEA-LU team in line to chair Senate committees
With last night’s election, both the Senate and House will see leadership changes in key transportation committees. With the nation’s transportation funding source running near empty and the current law, MAP-21, expiring in the spring, these new committee leaders will have an opportunity to make an impact in the very near term.
Important transportation ballot measures decided yesterday
Though there were some significant defeats for promising transportation-related ballot measures yesterday, they continue to be approved at very high rates and a few key wins carry some important impacts for years to come.
Join T4America this Thursday to unpack the transportation ramifications of tomorrow’s elections
Voters will make decisions on November 4 that will resonate deep into the future. Join us Thursday as we provide the inside scoop on how the elections will affect MAP-21 reauthorization and ever-dwindling highway trust fund revenues, and how important state and local transportation measures fared.