Posts Tagged "transit"
With cities and suburbs clamoring to build new transit systems, a new book showcases creative financing approaches for getting them built
The demand for public transit is at its highest point in 50 years, and more communities then ever before are looking for funds to build and operate rail and bus lines. Despite the challenges posed by ideological gridlock in Congress, dwindling federal gas tax revenues, and the elimination of earmarks, many communities are finding creative ways to move ahead.
Is metro Atlanta vote a bellwether for transportation funding?
The Atlanta region soundly rejected a penny sales tax to fund $7.1 billion in new transportation improvements for the traffic-snarled region. Coming on the heels of the passage of MAP-21, a federal bill indicating a shrinking federal role in transportation funding, many wondered: Will metro regions and localities be able to bootstrap their way out of congestion and mobility woes? Was the failure of Atlanta’s transportation vote a bellwether for votes in other states and metros?
Atlanta transportation vote: “You pay it one way or another”
It took three tries in the Georgia legislature for metro Atlanta to win the right to vote itself a regional sales tax to fix its transportation woes, and another two years of a grinding political process to come up with a list of 157 highway and transit projects that just might do the trick. Now […]
Saving a transit system and turning the tide for the future of a mid-sized city
Last month, the citizens of Baton Rouge, LA, voted to raise their taxes to preserve and expand their struggling bus system. To pass it, churches, faith-based groups and local organizers teamed up with businesses and institutions. As we’ve seen in similar local measures, they won by explaining exactly what taxpayer money would buy, building a diverse coalition and getting out the vote.
House committee ignores broad opposition, decimates transit funding anyway
Hours after receiving over 5,000 letters and phone calls and a letter signed by more than 600 groups from an unbelievably broad spectrum, the House Ways and Means Committee ignored that broad, bipartisan opposition and went full speed ahead with their unprecedented plan to kill dedicated transit funding — ending the historic guarantee for dedicated funding for public transportation, leaving millions of riders already faced with service cuts and fare increases out in the cold.
Massive letter opposing House leadership attack on transit sent to Capitol Hill
As we mentioned yesterday, House Leadership and the Ways and Means Committee this week proposed an unprecedented attack on public transportation funding.
Visionary group in Montana tells us their rural transit success story
This group we visited with last week in Montana, Opportunity Link, received a welcome shot in the arm, announced just this morning: they received a $1.5 million grant from the Department of Housing and Urban Development as part of the 2011 Sustainable Communities regional planning grant program. 468 applications requesting more than $500 million in funding […]
With Congress in limbo, Michigan Governor Rick Snyder puts promising transportation ideas on the table
More state and local officials are coming to grips with the fact that they cannot wait for Washington to act on infrastructure investment and repair. After two years of short-term extensions, a new transportation bill may or may not happen in the next six months. From a vantage point closer to their constituents, local leaders […]
Transit benefit once again slated to be cut in half — tell Congress to move
Last November, we posted an action alert on the potential for millions of Americans to see the cost of their commute suddenly rise. Congress wisely chose to extend to $230 per month tax benefit for transit as part of the 2010 package extending the Bush tax cuts, continuing transit parity with the $230 deduction available […]
Today is the “Don’t X Out Public Transportation” day of action
15 events around the country today highlight the devastating impact of the House’s initial transportation proposal that would make a 35 percent cut to public transportation. Today is the “Don’t X Out Public Transportation” day of action to highlight the crippling impacts of the proposed 35 percent cut to public transit. The events are being held in 15 cities in cooperation with the American Public Transportation Association and a number of key partners to let Congress know that deep cuts mean Americans losing their jobs or their ability to get to their jobs, as well as groceries and essential services.
“Passengers” documentary features diverse voices on transportation
A newly-released documentary available both on radio and online surveys a variety of Americans about their perspectives on the nation’s public transportation system. “Passengers,” as the program was dubbed, aired on WAMU (D.C.’s NPR affiliate), a number of public radio stations in most major U.S. markets and nationwide on NPR World and NPR’s Sirius XM […]
Tell your story: 15.5 million seniors will have poor or non-existent transit access in 2015. How will it affect you?
By 2015, more than 15.5 million Americans 65 and older will live in communities where public transportation service is poor or non-existent. That number will continue to grow rapidly as the baby boom generation “ages in place” in suburbs and exurbs with few mobility options for those who do not drive. How will we address […]
Seniors and transit report generates widespread coverage and discussion
Last week, we released Aging in Place, Stuck without Options, documenting the more than 15.5 million Americans 65 years and older who, by 2015, will live in places with poor or non-existent public transportation. The report ranked metro areas according to the percentage of seniors projected to face poor transit access, and asked: How do […]
Nassau County Executive to privatize Long Island Bus system
In April, the Long Island Bus system in Nassau County, New York was on the verge of cutting bus service in half until a funding deal between state and local officials halted the reductions with an $8.6 million cash infusion. Now, with the temporary lifeline slated to end in December, Nassau County Executive Edward Mangano has announced his intention to privatize the system by 2012.
U.S. mayors say no to new revenue for transportation without reform
A supermajority of America’s mayors surveyed by the U.S. Conference of Mayors are clamoring for a reorientation in our nation’s transportation policy toward fixing what we have and investing in new options. Ninety-eight percent of mayors identified affordable, reliable transit as crucial to their city’s recovery and growth, according to a survey of 176 mayors […]
America’s infrastructure woes signal “life in the slow lane”
The dichotomy between anti-spending sentiment — which a majority of Americans identify with on a conceptual if not programmatic level — and the persistence of pressing infrastructure needs that require real money is the theme of a lengthy piece in this week’s print edition of The Economist, a publication known for its fiscally conservative bent. […]
High gas prices are fueling demand for broader transportation options
Demand for mass transit is surging everywhere as a result of higher gas prices, generating the need for 670 million additional passenger trips on transit systems. With the nation’s comprehensive surface transportation bill overdue for renewal, this ought to lend greater urgency to the need for robust investment in an array of options to ensure no one gets stranded or left behind.
Long Island Bus spared from drastic cuts — for the time being
A month ago, we noted that the Long Island Bus system in New York’s Nassau County was slated to cut service in half without a funding deal between state and local officials. Fortunately for the 33 million annual riders on the LI Bus, the New York State Senate on Friday announced an $8.6 million cash infusion to prevent these cuts.
New York’s Nassau County could cut bus service in half
Shrinking revenues resulting from the economic downturn has precipitated a crisis in transit funding all over the map. We’ve highlighted some of the painful service reductions at the local level, but also kept an eye on bright spots like St. Louis’ approval of a half-cent sales tax to restore and expand bus and light-rail. This […]
Transit advocates in Oregon and Montana take to the op-ed pages
A pair of op-ed pieces published in the past week illustrate a clamoring for action on a transportation bill that invests in the future and expands travel options for all Americans – and a resistance to the deep cuts some are championing in Washington. The head of a development firm specializing in green building and […]
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