Posts Tagged "transit"
President Obama proposes $556 billion, six-year federal transportation program
President Obama released a budget for fiscal year 2012 this morning that includes a significant boost to our nation’s infrastructure and a long-overdue emphasis on options and accountability. The $556 billion, six-year proposal is an ambitious standout in a largely sober blueprint.
Proposed budget would gut transit spending, passenger rail funding
The budget proposal from the Republican Study Committee, which consists of 165 of the 242 GOP House members, released a week or so ago, calls for completely eliminating the main federal transit program, zeroes out Amtrak, cuts all funding for the metro system in the nation’s capital and slashes $2.5 billion in high-speed rail grants. Sign our petition objecting to this assault on public transportation funding.
President Obama calls for fixing 20th century infrastructure while building for the 21st
The theme of President Obama’s State of the Union address last night was winning the future, and investing in America’s infrastructure was an integral part of it. Other nations have outpaced our investment in roads and railways, and our own engineers have graded our infrastructure a “D,” he noted.
LA residents rally for transit, jobs and an economic boost for region
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.
Walk Score expands into Transit Score; housing plus transportation costs
An exciting new service launched this morning from our friends at Walk Score will help people all across the country find out how transit-accessible a home or a neighborhood is while gaining a better understanding of the true cost of buying a home — the cost of housing plus transportation. Starting today, when you visit Walk Score you’ll also get information about nearby transit options, commuting details, and the expected cost of housing plus transportation. Welcome to Transit Score.
America’s transit systems require $77.7 billion just to reach a state of good repair
Failure to keep up with regular maintenance and repair in many of our country’s public transportation systems due to tightened budgets is literally slowing us down, through longer commutes, unreliable service and reduced access, exacerbating the effects of a down economy and high unemployment. A study prepared by the Federal Transit Administration reveals chronic underinvestment in the nation’s transit systems and estimates $77.7 billion is needed just to rehabilitate what we already have.
American Conservative magazine “rails against the machine,” promotes alternatives to the automobile
William Lind, a respected figure in right-wing circles, is adamant that public transportation shouldn’t be politically divisive, explaining why in “Rail Against the Machine,” featured in this month’s American Conservative magazine — part of a special package on public transportation with contributions from a host of special authors.
New York Senator Chuck Schumer stumping for $2 billion transit aid bill
Last week, New York Senator Chuck Schumer, a top Democrat in Washington and influential policy player, spoke out forcefully in favor of the Public Transportation Preservation Act, a $2 billion lifeline for the nation’s transit agencies. The Act would provide emergency operating aid for buses, subways and other systems throughout the country and would give a significant boost to the tri-state region.
Atlanta-area transit system 14 days from shutting down, 2 million rides disappearing
Clayton County, one of metro Atlanta’s five core counties, will terminate all transit service in 14 days. The transit service, which provides over 2 million rides each year on buses “full to bursting” with riders, according to MARTA CEO Beverly Scott, will shut down service entirely, leaving the 50% or more of C-Tran riders with no regular access to a car stranded.
Transit grants out the federal door, but what about the cuts?
Secretary LaHood is (rightfully) touting the news on his blog this morning that the FTA met their deadline for distributing 100% of the transit grants from the stimulus package. That’s great news, but it should be accompanied by the sobering reminder that these public transportation systems that get people to work each day couldn’t use that money to keep from having to cut service at a time when it’s needed the most.
Transit riders in Atlanta face massive cuts, “wholesale restructuring” of service
Transit riders in Metro Atlanta will soon require a new system map, because the current map is about to be ancient history. Of course, this would only apply to those who still have a bus or train to wait for after MARTA potentially cuts a shocking 25-30 percent of all their service.
Cleaner buses can create jobs, improve the environment
A new study by Duke University illuminates the fact that thousands of green jobs are waiting to be tapped in transit bus manufacturing — if the federal government will make a sustained commitment to investing in public transportation. Jobs in and related to public transportation are some of the lowest hanging fruit in the push for green jobs, so what’s keeping the domestic manufacturing industry from ramping up?
Feds announce change to consider livability in funding transit projects
Following through on a policy change hinted at for much of 2009, Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood announced this morning that federal transit officials would begin considering expanded criteria as they select which transit projects to fund, focusing on livability and sustainability.
Conservatives and public transportation; join us for an upcoming debate
If you are not convinced that the need for transportation reform is an issue that transcends labels and partisanship, you’ll definitely want to join us for what should be an interesting online debate/discussion on Monday, December 7. A handful of experts from differing perspectives are going to discuss the viewpoints shared in a recent book by William Lind and the late Paul Weyrich called “Moving Minds: Conservatives and Public Transportation.”
Last week’s elections a net plus for public transportation
Last Tuesday’s election results were a win for public transit, although high-profile state and national races stole most of the headlines. According to the Center for Transportation Excellence, 72 percent of transportation ballot measures received voter approval on November 3. November’s ballot included seven measures in five states – Colorado, Indiana, Maine, Michigan and Ohio. […]
Bay Area bridge shutdown puts transportation network in the spotlight
Even in the San Francisco Bay Area, a renowned transit hub with higher than average rates of walking, biking and transit ridership, more than 280,000 vehicles cross the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge every day. It’s a critical artery connecting downtown San Francisco with the thousands of residents who live in Oakland and the surrounding suburbs. […]
It’s time to make the link between health and transportation
Most of the news coverage about what is happening in Washington compartmentalizes health and transportation, missing key connections between the two. This week, Americans from around the country will speak to their representatives, seeking to emphasize those links. The “health fly-in” will commence Thursday and is sponsored by Transportation for America, the American Public Health […]
Republican Senator says more transit = better health
Last week, an offhand comment by Republican Senator John Ensign about the link between health and transportation policy didn’t make the headlines, but it did make an interesting connection. Ensign was wrong in asserting that the United States has the highest life expectancy among developed countries when gun and automobile accidents are ignored. But he […]
California Supreme Court hands victory to local transit riders and providers
A recent California Supreme Court decision could restore billions in funding for public transportation in the nation’s most populous state. The Court’s ruling late last week upheld a lower court decision declaring the state’s $3.6 billion raid of public transit funds illegal and ordered that the money be returned to local transit providers.
Seattle opens new light rail system, residents get a new “Link”
Seattle opened a new light rail system this weekend, and it was a smashing success by all accounts. Ridership from the inaugural weekend was over 90,000, and the system is settling into normal revenue service today. Read all about it from fellow Streetsblog Network member Seattle Transit Blog, and check out a huge batch of photos from opening weekend in their Flickr group pool.