Today’s Headlines – 3/15/10
March 15, 2010By Sean Barry
Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood, a Republican and former Congressman from Illinois, weighed in on behalf of health-care reform. (Chicago Tribune)
Air pollution in California contributes to $193 million in hospital costs, according to a Rand Corporation Study. (Green Inc.)
The San Francisco Bay Area could serve as a test case for using local fuel fees to fund transit. (NYT)
A proposed ban on Congressional earmarks toward for-profit companies would not reach many district-level transportation projects. (Hill)
And, the Washington Metro faces more tough budget choices in the weeks ahead. (WP)
Today’s Headlines – 3/12/10
March 12, 2010By Sean Barry
Oregon Senator Jeff Merkley introduced a companion bill to the Active Community Transportation Act, and he joined the Congressional Bike Caucus too. (BikePortland)
Officials in the San Francisco Bay Area want statewide transportation funding restored. (Chronicle)
There is a lot to like about a potential compromise on climate legislation, but where the revenue goes remains a key sticking point. (TNR)
Barbara Boxer, chair of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, would “rather have my bill,” but is open to an alternative. (MotherJones)
Build America Bonds, meant to jump-start infrastructure projects, could be extended an additional 18 months. (BusinessWeek)
And, Transportation for America Director James Corless co-authored an op-ed in the Sacramento Bee today, making the case for a broad national transportation vision. (SacBee – subscription only)
Join us TODAY for a national call-in day for walking and biking
March 11, 2010By Stephen Lee Davis
| Tell your Rep to support this bill: Make a call |
Monday, we told you about a new bill in Congress from Rep. Earl Blumenauer that would help cities large and small begin to build complete active transportation networks, making it easier and more attractive to get around on foot or on bike, and most importantly, helping stem the tide of the 76,000 preventable pedestrian deaths over the last 15 years. We asked you to send a message to your Representative, and you didn’t disappoint, with thousands of messages going to offices representing districts from coast to coast.
Today, along with numerous other partners like Rails to Trails, League of American Bikers, America Bikes, and America Walks, we’re asking all of our supporters to make a phone call to your Representative to support this new bill — the Active Community Transportation Act.
With the National Bike Summit in town this week, more than 700 advocates for safe walking and biking are visiting the offices of their congressional delegations today, asking them to sponsor this bill and letting them know about all the benefits of making it easier to safely get around on foot or on bike. We want to back them up and have all of our voices heard loud and clear in the halls of Congress today.
Increasing the number of people who can safely walk or bike will reduce congestion, help cut emissions, keep Americans healthier and keep those people out there already walking and biking safe. Let your representative know that you think this bill is a great idea for your community, and for America.
Today’s Headlines – 3/11/10
March 11, 2010By Sean Barry
The White House is reviewing tougher vehicle mileage targets and tailpipe standards. (Hill)
DOT employees could be compensated for this month’s unexpected furlough days. (WP)
Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood told the airline industry to “get on-board” with high-speed rail. (WSJ)
“Your street is fat,” one planner says of too many non-human-scaled Southern California roadways. (Grist)
And, in a reversal from previous legislation, a new House jobs bill is dominated by direct aid to America’s cities. (Streetsblog)
Today’s Headlines – 3/10/10
March 10, 2010By Sean Barry
A new coalition is petitioning for $74 million in added funding for the Washington Metro system in order to avoid new cuts and fare hikes. (WP)
Stimulus-funded purchases of energy-efficient lighting products for roads required a suspension of “Buy American” rules. (NYT)
Despite clocking in as relatively dangerous for pedestrians, metro Atlanta still has some great places to walk. (Journal-Constitution)
Entrenched subsidies continue to tilt the scales in favor of sprawl over cities. (Globe)
Train agencies in the San Francisco Bay Area are expecting hundreds of millions of funding from a regional set-aside in California’s high-speed rail bond. (Mercury-News)
And, high-speed rail in Europe helped with social cohesion, a more difficult task in the vast United States. (Brookings Blog)
People for Bikes
March 10, 2010By Stephen Lee Davis
Bikes Belong launched their new People for Bikes project last night at the National Bike Summit in Washington, D.C. I’d explain it in great detail, but why bother when you can watch this outstanding video instead? After watching, don’t miss their new website where you can share your story and sign their pledge. http://peopleforbikes.org
A reminder if you haven’t already, tell your Representative to support safer walking and biking by supporting the Active Community Transportation Act. We’re organizing a day of calls to Congress tomorrow, so check your email or follow us on Twitter for the details.
Today’s Headlines – 3/9/10
March 9, 2010By Sean Barry
Our friends at Environmental Defense Fund put tight transit budgets around the country in very concrete terms. (EDF Blog)
Federal investigators called for sweeping changing in a report on the safety of the Washington Metro system. (WP)
A national infrastructure bank would jump-start more projects, but put off the spending burden for a generation. (TransportPolitic)
Minority businesses are still receiving a disproportionately small share of federal stimulus contracts. (AP)
Paratransit riders would be hit the hardest by deep cuts in Sacramento. (News10)
And, a well-renowned expert on Detroit’s transit system died last week. (Detroit News)
Tell Congress: Get America back on its feet with investment in healthy transportation!
March 8, 2010By Stephen Lee Davis
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| s_walk Originally uploaded by Transportation for America |
In the last 15 years, 76,000 Americans have been killed while walking or simply crossing the street.
But help could be on the way. Rep. Earl Blumenauer introduced a bill last week to create a $2 billion competitive grant program to fund safe networks for biking and walking — giving states and cities the resources they need to start building projects they have waiting in the wings. This week, more than 700 bike advocates are descending on Capitol Hill to drum up strong support for the program while in D.C. for the National Bike Summit.
We need to back them up: Send a letter to your representative urging them to co-sponsor the Active Community Transportation Act (H.R. 4722).
This bill is a no-brainer. It will make America’s roadways safer, create jobs, reduce traffic congestion, cut emissions, and promote healthy living. It even pays for itself — as we make biking and walking safer and more accessible, we save billions of dollars on reduced healthcare, gasoline, and environmental costs.
And if we build it, they will come! Half of all trips taken in the United States could be accomplished with just a 20-minute bike ride, and a quarter are within a 20-minute walk. We need to make it safer and easier to make those trips on bike or foot. Polls have shown that Americans think their cities and communities should be more walkable.
Let’s get America back on its feet! Send a message to your representatives asking them to co-sponsor the Active Community Transportation Act.
Thanks to everyone who has already taken action today, retweeted the email alert, or posted it to Facebook to help us spread the word.
Transit grants out the federal door, but what about the cuts?
March 8, 2010By Stephen Lee Davis
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| Park and Ride Ribbon Cutting Originally uploaded by WSDOT |
Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood is (rightfully) touting the great news on his blog this morning that the Federal Transit Administration met their ambitious deadline for distributing 100% of the transit funds 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 largely couldn’t use that money to keep from having to cut service at a time when it’s needed the most.
The FTA has now doled out 881 grants totaling $7.5 billion since the stimulus was signed last year, and LaHood notes that these grants have funded the purchase of nearly 12,000 buses, vans and rail vehicles; construction or renovation of more than 850 transit facilities; and $620 million in preventive maintenance to keep systems running smoothly.
But what about the hundreds of agencies cutting back service, raising fares, or laying off workers — like the terrible story from Atlanta we chronicled last Friday, where 25-30% of all service may be history come June?
Unfortunately, the FTA’s hands were tied with the rules for the grants set by Congress, which meant that almost all of the money had to be used to purchase new equipment or perform maintenance, even if those agencies couldn’t afford to hire or train the new drivers to operate the buses or railcars. We say “most of the money,” because a group of lawmakers were able to successfully include a provision in a separate bill during the summer that made it possible for local transit agencies to spend up to 10% of their transit stimulus money on operations. But in many places like St. Louis, where the deficit was ten times the $4.6 million they could now spend on service, that’s not enough to keep from having to make drastic cuts or lay workers off, even while getting an influx of federal money.
With a full transportation bill likely months away, in the short term we need to urge the Senate to include money in any future jobs bills to help keep transit systems running.
With millions who depend on these systems each day to get to work, making sure that reliable transit service doesn’t disappear will help get them to their jobs quickly and conveniently each day, ensuring that many of them stay employed.
Today’s Headlines – 3/8/10
March 8, 2010By Sean Barry
Sacramento Regional Transit in California’s capital faces a $13 million shortfall, potentially cutting service on weekends and evening hours. (News10)
The stimulus bill has funded the purchase of nearly 12,000 buses, van and rail vehicles and the construction or renovation of more than 850 transit facilities. (DOT Blog)
New Jersey transit is likely to raise bus and train fares by a whopping 25 percent. (Star-Ledger)
Commuters in Charlotte, North Carolina could also face a 25 percent hike to stem service cuts. (Observer)
And, bicyclists should not just demand safety in Florida’s cities, but step up to make it happen. (Miami Herald)
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- Transit grants out the federal door, but what about the cuts?
March 8, 2010 - Transit riders in Atlanta face massive cuts, “wholesale restructuring” of service
March 5, 2010 - Opposition to Senate extension results in looming shutdown of federal transportation programs
February 26, 2010 - T4 jobs proposal would create nearly half a million jobs, according to Economic Policy Institute
February 17, 2010 - Obama’s 2011 budget gives a lift to livability and transportation
February 2, 2010
- Transit grants out the federal door, but what about the cuts?
The United States of Transit Cutbacks
Driving is down and transit ridership is at record highs. Yet transit agencies across the country are considering layoffs, service cuts and fare hikes. Find out more and learn what you can do to help at t4america.org/transitcuts
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