Transportation

The cost of CA's high speed rail system has doubled, but Gov. Brown has shown his faith in the authority in charge of the 800-mile system by asking the legislature, many of whom oppose HSR, to release bond funds the voters approved three years ago.

November 12, 2011 - Los Angeles Times: Environment

The two-year transportation Senate bill would mean improved infrastructure, jobs, and state-level flexibility. And as far as both parties are concerned, it's a winner.

November 12, 2011 - NPR

Citing the city's need for private dollars to contribute to $810 million in road improvements, developers of one residential development has indefinitely shelved its plans.

November 12, 2011 - Capital Business - The Washington Post

Sacramento Superior Court Judge Michael Kenny ruled against the CA High-Speed Rail Authority in a lawsuit brought on by the cities of Palo Alto, Menlo Park to stop the train running through their communities.

November 11, 2011 - The San Jose Mercury News

A transportation engineer sent Charles Marohn a video to prove how walkable his "diverging diamond" overpass design is. Marohn overdubbed his not-so-flattering reply.

November 11, 2011 - New Urban Network

In Cincinnati, voters have defeated an attempt to block the city's new streetcar, which now will move forward and could be operational as early as 2013. The new streetcar will link downtown and the uptown district around the University.

November 11, 2011 - Sustainable Cities Collective

Mayor Villaraigosa plans to borrow against future Measure R money to fund one massive, two-year road improvement project before he leaves office.

November 11, 2011 - Los Angeles Times

Chicago aldermen have challenged the times at which the contentious parking fee would be enforced, namely in the early morning and evenings. Mayor Emanuel and his staff have responded, but, according to the Tribune staff, maybe not adequately.

November 11, 2011 - Chicago Tribune

To maintain current transportation spending levels in the new reauthorization bill, Speaker Boehner is proposing a bill to fill the shortfall from projected federal gas tax revenues with the royalties expected from new oil and gas drilling.

November 10, 2011 - The Washington Post: Ezra Klein's Wonkblog

Metra, Chicago's regional rail provider, has announced that it will increase fares starting in February 2012. For over 300,000 weekday riders, the price increase will mean hundreds of dollars more in fares per year.

November 10, 2011 - World Socialist Web Site

A passing of a a half-cent sales tax increase dedicated to transit in Durham County shows that voters are willing to invest for new public transportation options. This is the first step towards upgrading North Carolina's mass transit system.

November 9, 2011 - the transport politic

Factors such as age, labor costs, real estate, and construction all factor into why cities are paying more money for transit projects, but are still getting less on their return, writes David Lepeska for The Atlantic Cities.

November 9, 2011 - The Atlantic Cities

It's no coincidence that cities with proper streetcar networks are the most bike-friendly, and vice versa, according to Dan Malouff.

November 9, 2011 - Greater Greater Washington

It may comes as a surprise that the nation's most sought after free parking in residential neighborhoods is not reserved for the privileged who live there, allowing commuters and others to exploit this unpriced resource. This may end.

November 9, 2011 - New York Post

NYC Transportation Commissioner Janette Sadik-Khan gives a tour of the city's new bike lanes from the only logical vantage point - on a bike.

November 8, 2011 - The New York Times

A UC Berkeley traffic study shows dramatic reductions in travel time for all Bay Bridge traffic after tolls were restructured July, 2010, applying the region's first congestion charge and charging half price for carpools, ending their free passage.

November 7, 2011 - San Francisco Chronicle

The new $98 billion price tag and 2033 completion date in the revised HSR Authority's business plan applies to the first phase, meaning that the extensions to San Diego and Sacramento will take even longer, leaving some San Diegan leaders seething.

November 7, 2011 - AP via The Sacramento Bee

Politico recaps the findings of the two federal commissions authorized by the last transportation bill. While their findings are not hopeful, they do present a better outlook for a change 'down the road' - perhaps in a future authorization bill.

November 6, 2011 - Politico

With its revised business plan released Nov. 1 showing a dramatic increase in costs and time to build the 800 mile system, the Authority adopted its funding plan to a largely skeptical audience, many from the Central Valley where construction begins.

November 5, 2011 - Los Angeles Times

A startup is proposing a new way to incentivize alternative transportation choices by giving people the option each day to choose between cars, bikes and transit.

November 4, 2011 - Fast Company