The Energy Department awards $150 million in grants to innovative tech projects, many of them in the transportation sector (WSJ Blog) Rail companies, including Amtrak, are lobbying against a federal mandate to implement the safety program known as "positive train control" (WSJ) Uh-oh: Philadelphia transit workers may start their strike during the World Series (AP) […]

The transportation security fallout from Christmas Day plane-bombing attempt (NYT) Transit saw a 3.8 percent drop in ridership during the first 9 months of 2009 … (NYT Blogs) … but not in San Francisco (SF Gate) Siemens among the manufacturers poised to drive a future U.S. high-speed rail boom (Reuters) While the Obama administration pushes […]

Former Arizona DOT chief Victor Mendez confirmed to head the Federal Highway Administration (JOC) Federal safety board tells D.C. its Metro system needs upgraded safety monitors, post-crash (WaPo) The U.S. Chamber of Commerce gets behind a gas-tax increase to fund transpo … (Roll Call) … but AASHTO, the state DOTs’ lobby group, can’t seem to […]

Republicans on the House transportation committee warn that a federal role in transit safety oversight may not translate into fewer injuries on railways (Mica Press) As the Obama administration takes on rail transit safety, the NTSB moves forward on passenger bus safety (AP) Was Obama flip-flopping when he admitted that what’s "shovel-ready" isn’t always the […]

House Dems continue a growing drumbeat in favor of infrastructure investment to create new jobs … but the funding question remains unanswered (WSJ) Texas Republican gubernatorial foes Hutchison and Perry trade jabs over transportation funding (News Messenger) A new poll with an eye-rolling setup: 6 in 10 people think transit and carpooling are good for […]

Streetsblog noted a strangely narrow debate over electrification at this week’s Senate hearing on climate change — but interesting economic themes emerged as well. Here’s a rundown (WSJ) Transit-oriented development plans run into resistance from banks, which are accustomed to offering commercial financing for parking-centric proposals (SL Trib) D.C. bus drivers mount a safety-centric rebellion […]