Today’s Headlines

  • California releases its detailed plans for statewide high-speed rail (SMC Times)
  • Massachusetts governor fires back at Oberstar’s critique of how fast/well the state is spending its stimulus money (Globe)
  • Mysterious fires on transit buses attract attention in Atlanta (AJC)
  • Louisiana Republican joins Democrats in urging Gov. Bobby Jindal (R) to reconsider his change-of-heart on high-speed rail — here’s the first chapter in the story (Nola.com)
  • Lagging transportation construction helps drag down economic indicators in manufacturing (Bloomberg)
  • European Commission to get behind a small, but perhaps groundbreaking, carbon tax (WSJ)

ALSO ON STREETSBLOG

APTA: How to Talk to a Detractor of High-Speed Rail

By Ben Goldman |
Stop me if you’ve heard these before: “Most Americans don’t use railroads, they use cars.” “There’s no better example of excessive government spending than the $53 billion President Obama allocated for high-speed rail in his 2012 budget.” “Would you pay $1,000 so that someone — probably not you — can ride high-speed trains 58 miles […]
Lyon HSR station

How France Makes High-Speed Rail Stations Meld With Cities

By Jeff Wood |
As France develops its high-speed rail network, the areas around stations are treated not just as transportation initiatives but as city-building projects. This discussion centers on how public agencies plan high-speed rail station areas in France, integration of the stations into districts as a whole, and the importance of a comprehensive vision for integrating transportation and land use in the station district.

New Report Maps a High-Speed Rail Link For Every Major U.S. City

By Elana Schor |
(Image: U.S. PIRG) Now that the Obama administration has awarded $8 billion in high-speed rail grants to more than two dozen states, with $2.5 billion more coming soon, why not keep thinking big when it comes to bullet-train expansion? That’s the ethos of a new report released today by the U.S. Public Interest Research Group […]

General Electric Inks High-Speed Rail Deal With Chinese Government

By Elana Schor |
While President Obama grappled with political concerns during his trip to China this week, General Electric was busy signing technology-sharing agreements with Beijing partners — including a high-speed rail pact that positions GE to leap ahead of its competitors in the race for business from the Obama administration’s bullet train rollout. One of China’s high-speed […]