Today’s Headlines

By Elana Schor
Dec 8, 2009

Obama administration officials put the kibosh on plans to use stimulus money on a pedestrian footbridge to the New England Patriots football stadium (AP)

Do lists of "shovel-ready" projects translate into quick transportation job creation? Not in the Michigan town of Jackson (Citizen-Patriot)

How can the Obama administration make sure local (especially urban) governments get a voice in the state-centric economic recovery effort? General revenue sharing, not seen since Nixon’s era, may be the answer (TNR’s The Avenue)

Florida’s high-speed and commuter rail investment bill clears the state House but faces steep challenges in the state Senate (AP)

Dallas and San Diego win $14 million in federal money for intelligent transportation systems that aim to manage congestion and provide real-time transit data (DOT Press)

Massachusetts to use $23 million in stimulus money and $11 million in bond revenue to build new parking garage near transit station (AP)

Spokane, Washington, joins the list of cities considering a new streetcar system (AP)

ALSO ON STREETSBLOG

The agencies that build this kind of infrastructure will have to account for its impact on the climate. Photo: USGS via Creative Commons

Advocates Score a Win for Climate Realism at U.S. DOT

By Angie Schmitt | Sep 27, 2017

The NRDC fended off a White House attack on an Obama-era rule aimed at documenting and forecasting the impact of state transportation policies on carbon emissions.

Inside Obama’s Transpo Budget: “Historic Increase” in Transit Funding

By Angie Schmitt | Mar 4, 2014

A few more details about the Obama administration’s proposal for a new transportation bill surfaced today when the president unveiled his 2015 budget proposal. The topline numbers came out last week and look good for transit, biking, and walkability. The White House’s four-year, $302 billion surface transportation plan proposes an “historic increase” in transit funding — […]

Well That Was Quick: Obama Disavows Mileage Fee Proposal

By Tanya Snyder | May 5, 2011

The Hill is reporting that the Obama administration has already sworn off a move toward a vehicle-miles-traveled fee. We just reported that an undated draft of the administration transportation proposal included the creation of an office to study the feasibility of implementing such a system to replace the traditional fuel tax. The Hill’s Keith Laing […]

Will Obama’s SOTU Pledge to Flex Executive Power Extend to Transpo?

By Tanya Snyder | Jan 29, 2014

Maybe it doesn’t matter what President Obama says in his State of the Union. According to a Washington Post analysis, his batting average for last year’s SOTU proposals was a .208. In 2013, the president pleaded for tax reform, an American Jobs Act, $50 billion for a Fix-It-First infrastructure repair binge, a “Partnership to Rebuild […]

Obama Administration Sends Transportation Bill to Congress

By Tanya Snyder | Apr 29, 2014

The Obama administration today sent Congress its proposal for a multi-year transportation bill, which it’s calling the GROW AMERICA Act. The bill, based on the budget proposal President Obama released two months ago, relies on corporate tax reform to raise $87 billion to fill the hole in the Highway Trust Fund. The four-year bill would cost $302 billion. […]

SOTU: Is Obama Retreating on Infrastructure?

By Angie Schmitt | Jan 25, 2012

Being an election year, last night’s State of the Union Address carried an extra bit of gravity, at least according to the favored media storyline. Transportation observers watched this speech with interest, because in past years Obama has made infrastructure spending a centerpiece. This year however, those straining their ears for word of some dynamic […]