Today’s Headlines

By Elana Schor
Apr 12, 2010

LaHood hits upstate New York to talk up the potential future of local high-speed rail (Roch Biz Jrnl, RocNow, EmpireStateNews)

Passage of new sales tax to fund transit sparking recriminations among St. Louis tea partyers (Post-Dispatch)

U.S. DOT pledges $200 million for the cross-Hudson River transit tunnel (Star-Ledger)

Local crackdowns on distracted drivers touted as the start of a nationwide trend (Post-Standard)

The home buyer’s tax credit may be on its last legs in Congress … (The Hill Blog)

… as its members return to Washington for a make-or-break attempt at climate legislating in the Senate (The Hill Blog)

Pennsylvania state GOP lawmaker proposes a package of solutions to close the transport funding gap opened by the federal rejection of new tolls on I-80 (Prog. RR’ing)

L.A. transit agency strikes deal to install natural gas fueling stations for buses (CEFC Press)

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How Much Operating Aid is Your Local Transit Agency Getting?

By Elana Schor | Jun 26, 2009

President Obama has signed into law a $106 billion war funding bill that includes a provision allowing local transit agencies to spend 10 percent of their stimulus money on operating costs. That sounds good … but how much money are we actually talking about? According to the Federal Transit Administration (FTA): St. Louis’ Metro system […]

The Good Problem With Housing Near Transit: It’s Almost Too Popular

By Elana Schor | Oct 1, 2009

Local officials are catching on to the power of transit-oriented development to transform quality of life while decreasing congestion, as my colleague Ryan Avent has explored. But now that the federal government is starting to explore how to expand transit-accessible housing, an intriguing problem is arising: it’s almost too popular. Transit-oriented development in Jersey City, […]

In Atlanta, X Marks the Spot for Local Protests Against Transit Cuts

By Elana Schor | Apr 20, 2010

One of the transit buses marked for today’s Atlanta protests. (Photo: AJC) A week of protests against local transit cuts and fare hikes began today in Atlanta, where union members painted large red Xs on buses and rail cars that would go out of service under a plan to end service on about 30 percent […]

Does Transit-Oriented Development Work Even Without Transit?

By Elana Schor | Jan 8, 2010

Yes, says urban planner Neil Payton. From his guest column today on Reconnecting America’s blog: Denver’s light rail, in the background, ended up increasing the value of nearby homes. (Photo: Denver Post) Either [local planners] view [transit access] as too distant a possibility to factor in or, ironically, they view rail transit as a means […]

Terrible bus stops like this one make it hard to convince people to use transit.

Analysis: Fed Support for Transit Would Increase Equity

By Yonah Freemark | Aug 27, 2021

Under funding public transportation causes low-quality service and low ridership. It also forces people with low incomes to buy cars and encourages increased carbon emissions. Additional federal transit operations support could improve mobility access for communities nationwide.

Brown Offers Senate Plan For More Federal Operating Aid to Local Transit

By Elana Schor | Mar 16, 2010

Local transit officials seeking more federal operating aid during lean budgetary times got a new ally today in Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH), who introduced legislation in Congress’ upper chamber to give rail and bus agencies more flexibility to spend funding from Washington on averting service cuts and layoffs. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) (Photo: Partnership for […]