Friday’s Headlines

This is our last headlines roundup before our annual Christmas break, so let’s take a moment to take stock of all the things we want in our stocking this year:

1. A donation from our readers, which can be made by simply clicking the icon to the left.

Actually, that’s all we want for Christmas. Help us keep doing the work we do!

And now here’s the rest of the news:

• The Federal Transit Administration officially committed $1.2 billion to the Seattle area’s Lynwood light rail project (Seattle Times) and announced several smaller grants to help cities plan transit-oriented development:
  • Greenville County, S.C., received $355,000 from the FTA to study a rail line between downtown Greenville and nearby Mauldin. (Greenville News)
  • Portland, Ore., received $1.1 million to study two streetcar extensions. (Oregonian)
  • Charleston, S.C., received $880,000 to study bus rapid transit to Summerville, 23 miles away, with 18 stops in between. (Post and Courier)
  • The Niagra Frontier Transportation Authority received $880,000 to study expanding Buffalo’s Metro Rail. (WKBW)
  • Jackson, Miss., received $1 million to spur development along a five-mile State Street bus route. (WLBT)
  • Pinellas County, Fla., received $1.2 million for an 11-mile transit corridor connecting downtown St. Petersburg and beaches. (Florida Daily)
• Not that this will happen with Democrats set to take over the House next month, but a new Congressional Budget Office report on deficit reduction says eliminating the FTA would reduce federal spending by $87 billion over 10 years. To look at it another way, that’s $87 billion worth of transit projects that won’t get done, or that city and state governments will have to shoulder on their own. (Transportation Today)
• Washington Republicans are fighting Gov. Jay Inslee’s efforts to include light rail in a new bridge over the Columbia River connecting the state to Oregon. (The Columbian)
• An influential Georgia legislator is floating a tax on ride-hailing services as a way to pay for rural transit. (AJC)
• Phoenix is seeking input from commuters on its Transportation 2050 plan. (ABC 15)