Transportation Policy
Basics
Bike Commuters Clean Up and Lock Up in Brisbane, Australia
From the Australian Bicycling Council comes word of a new amenity for bicycling commuters In Brisbane, Australia. Called cycle2city, it provides secure weekday parking and showers for up to 420 members, who will pay between $5 and $7 a day for the privilege of using the facility (that and other figures quoted here are Australian dollars, which are close to even in value with the US dollar these days).
July 8, 2008
Obama Calls for Investment in Regional Intercity Rail
We noted yesterday that Barack Obama has promised to direct more federal funds to bike-ped infrastructure if elected. Now comes word that the Illinois Senator is going public with his support for a regional rail network linking midwestern cities, an idea he had floated quietly during the Democratic primary campaign.
June 17, 2008
Obama: I’ll Boost Funds for Bike-Ped Projects If Elected
Barack Obama riding with his family last week.
June 16, 2008
Joe Lieberman: Did Someone Say “High Gas Prices”?
How obsessed is Washington with gas prices? Acting on a Streetsblog post from last week, a reader wrote Connecticut Senator Joe Lieberman urging him to support legislation that would bolster funding for Amtrak. In response, Lieberman's office sent a long, long form letter outlining the many ways the senator is -- you guessed it -- working to keep gasoline as accessible as possible.
May 28, 2008
Urge Congress to Support Amtrak and Passenger Rail
Here's a great way to support transit before we head in to another traffic-snarled Memorial Day weekend. H.R. 6003, the Passenger Rail Investment and Improvement Act, is currently in need of co-sponsors in the House (a version has already passed the Senate). The bill "authorizes Amtrak for the five years Fiscal 2008-2012, provides for capital assistance for states, and development of state rail plans," according to the National Association of Railroad Passengers. Five years of funding will, among other things, put a stop to the current practice of forcing Amtrak to beg for money every year.
May 23, 2008
Portland Elects Cyclist Mayor; Obama Draws 8,000 on Bikes
On Tuesday, voters in Portland, Oregon elected Sam Adams as their next mayor. A former Congressional staffer and current Portland city commissioner, Adams -- who is a cyclist -- ran on a platform that emphasized environmental and progressive growth initiatives, including, in the words of the Oregonian, "use [of] the
Portland Streetcar and better planning to spur urban
renewal." Adams received strong support from the livable streets community, which helped earn him a 52-34 percent margin of victory.
May 22, 2008
Q Poll Finds Americans Opposed to Gas Tax “Holiday”
For what it's worth, a Quinnipiac poll released today again shows that Americans aren't buying into the Clinton-McCain gas tax "holiday" gimmick.
May 15, 2008
Northern Virginia Locked In to Congested Roads
Suburbanites in northern Virginia are finding their streets more clogged with traffic than ever, and, as the Washington Post reported earlier this week, they aren't about to get bailed out by road-widening projects. Here's the crux of the problem, told from the Post reporter's decidedly windshield perspective:
May 9, 2008
Delaware Senator Dares to Utter the Word “Transit”
Even as the price of gas turns into a hot-button campaign issue, the presidential candidates are studiously avoiding the "T" word -- transit -- for the most part.
May 7, 2008