Federal Stimulus
Killing the Myth of the ‘More Shovel-Ready’ Road Stimulus, Part II
It has become one of the most enduring anecdotes surrounding the Obama administration's $787 billion economic stimulus law: Democrats' contention that White House adviser Larry Summers sliced transit aid by more than half, to $8.4 billion, out of concerns that projects were not "shovel-ready" enough.
October 2, 2009
Spending Transportation Stimulus Money Fast vs. Spending it Well
How fast is the economic stimulus law's $48 billion in transportation aid being spent -- and is it being spent on the right projects? The relative importance of those two questions made for lively debate in the House transportation committee yesterday.
October 2, 2009
Stimulus Spotlight: Delaware Town Boosts Bike-Ped Access to Bus Stop
The new Route 43 bus in Middletown, Delaware, stops at many popular places: the local high school, the retail shopping district, and the Methodist church, to name a few. But the park-and-ride that helped riders access the bus was clogged with cars, which the state DOT attributed to higher transit demand.
September 11, 2009
Mmmm, This ‘Pork’ Sounds Tasty: Senators Serve Up Transit Aid
One of Washington's most enduring truisms is that "pork" is in the eye of the beholder. Self-styled anti-earmark crusaders are fond of bashing clean transportation projects as improper uses of taxpayer money, but most of them recognize privately that rail, bus, and bike investments are a good thing.
September 3, 2009
Biden on Stimulus Aid to Cities: ‘We’re Trying … It’s Imperfect’
Vice President Joe Biden acknowledged today that the White House's economic recovery push has created stumbling blocks for cities hoping to take advantage of the stimulus, but he defended the administration's efforts to take a more holistic view of transportation, housing, and other urban concerns.
September 3, 2009
Killing the Myth of the ‘More Shovel-Ready’ Road Stimulus
During debate over the White House's $787 billion economic stimulus law, transit advocates watched as their projects were shortchanged and more "shovel-ready" road projects got the lion's share of the transport pot -- about $8.4 billion, compared with $27.5 billion for highways and bridges.
September 2, 2009
A Last Word on ‘Cash for Clunkers’
One thing the government's CARS program -- a.k.a. "cash for clunkers" -- has clearly stimulated is commentary. For a policy involving a shade under $3 billion in federal spending, it has enjoyed no shortage of media coverage.
September 2, 2009
D.C. City Government Considers “Cash for Close-in Urban Living”
The nation's capital is proposing to use money from the Obama administration's economic stimulus law for a pilot program that would give grants of up to $3,000 for suburban commuters to move closer to transit or their place of work.
August 21, 2009
Jindal’s Not Alone: Guvs Who Shunned Stimulus Warm to High-Speed Rail
Think Progress took note yesterday of a change of heart from Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal (R), who blasted the economic stimulus law for its $8 billion in "wasteful spending" on high-speed rail -- only to later seek $300 million of that money for a rail link between Baton Rouge and New Orleans.
August 20, 2009
Stimulus Spotlight: Oregon’s Solar Highway
Washington's normally frenetic pace slows down in August, when humid
weather and the absence of Congress combine to give the capital some
recharging time.
August 20, 2009