U.S. DOT
“Cash for Clunkers” Coming to a Close?
The Obama administration plans to close the door on the politically popular and environmentally slipshod auto trade-in program known as "cash for clunkers," according to a report this afternoon in the Wall Street Journal:
August 19, 2009
Crunching June Stimulus Numbers: Roads Create Pricier Jobs Than Transit
Transportation spending under the economic stimulus law created close to 15,000 jobs in June, or three times as many as were created in May, according to estimates released today by the U.S. DOT.
August 19, 2009
Distracted Driving Laws Lack Teeth in Some States
For a story today on the political challenge of outlawing texting behind the wheel, the Washington Post sent its reporter to a downtown intersection to track whether drivers were obeying the city's ban on hand-held cell phones.
August 13, 2009
Citigroup’s “Cash for Clunkers” Contract Worth $7.7 Million
The U.S. DOT never responded to Streetsblog Capitol Hill's request for a copy of the contract that Citigroup -- which remains one-third-owned by the government after taking a $45 billion bailout -- received to process car dealer claims under the "cash for clunkers" program. But Dow Jones did pry loose one key detail on Friday, reporting that the deal is worth "an estimated" $7.7 million.
August 10, 2009
New ‘Clunkers’ Analysis: Trucks, SUVs More Popular Than Suggested
When the Obama administration first called for more "cash for clunkers" last week, two influential senators said they could not back an extension without stronger efficiency standards for the program's trade-ins -- only to drop their opposition after viewing U.S. DOT sales figures that showed buyers snapping up gas-sipping cars.
August 7, 2009
Audit Finds U.S. DOT’s Transit Record-Keeping ‘Unreliable,’ ‘Inaccurate’
The disjointed state of "New Starts," the Federal Transit Administration's (FTA) program to fund new rail and bus lines, is well-known on the Hill -- in fact, House transportation committee chairman Jim Oberstar (D-MN) recently quipped that it ought to be renamed "small starts, low starts, and no starts."
August 6, 2009
Portland’s Transport Research Guru Headed to Obama Administration
The U.S. DOT is expected to announce today that it has tapped Robert Bertini, a Portland State University professor who headed Oregon's state-wide transport research effort, as the No. 2 at the Research and Innovative Technology Administration -- the government's home for stats on all things transportation.
August 5, 2009
AP: Obama Administration Won’t Release Full Data on ‘Cash for Clunkers’
A $2 billion renewal of "cash for clunkers" is now almost assured, with GOP senators easing up on their threat of a filibuster and one key Democrat remarking that "the statistics [for the program] are much better than everyone thought."
August 4, 2009
LaHood to Convene Texting-While-Driving Summit
Ray LaHood will announce today that his Department of Transportation plans to convene a summit next month for safety officials, lawmakers, academics, and law enforcement representatives to examine the risks of texting while driving.
August 4, 2009
Letting Highway Trust Fund Earn Interest: How Much Would it Help?
The Senate released a proposed $26.8 billion patch to the nation's highway trust fund two weeks ago that included a long-sought priority of transportation policy-makers: restoring the fund's ability to keep the interest it accrues on unspent balances.
August 3, 2009