Streetsblog.net
Stop Rand Paul’s Senseless Attack on Biking and Walking
The Senate is getting ready to produce a 2014 transportation budget, and national advocates like Transportation for America think it's a pretty good package. Naturally, some senators are trying to sabotage it.
July 29, 2013
Senate Transpo Budget Gets Serious About Repairing Rail Bridges
They're waist deep in the transportation appropriations process in Washington right now, and what's on the table is a study in contrasts. The House budget would zero out the popular TIGER program and slash funding for Amtrak, even as it shatters ridership records. President Obama has promised to veto it should it wind up on his desk.
July 26, 2013
While Officials Ignore Street Safety, “Cone Fairy” Calms Miami Traffic
If only the Florida Department of Transportation was as concerned about traffic safety as one mysterious resident in Miami's Belle Meade neighborhood. A traffic safety vigilante known only as "the cone fairy" has been making nightly visits to a dangerous street in this neighborhood and applying a simple, temporary solution to reckless speeding: orange cones in the center of the street.
July 25, 2013
Feeling Lonely in a Midwestern Downtown
Young people are moving back to the downtown areas of many Midwestern and Southern cities. Sometimes they call these folks pioneers, though that's a fraught term. But a lot of them do have to rough it, so to speak -- living without grocery stores or other basic amenities that you'd have in New York or Boston.
July 24, 2013
Turning Gas Pumps and Asphalt Into Soil and Shade Trees
Anyone who takes an abandoned gas station and converts it into a neighborhood business is a hero in our book.
July 23, 2013
The Seattle NIMBY Nightmare: A Five-Minute Walk From House to Car
A 400-unit apartment building is in the works for an area of West Seattle zoned as a "transit village," with frequent, convenient transit connections. Attached to the apartments will be 122 parking spaces. Can you tell where this story is headed?
July 22, 2013
Two Schools of Thought on Bike Infrastructure: Egalitarian vs. Elite
It might seem strange, but there are still plenty of people who ride bikes but don't like the idea of protected bike lanes that much, or even bike infrastructure altogether.
July 19, 2013
DC Road Lobbyist: Since Most People Drive, We Shouldn’t Invest in Transit
Last week, the Washington Post ran an editorial calling for a "balanced" approach to transportation investments. That rather mundane stance was enough to set off alarm bells for an advocate of suburban highway expansion in Virginia.
July 18, 2013
How “Buy America” Restrictions Can Cost America Jobs
Proponents of Buy America restrictions -- regulations that require American-made sourcing for transportation projects supported by the federal government -- may be well-meaning, but when applied to rail expansion, these rules can be pretty pernicious. There isn't a large domestic passenger rail market in the United States, so there isn't much of a domestic traincar manufacturing industry. When you throw Buy America into the mix, that can end up being a real problem for passenger rail projects.
July 17, 2013
Seattle Makes Guerrilla Bike Lane Permanent
How about a round of applause for Seattle? This spring, a group of activists calling themselves "Reasonably Polite Seattleites" installed a protected bike lane on Cherry Street. How did Seattle officials react? Well, this week the city made it permanent.
July 16, 2013