America's largest cities may be spawning a transportation revolution, but things are still looking pretty 20th century in its rural places. If you've spent any time out in the sticks, this should not be surprising. Just 0.5 percent of rural America uses public transportation to get to work, compared to 6.2 percent of urbanites.
The head of Stark County's transit system is predicting major cuts to public transportation under Gov. John Kasich's proposed state budget. SARTA CEO Kirt Conrad says a sales tax levied on some health care services in 2010 has helped the agency partially recover from the recession. But the tax could be repealed this summer unless Gov. Kasich expands it to all managed-care organizations in Ohio.
More than 20 million people live in metropolitan Mexico City, and most spend upwards of three hours a day riding to and from work, stuck in traffic jams. The region has one of the world's largest urban rail (metro) systems in the world, but most passenger traffic is concentrated on a few lines that serve the city center. Stations farther out are difficult to reach on foot and offer few amenities for commuters or residents.
BART staffers examined the system's policies for fares, parking and advertising and then came up with a menu of possible changes that could help directors balance the upcoming budget. No decisions have been made, but some of the ideas are likely to come up for discussion as budget talks progress. Wrapping more trains in colorful advertising and covering station walls, ceilings and floors could bring in millions, said Aaron Weinstein, BART's chief marketing officer. So could sprawling video displays. But they could also irritate passengers, new director Lateefah Simon of San Francisco said.
Metro could lose more than $10 million in federal funding if U.S. Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao makes good on a threat by her predecessor to cut federal transit funding if the District, Maryland and Virginia fail to meet a Thursday deadline for creation of a new safety oversight agency.
The Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) next week will begin retiring its 4000-series rail cars. The least reliable of WMATA's fleet, the cars can travel an average of just over 27,000 miles between delays caused by mechanical or other equipment issues, agency officials said in a press release. For comparison, WMATA's 6000-series can travel more than 103,000 miles before encountering such delays.
The Utah Transit Authority would be forced to change how its board members are chosen, face a ban on new "transit-oriented development" deals and be required to improve how it listens to the public, under a bill introduced in the Legislature on Friday.
MTA Long Island Rail Road (LIRR) and the New York State Department of Transportation (NYSDOT) earlier this week unveiled a list of construction firms that have been qualified to bid on the railroad's expansion project. The $2 billion expansion calls for adding a third track along 10 miles of LIRR's Main Line and modifying seven grade crossings in the area, among other improvements.
All three of Metro-North's East of Hudson lines logged new ridership records. The Harlem Line reported 27.7 million annual rides, while the Hudson Line logged 16.6 million rides. Both of these lines beat 2015's records by more than 125,000 each.
The Atlanta Journal Constitution - February 7, 2017
Atlanta has the best transit to the airport in the nation, according to a new study by MileCards.com, a credit card comparison site. The ranking is based on price, speed, convenience and frequency.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution - February 3, 2017
MARTA has canceled a commercial and residential development at its Brookhaven transit station amid a rift with the city about financing for of the project. Last week Mayor John Ernst sought to delay the rezoning the 15-acre site and announced the city would suspend all work on an incentive request submitted to the Brookhaven Development Authority. On Thursday, the MARTA Board of Directors canceled the project.
A joint House and Senate panel of the Oregon legislature is getting down to work this month on crafting a massive transportation funding package. However, an initial plan released by the committee doesn't list specific projects that would be funded.
It's often said that it's statistically safer to ride a plane than drive a car, although it doesn't always feel that way. The same may be true for bus passengers. According to a recent study, bus riders in Montreal are only a third as likely to get injured on the road.
Many campuses have implemented Safe Ride programs to provide students a way to safely get where they need to go in the wee hours of the morning. Typically, these programs provide students with a reliable source of on-demand transit when other campus transportation has shut down. These rides are provided by the university. These programs share a common goal: fill a gap in campus transit and assuage the fears of students (and their parents) about getting home late at night.
If you're a regular GO Transit commuter and you're concerned about your health, you may want to start sitting at the back of the train. New research from the University of Toronto has found that in some circumstances passengers on commuter trains are at risk for exposure to "markedly high levels" of carcinogenic diesel exhaust. Passengers in the car directly behind the locomotive are at particular risk.
Researchers at Case Western Reserve University and the U.S. Department of Commerce found that registered apprenticeship programs lead to greater productivity due to a decrease in employee errors, reduced employee turnover, and improved employee engagement. Apprenticeships may also reduce employers' hiring costs and increase employee loyalty. International studies suggest that for every dollar spent on an apprenticeship, employers may get an average of $1.47 back in increased productivity, reduced waste, and front-line innovation.
We are getting a little more clarity on the nature of the problem; but solutions are less clear-cut. Our colleague Ron Haskins points to the importance of reducing work disincentives in existing safety net programs. Francine D. Blau and Lawrence M. Kahn show that America's lack of "family-friendly" policies are preventing women from working at the same rate as our international peers (a federal paid leave policy would be a good start). Most importantly, transforming education and training programs to prepare workers with the skills demanded by today's economy will be critical to putting Americans back to work.
What actually makes a city smart? Safe streets that enable people to access destinations they care about quickly, via a menu of transportation options that can accommodate different people and different kinds of trips. As Tom Wright, head of New York's Regional Plan Association, recently told the audience at a "City of Tomorrow" event, "a smart city is made so not by a technology, but rather a commitment to trying things out, which encourages citizens to begin to see urban space as mutable and something they can influence."
Austin moved another step closer to a zoning code that allows for the more dense, transit-friendly neighborhoods laid out in its long-term growth plan called Imagine Austin. A draft of new zoning rules, called CodeNEXT, was released this week after three years of effort, the Austin American-Statesman reports.
Gov. Larry Hogan is pressing local politicians to support his effort to overturn a law that requires transportation projects to be ranked. Hogan sent a letter to more than 250 county executives, county council members and mayors across the state last week calling the measure a "severely flawed and misguided bill" that needs to be repealed.
On Monday Rick Scott sought to build support for his proposed state transportation budget for 2017-18, saying it will help further boost Florida's economy. "This is about jobs," Scott said during a news conference along the channel at Port Canaveral. "This is about getting people back to work."
A coalition of transportation, construction and labor organizations has asked President Donald Trump to shore up the Highway Trust Fund with a long term, dedicated user-based revenue source as part of the administration's infrastructure investment plan.
They're as familiar a part of America's car-oriented transportation infrastructure as the roads themselves: Highway travel centers with gas, commercial truck and RV parking, Wi-Fi, a convenience store and maybe an in-house fast-food joint or and other amenities. Tony Huppert and his family run one such establishment, the TEAM Oil Travel Center located along Highway 29 at the western edge of Spring Valley in Pierce County.
