The public transit industry faces a severe human resources crisis. However, this crisis isn't new. Because so many authorities we work with are facing these obstacles, we began to focus on the science behind identifying and hiring more resilient human beings up front, in order to make it easier to build resilience and preparedness with employees once they are onboard. During our research dives, we discovered that these current challenges in HR were well documented in transportation, dating back to the 1950s.
Drivers are already paying for every trip they take -- the immediate cost just isn't as transparent as it is for transit riders. The result is often that driving appears much cheaper than it truly is, which encourages more people to drive, and makes traffic much worse.
At an uncertain time for federal transportation policy, local elected officials across the country are rolling up their sleeves and adopting a "do it yourself" ethos. The results in many places have been transformative, creating new transportation options, more walkable cities, and dynamic new public spaces - and instilling in local governments a sense of accomplishment and momentum.
Hamilton gives the transportation demand management (TDM) example of "if the roads are clogged, rather than widen the road, which is really expensive and in tons of places we can't even do that anymore, what if we could get more people to ride the bus if there's not a lot of people [already doing that]? Or what if we could get more people on bikes or even walking?
Riders react, every day, and those reactions are not aimed at the management of the transit agencies or at the two governors, Andrew M. Cuomo of New York and Chris Christie of New Jersey, who control them. Subway and train operators, conductors and station agents spoke of the toll of being the faces of their increasingly unreliable systems.
Hundreds of free ebooks and short stories were made available to subway riders Thursday as part of a six-week program launched by the MTA and the New York City's public libraries, AM New York reports.
Within an hour, [MARTA CEO, Keith] Parker, the Georgia Department of Transportation and other state and city officials had crafted a transportation implementation plan that included increasing MARTA train and bus service.
TriMet spokeswoman Tia York said the agency is looking at a range of options for a new Willamette River crossing, including building a new bridge or tunnel.
Metro is the largest public transit agency yet to signal it intends to ditch internal combustion engines. In Southern California, the Antelope Valley and San Gabriel Valley-based Foothill transit authorities have goals of running only buses with zero tailpipe emissions in the next 15 years. But these agencies combined have fewer than 450 buses - less than 20 percent of Metro's total bus fleet.
Hundreds of underused, antiquated or unnecessary bus stops have been removed in an effort to speed the buses more quickly through the region, officials said, and the longest routes have been shortened to lower headways. Service will be free for two weeks to celebrate the launch.
Jason Mendelson is a local musician with a very unique inspiration for his art: Washington's Metrorail and its many stations. He writes songs about pirates near the Waterfront station, whether the train stops at "National" or "Reagan," and neighborhood change in Tenleytown.
During a hearing on Thursday, House appropriators expressed deep concern over the administration's proposed cuts to a number of popular transportation programs, as well as Trump's support for a controversial plan to separate air traffic control from the federal government.
In an interview with KNX-AM's "Ask the Mayor," Garcetti said an above-ground train can't traverse the pass because of the steep incline. "Well, monorails can, and they can go at about the same speed as railcars," Garcetti said.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says his government's $1.28-billion investment in Montreal's light-rail system will ease the burden on commuters and contribute to the fight against climate change.
On Wednesday, the U.S. House Subcommittee on Health, Labor, Employment, and Pensions held a hearing on three anti-worker bills: the Workforce Democracy and Fairness Act (H.R. 2776), the Employee Privacy Protection Act (H.R. 2775), and the Employee Rights Act (H.R. 2723). These deceptively named bills make it nearly impossible for workers to exercise their right to join together to bargain for better wages and working conditions.
In announcing their support, the TWU 100 transit union said the project would create about 500 permanent jobs for operators and thousands more during construction.
Trump signed an executive order that seeks to reorient and expand ApprenticeshipUSA, a grant program that was previously championed by the Obama administration and has been supported by Democrats and Republicans alike.
If this week's announcement is really just a starting point, it is an opportune time to design a new federal infrastructure apprenticeship program from the ground up. Ideally, such a program would respond to the depth and breadth of opportunities present in this segment of the labor market, based on several guiding principles.
During "workforce development week," the Brookings Metropolitan Policy Program revisits some of their best workforce and apprenticeship content from the last several years.
