As regular readers of the Capitol Hill blog already know, yesterday marked Elana Schor’s last day covering the national transportation policy beat for Streetsblog.

On behalf of the Streetsblog staff in New York, San Francisco, and Los Angeles, as well as the Streetsblog Network, I’d like to share my appreciation for Elana’s work over the past year. She created her beat from scratch, and quickly became an indispensable daily read for Hill staffers, administration officials, seasoned transportation wonks and advocates of all stripes. When it came to national transportation policy news, Elana scooped everybody.

If you’d like to keep up with Elana’s work, she’ll be writing for Greenwire, the environmental news service. Be sure to check for her byline on the New York Times online, which syndicates some Greenwire content.

Elana set the bar high for Streetsblog’s national coverage. With the major national transportation bill still brewing in Congress, there’s an urgent need to continue her excellent work. Big stories are developing at this very moment: A $2 billion transit operating aid bill could stave off disastrous service cuts in dozens of cities; President Obama pledged yesterday to pass major energy and climate legislation; and the U.S. DOT’s livability program is increasingly becoming a flashpoint for debate. On the local scene, state DOTs are still plowing ahead with ill-considered highways, neglecting opportunities to build infrastructure for walking and biking, and allowing bridges to rot until it’s too late to salvage them.

We’ve begun a national search for a reporter who can synthesize local stories from across America with news from inside the beltway to help make the case for transportation reform. While that search for a full-time replacement progresses, we’re also looking for freelance contributors to write lively, engaging stories to keep Streetsblog readers up to speed on national issues. If you’re interested in writing about the movement for green, equitable, 21st-century transportation, send us your resume and a short note about your areas of expertise to tips@streetsblog.org.