Elana Schor
Recent Posts
New Survey: 84% of Transit Agencies Facing Fare Hikes, Service Cuts
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Budget shortfalls exacerbated by the lingering recession have forced 84 percent of local transit agencies to hike fares, cut service, or begin considering one or both of those options since the beginning of 2009, according to a report released yesterday by the American Public Transportation Association (APTA). (Chart: APTA) APTA’s bleak survey reflects data from […]
Could Gas-Tax Bonds Pay For the Next Federal Transportation Bill?
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House infrastructure committee chairman Jim Oberstar (D-MN), facing steep political odds in his push to pass a new six-year federal transportation bill this year, has begun to pitch an outside-the-box solution to the financing shortfall that is still stalling congressional action: Treasury bonds. (Photo: Pop and Politics) Oberstar’s proposal would plug the hole in anticipated […]
Wall Street Swaps Haunting Cities: How Many Transit Agencies Hold Them?
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The vast majority of Americans could not recognize the term "credit-default swaps" until 2008, when the obscure type of Wall Street deal was pinpointed as a leading cause of the U.S. financial meltdown. Now another type of swap, centered on interest rates, is making headlines as a growing number of urban governments start to regret […]
As Minneapolis Joins NACTO, Oberstar Backs Shift on Transit Operating Aid
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At an event in Minneapolis today, House transportation committee chairman Jim Oberstar (D-MN) announced his support for giving urban transit agencies more flexibility to spend federal transportation formula money on operating — a change in the current law that has already won the backing of Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood but has split the transit industry. […]
New Poll: Support For Transit Expansion Transcends Rural-Urban Divide
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How respondents replied to the following statement: "My community would benefit from an expanded and improved public transportation system, such as rail or buses." (Chart: T4A) Despite the frequent reluctance of rural lawmakers to support more federal investment in transit, a majority of rural and urban voters alike believe their home towns would gain from […]
Oberstar Stays Optimistic About New Transport Bill in 2010
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House transportation committee chairman Jim Oberstar (D-MN) on Friday renewed his call for action on a new federal infrastructure bill before year’s end, using a hearing on the Obama administration’s stimulus law to urge passage of long-term legislation as well as a second round of short-term investment in roads, bridges, and rail. House transport committee […]
Boxer Aims to Put TIGER-Type Program in Next Federal Transport Bill
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During an otherwise-abbreviated hearing yesterday, Senate environment committee chairman Barbara Boxer (D-CA) joined the chorus of praise for the stimulus law’s TIGER program, declaring her intention to add a version of the competitive infrastructure grants to the next long-term federal transportation bill. Bicyclists in Philadelphia, where $23 million in TIGER money was awarded to build […]
Feds Begin Redefining ‘Affordable Housing’ to Include Transport Costs
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Comparing the transportation savings in dense versus dispersed neighborhoods for a dozen U.S. metro areas. (Chart: CNT) The process of expanding the federal government’s definition of "affordable housing," a stated goal of the Obama administration’s sustainable communities effort, began in earnest yesterday with the introduction of a new index that integrates transportation prices into the […]
Bids for Federal Streetcar Aid Top Available Money by Nearly Tenfold
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After announcing $130 million in new streetcar grants in December, the Obama administration received more than $1.1 billion in applications, Federal Transit Administration (FTA) chief Peter Rogoff told lawmakers today — offering more evidence of the growing local enthusiasm for competitive transportation funding that began with the stimulus law’s TIGER grant program. New Orleans, above, […]
Transit Operating Aid Bill Doesn’t Fly With Major D.C. Transit Group
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A burgeoning congressional push to let urban transit agencies tap federal funds for operating their systems is not sitting well with the transit industry’s largest D.C. lobbying group, the American Public Transportation Association (APTA). A rail car from New York City’s transit authority, one of APTA’s biggest members. (Photo: TreeHugger) Paul Dean, APTA’s government relations […]
Senate Health Bill Approved: What It Means for Transportation
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After 14 months of drama, deal-making, and declarations of its demise, the health care legislation envisioned by President Obama and congressional Democrats finally cleared its biggest hurdle last night, with the House approving the Senate-passed measure on a 219-212 vote. Safe Routes to School programs could see a boost from the health bill’s grant program. […]
Transport Fix to Jobs Bill Would Take $192M From CA, Send $76M to TX
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House transport panel chairman Jim Oberstar’s (D-MN) state would lose an estimated $9.5 million under the fix. (Photo: Jonathan Maus) Fixing a disputed provision in the jobs bill that President Obama signed into law yesterday — as Senate Democratic leaders promised House transportation committee chairman Jim Oberstar (D-MN) following complaints by several members of his […]