Tanya Snyder
Tanya became Streetsblog's Capitol Hill editor in September 2010 after covering Congress for Pacifica Radios Washington bureau and for public radio stations around the country. She lives car-free in a transit-oriented and bike-friendly neighborhood of Washington, DC.
Recent Posts
High Speed Rail: Which Corridors Have the Best Chance for Success?
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Perhaps it goes without saying, but when you’re advocating for something, it’s not enough to make it happen – it has to succeed. If you get what you want and it’s a miserable failure, you’ve made matters far worse for your cause. That’s the quandary some high speed rail advocates find themselves in now. Some […]
Household Deficit Reduction: Transit Saves People Almost $10K a Year
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With gas prices at their highest level since October 2008, the American Public Transportation Association’s monthly Transit Savings Report estimates that transit riders save, on average, $9,656 a year. Of course, not everyone has equal access to these massive savings. According to APTA’s numbers, which are based on gas prices ($3.08 per gallon last week) […]
We’re Pulling for You, Gabby Giffords
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Our hearts are with Rep. Gabrielle Giffords today as she struggles to recover from the brutal attack this weekend. By now you must have heard about Saturday’s shocking massacre in a Tucson supermarket parking lot, leaving six dead and 13 wounded. Among the wounded is the Tucson area Congresswoman, shot point-blank in the head and […]
New House Rules Threaten TIGER and Livability Programs
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The headlines have been apocalyptic. On Day One, Republicans Cripple Construction Industry Rule could endanger transportation budget, building trade jobs sector Critics say GOP rule change could cripple transportation projects As Streetsblog reported, the new House rules [PDF], passed along strict party lines with no defectors Wednesday, include a rule that allows lawmakers to spend out […]
Sen. Boxer: Working With Mica, Inhofe on a Long-Term Transpo Bill
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Senator Barbara Boxer told reporters today that she had an “excellent”, “wonderful” meeting with Rep. John Mica (R-FL), the new chair of the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure. She confirmed that they’re working on a “longer-term” transportation bill and have come up with many points of agreement. We’ll let you know more details about […]
Send in Your Transpo Questions for the 112th Congress
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The new Congress has been sworn in and John Boehner has been elected Speaker of the House, 241-173. Nancy Pelosi has handed him the (strangely over-sized) gavel and he just took the oath of office. In his acceptance speech, he stressed fiscal discipline and spending cuts. The first vote the new Congress will take will […]
Food Deserts: Another Way the Deck Is Stacked Against Car-Free Americans
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Slate has posted this map to illustrate the concentration of “food deserts,” where large numbers of people don’t have access to fresh food. The USDA considers households more than a mile from a supermarket and without access to a car to be in food deserts, often with only convenience-store junk food for nourishment. In 2009, […]
Actually, Highway Builders, Roads Don’t Pay For Themselves
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You’ve heard it a thousand times from the highway lobby: Roads pay for themselves through “user fees” — a.k.a. gas taxes and tolls — whereas transit is a drain on the taxpayer. They use this argument to push for new roads, instead of transit, as fiscally prudent investments. The myth of the self-financed road meets […]
And the Capitol Hill Streetsies Go To…
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Happy 2011! May this year bring peace, harmony, and a six-year transportation reauthorization. The best part about 2011 is that it’s not 2010. Last year was a tough one at the federal level: constant extensions of both the transportation bill and the general budget, no progress on an adequate funding source for infrastructure investment, and […]
Senate Vote Will Give GOP a Crack at the Transpo Bill Sooner
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A few weeks ago, members of the House threw up their hands and voted for a year-long extension of the 2010 budget. It included an extension of the transportation reauthorization. The Senate didn’t vote on it in time, so then the House voted for a three-day extension to give the Senate a few more days […]
“Gravity Always Wins”: How the U.S. Can Face the Crisis of Unsafe Bridges
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If you left your grandma’s old wicker chair out on the porch all winter – and the next, and the next, and the next for 20 years – would you still trust that chair to hold you if you sat down? According to Barry LePatner, author of the new book Too Big to Fall: America’s […]
Transit Riders Keep Same Tax Benefits As Drivers
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President Obama is about to sign the controversial tax-cut compromise into law, now that the House and Senate have both voted in favor of the bill. That means the transit benefit extension, hidden inside the $858 billion package, will become law as well. Nearly four years ago, Congressman Jim McGovern (D-MA) introduced a measure to […]