Elana Schor
Recent Posts
Federal Transportation Law Expired Over the Weekend: What’s Next?
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A new month begins today without rules in place to govern federal transportation programs, thanks to an objection by Sen. Jim Bunning (R-KY) to quick approval of a short-term extension of existing law. The Natchez Trace Parkway, where trail construction is set to stall today thanks to inaction on federal transport law. (Photo: TheFunTimesGuide.com) The […]
Deja Vu Again: One-Man Senate Filibuster Imperils Federal Transport Law
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A familiar script for Washington infrastructure watchers began to unfold last night on the Senate floor, as House-side resistance to a 10-month extension of existing federal transportation law prompted Democratic leaders to seek a quick deal on a one-month stopgap — the fourth such short-term move in six months. Sen. Jim Bunning (R-KY) (Photo: CNN) […]
Report: Obama’s 2011 Budget Leaves Cities in a Fiscal Hole of $16B-Plus
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(Chart: National League of Cities) The White House’s proposed budget for 2011 would direct $2.8 billion to its biggest-ticket urban aid programs, even as American city governments face estimated budget shortfalls of at least $19 billion next year, according to a report released today by the nonpartisan Drum Major Institute (DMI). The report compares urban […]
Fact-Checking the Toyota Hearing: Lower Speeds Increase Safety
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Megan McArdle at the Atlantic, writing on today’s Toyota hearing in the House oversight committee, hears Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood claim that "lowering the speed limit to 30 mph would not save any lives, which is why we have minimum speeds on highways." LaHood, at left, with the president at right. (Photo: whitehouse via Flickr) […]
Little-Known Provision in Senate Jobs Bill Could Spark House Resistance
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The Senate passed its jobs bill today by a 70-28 vote, bringing Congress one step closer to a $20 billion transfer that would keep the nation’s highway trust fund solvent until 2011 and extend the 2005 federal transportation law. House transportation committee chairman Jim Oberstar (D-MN) (Photo: Capitol Chatter) The bill’s future in the House […]
House Lawmakers Hail Transportation Stimulus — But Add Three Caveats
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At a House transportation committee hearing today that marked the one-year anniversary of the Obama administration’s economic recovery efforts, lawmakers offered praise for the stimulus law’s impact on local infrastructure investments even as they hit upon three key areas of concern with its implementation. The Port of Los Angeles was shut out of the stimulus’ […]
Voinovich Secures Dem Promise to Hold a Senate Vote on Transpo in 2010
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Compelling infrastructure news out of the Senate last night: The long-delayed successor to the 2005 federal transportation law could come to a vote sooner than the spring 2011 timetable sought by the Obama administration, thanks to a promise secured by Sen. George Voinovich (R-OH) in exchange for his vote in favor of the Democratic jobs […]
U.S. DOT Offers Sample Distracted Driving Bill — With a Potential Loophole
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The Obama administration today offered a one-page sample proposal to crack down on texting behind the wheel, aimed at helping guide states through the process of crafting their own distracted driving legislation. (Photo: brainlink.org) The sample bill text [PDF] was prepared by the U.S. DOT’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, which invited road safety groups […]
Who Lost Out in the Bid for a Piece of TIGER Transportation Stimulus?
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With more than $56 billion in applications submitted for just $1.5 billion in available funding, the Obama administration’s TIGER grants — short for Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery — was one of the stimulus law’s most hotly contested programs. So it’s no surprise that the process resulted in its share of losers as well as […]
Freight Rail, Streetcars Are Tops in U.S. DOT’s TIGER Chase
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The Obama administration today announced the winners of $1.5 billion stimulus in highly competitive stimulus grants under the program known as Transportation Investments Generating Economic Recovery, or TIGER. Southeastern and midwestern freight rail projects were the day’s biggest winners, with urban streetcar projects also making a big splash. Freight rail in Chicago, where the CREATE […]
Moynihan Station Is the First Big TIGER Stimulus Winner
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New York City’s Moynihan Station project has snagged $83 million in grant money from the stimulus law’s Transportation Investments Generating Economic Recovery (TIGER) program, Sen. Charles Schumer (D-NY) announced today. A rendering of the proposed Moynihan Station. (Photo: The Real Deal) The grant makes the intended successor to the current Penn Station, a longstanding priority […]
White House Economic Report Touts TIGER, High-Speed Rail, Transit
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The White House Council of Economic Advisers’ first annual report under President Obama made headlines today for its gloomy job-creation outlook, but tucked inside its 462 pages is a tangible reflection of a changed outlook on transportation policy under the new administration. Top White House economic adviser Christina Romer, at right, holds up yesterday’s report. […]