Elana Schor
Recent Posts
Bipartisan Senate Jobs Bill Has Highway Trust Fund Rescue, But No TIGER
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Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus (D-MT) and his panel’s senior Republican, Chuck Grassley (IA), today offered a job-creation proposal designed to garner enough GOP votes to overcome an anticipated filibuster. Senate Finance Committee chief Max Baucus, at left, with GOP ally Chuck Grassley at right. (Photo: Baucus Press) The measure’s transportation provisions align with […]
The Gas Tax Versus a VMT Tax: Is ‘All of the Above’ an Option?
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Gas tax revenues, already insufficient to pay for transportation infrastructure, will continue to be compromised by gains in fuel efficiency. Chart: Oregon DOT. The prospect of an eventual move away from the gas tax and towards a fee on vehicle miles traveled (VMT) has sparked consternation from some well-known bloggers this week, with Matt Yglesias […]
First Lady Launches Childhood Obesity Push With Nod to Biking & Walking
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First Lady Michelle Obama took to the mikes this afternoon to kick off a national campaign to combat childhood obesity, emphasizing new initiatives to promote biking and walking alongside a strong focus on healthier food options in schools. Michelle Obama visited "Sesame Street" last fall as part of her push to fight childhood obesity. Photo: […]
New Report Maps a High-Speed Rail Link For Every Major U.S. City
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Image: U.S. PIRG Now that the Obama administration has awarded $8 billion in high-speed rail grants to more than two dozen states, with $2.5 billion more coming soon, why not keep thinking big when it comes to bullet-train expansion? That’s the ethos of a new report released today by the U.S. Public Interest Research Group […]
A Vow to ‘Bring Republicans to the Table’ for a New Transport Bill
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Despite Senate Democratic efforts to move quickly on a new jobs bill that includes infrastructure investment and takes steps towards solving the nation’s transportation financing dilemma, Congress has just two more weeks of work until time runs out on the latest short-term extension of the five-year-old law governing federal transport policy. "We will bring Republicans […]
Senate Dems to Call Up Jobs Bill Monday… With Transport Details TBA
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Senate Democratic leaders appeared this morning to tout their commitment to passing a job-creation bill by the end of next week — but the substance of their jobs measure, including the fate of pivotal transportation provisions, remains up in the air. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) (Photo: LV City Life) Harry Reid (D-NV), the […]
White House Pitches $400M for Healthier Neighborhood Food Outlets
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The connection between walkable development and grocery shopping may not seem immediately apparent — until you consider studies conducted in cities from Austin to Seattle that showed the share of trips taken by foot or by transit rises as local food outlets move closer to residential areas. The White House budget envisions a new investment […]
U.S. DOT Names the Transit Projects Set for Federal Funding
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The Obama administration last night revealed the names of local transit projects getting recommendations for federal aid under the U.S. DOT’s New and Small Starts programs, which are set to receive $1.8 billion during fiscal year 2011. The list includes some familiar urban projects — New York’s Second Avenue Subway, for instance, already had a […]
White House Budget Includes $530M for Local Sustainability, $1B for HSR
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The White House officially unveiled its $3.8 trillion budget for the fiscal year 2011 this morning, seeking $1 billion to continue its high-speed rail investment and $530 million for the transportation leg of the Obama administration’s inter-agency push to promote sustainable planning on the local level. White House budget chief Peter Orszag challenged employees to […]
New Report Links Foreclosure Risk to Auto Dependence
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Homeowners in car-dependent areas are at greater risk of foreclosure, according to a report released yesterday by the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) that calls for mortgage underwriting standards to begin taking so-called "location-efficiency" into account. Weeds spring up near a foreclosed home in Illinois. (Photo: Getty) The NRDC examined data for 40,000 mortgages in […]
Obama Taps High-Speed Rail Winners: Florida, California, Illinois and More
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Click here for a larger version. Image: USDOT In his State of the Union address last night, President Obama hinted at what many in the transportation world have anticipated all week: Florida’s emergence as a winner in the race for a share of the White House’s $8 billion (and growing) high-speed rail fund. But Florida […]
Transit Riders Launch Grassroots Lobbying Push in Dire Political Climate
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Advocates for urban transit riders in 14 metro areas climbed the Hill today to pitch lawmakers face-to-face on the need for extra federal transit operating aid, a grassroots lobbying effort that could face considerable challenges even as Democrats craft a new jobs bill with a focus on infrastructure. Lee Gaddies of Detroit speaks at today’s […]