Recent Streetsblog NYC posts about U.S. Senate

GOP Will Control the Senate in 2015 — What Does It Mean for Transportation?

By Tanya Snyder | Nov 5, 2014 | No Comments

The forecasting models were right: As the polls closed last night it quickly became apparent that Republicans will gain control of the Senate, with at least 52 seats now held by the GOP. The implications for transportation are immense. To understand what they are, first let’s look at what last night means for the prospects […]

Bi-partisan Senate Bill Would Give Locals More Say Over Transpo Spending

By Angie Schmitt | Sep 22, 2014 | No Comments

When it comes to transportation funding, cities and towns occupy the bottom of the totem pole. The vast majority of federal transportation money goes to states, to the exclusion of local governments. That means state DOTs get tens of billions to spend on highways each year, while mayors and local agencies have to scrounge for […]

Why the Next Fight Over Bike/Ped Funding Won’t Be Like the Last

By Tanya Snyder | Sep 11, 2014 | No Comments

When Congress passed a two-year transportation bill in 2012, active transportation advocates had to scrape and claw for every penny of funding for walking and biking programs. When the dust settled, it seemed they would have to repeat the same old battles when the law expired. Right now the current law is up for renewal […]

Congress Hits the Snooze Button on Transpo Funding Until May

By Tanya Snyder | Aug 1, 2014 | No Comments

Someone had to cave and last night, it was the Senate. The upper chamber had fought as long as it could to adjust the House transportation bill so it wouldn’t expire when the GOP controls both chambers of Congress. But senators were never willing to actually let the Highway Trust Fund go broke. U.S. DOT would […]

371 City Leaders Ask Boxer For More Local Control Over Bike/Ped Money

By Tanya Snyder | Jun 25, 2014 | No Comments

Last week, 371 mayors and other city leaders wrote a letter [PDF] to Sen. Barbara Boxer, chair of the Environment and Public Works Committee, in support of local control over transportation dollars for bike and pedestrian projects. About two-thirds of the signatories are mayors, from cities as big as Philadelphia and Los Angeles and as […]

Senators Murphy (D) and Corker (R) Propose 12-Cent Gas Tax Increase

By Tanya Snyder | Jun 18, 2014 | No Comments

There are several proposals on the table to stave off the impending insolvency of the Highway Trust Fund (which pays for transit, biking, and walking projects too) in two months. Just now, two senators teamed up to announce one that might actually have a chance. Sens. Bob Corker (R-TN) and Chris Murphy (D-CT) have proposed […]

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