Austin American Statesman
Ben Wear // February 24, 2010
Downtown Austin would have two north-south passenger rail corridors, a more expansive network than previously envisioned, under a recommendation that City of Austin staff will present today to the Austin City Council.
The proposed rail system — which would be in addition to Capital Metro's commuter rail line scheduled to open next month — would link the Mueller development in East Austin to the University of Texas to downtown to the airport.
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Showing posts with label Transportation Policy. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Transportation Policy. Show all posts
Sunday, March 7, 2010
Transit Innovation
Dallas Morning News
February 23, 2010
Expanding the reach of rail transit in North Texas will take progress big and small on multiple fronts. Here are a couple of areas where things are quietly heading the right way:
In Austin – House Speaker Joe Straus officially invited ideas on new ways of paying for transportation projects. The speaker announced special committees last week to study needs and report to him on, among other things, "using alternative funding options at the state and local levels."
In North Texas – A coalition of cities and transportation agencies has stepped up efforts to develop the long-proposed east-west Cotton Belt rail link to Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport. It would connect northern suburbs and North Dallas to the airport and run through downtown Fort Worth. DART owns the Cotton Belt right of way but doesn't have the money to put the project together.
Again, innovation is called for. The North Central Texas Council of Governments is finishing a report on ways the six cities on the east side of the airport can team up with property owners and DART to start the new line.
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February 23, 2010
Expanding the reach of rail transit in North Texas will take progress big and small on multiple fronts. Here are a couple of areas where things are quietly heading the right way:
In Austin – House Speaker Joe Straus officially invited ideas on new ways of paying for transportation projects. The speaker announced special committees last week to study needs and report to him on, among other things, "using alternative funding options at the state and local levels."
In North Texas – A coalition of cities and transportation agencies has stepped up efforts to develop the long-proposed east-west Cotton Belt rail link to Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport. It would connect northern suburbs and North Dallas to the airport and run through downtown Fort Worth. DART owns the Cotton Belt right of way but doesn't have the money to put the project together.
Again, innovation is called for. The North Central Texas Council of Governments is finishing a report on ways the six cities on the east side of the airport can team up with property owners and DART to start the new line.
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Why Dallas's Streetcars Got the Feds' Transportation Funds, Not Fort Worth's
Dallas Observer
Robert Wilonsky // February 17, 2010
As mentioned below, the North Central Texas Council of Governments is indeed "seeking clarification" from the U.S. Department of Transportation concerning today's announcement that Dallas is getting $23 million to fund the downtown streetcar project. NCTCOG wants to know if Fort Worth is supposed to be getting a piece of that pie -- since, after all, NCTCOG made the request on behalf of both cities in its $96 million joint grant application.
Michael Morris is supposed to respond upon his return to the office, but Cathy St. Denis at the USDOT finally responded to Unfair Park's request for a clarification. In short, she says, "Fort Worth is not a part of this. The money is just for Dallas." And why's that?
"The typical awardee averaged about one-third of their request," St. Denis says. "So we couldn't completely fund the Dallas-Fort Worth streetcar project at the requested level. And, we were impressed by how well Dallas had lined up its local match and the other requirements necessary to get the project under way."
Michael Morris is supposed to respond upon his return to the office, but Cathy St. Denis at the USDOT finally responded to Unfair Park's request for a clarification. In short, she says, "Fort Worth is not a part of this. The money is just for Dallas." And why's that?
"The typical awardee averaged about one-third of their request," St. Denis says. "So we couldn't completely fund the Dallas-Fort Worth streetcar project at the requested level. And, we were impressed by how well Dallas had lined up its local match and the other requirements necessary to get the project under way."
Cap Metro Turns Toward a 2020 Vision
The Austin Chronicle
Lee Nichols // February 19, 2010
What will Austin look like in 10 years? If history is any guide, its population will be about 50% larger, and the area will need a transit system to accommodate that.
On Monday, the Capital Metro board of directors will consider Service Plan 2020, a 370-page analysis of the Cap Metro system and recommendations on how to improve it.
Creating “A Better Tomorrow” in America with Sustainable Transportation
Check out this video from America 2050, as part of its “A Better Tomorrow” project to create a “positive vision for the future of America built around investments in sustainable transportation and livable communities.”
Sunday, February 14, 2010
Let's Talk Honestly About a VMT Tax
Dallas Morning News
Micheal Lindenberger // February 10, 2010
As vehicles get more efficient, they will travel further on each gallon of gas. So each year, each driver will pay less in gas taxes, even as they drive as much or more on the roads that must be kept up. TxDOT chief Amadeo Saenz likes to say his old Suburban got 12 miles to the gallon and his newer one gets 24.
The big idea:So what to do it about? Increasingly, what we're told is that the future should include a tax on miles driven. There are lots of ways to do this, but none are simple.
So what to do? Easy enough: If the politicians believe more revenue is needed to pay for transportation, index the rate to keep up with both construction costs increases. If they believe it's being eroded by efficiency, simply index it to the increase in miles per gallon of the average car in Texas. Lawmakers could simply establish a baseline for the average fuel efficiency of the Texas fleet. The feds already track this here, and lawmakers could set the gas tax rate to increase every couple of years by an amount that is equal to the average increase in fuel efficiency.
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Micheal Lindenberger // February 10, 2010
As vehicles get more efficient, they will travel further on each gallon of gas. So each year, each driver will pay less in gas taxes, even as they drive as much or more on the roads that must be kept up. TxDOT chief Amadeo Saenz likes to say his old Suburban got 12 miles to the gallon and his newer one gets 24.
The big idea:So what to do it about? Increasingly, what we're told is that the future should include a tax on miles driven. There are lots of ways to do this, but none are simple.
So what to do? Easy enough: If the politicians believe more revenue is needed to pay for transportation, index the rate to keep up with both construction costs increases. If they believe it's being eroded by efficiency, simply index it to the increase in miles per gallon of the average car in Texas. Lawmakers could simply establish a baseline for the average fuel efficiency of the Texas fleet. The feds already track this here, and lawmakers could set the gas tax rate to increase every couple of years by an amount that is equal to the average increase in fuel efficiency.
MORE
The Gas Tax Versus a VMT Tax: Is ‘All of the Above’ an Option?
DC.StreetsBlog.org
Elana Schor // February 10, 2010
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 Yglesiasasserting that "a VMT [tax] has no advantages whatsoever over higher gasoline taxes" and Andrew Samwick suggesting that declining fuel tax revenues mean that tax rates need to go even higher.
That absence of a "direct nexus to road use" is a concept not easily understood by many Americans, especially drivers long inundated with misleading claims that the gas tax constitutes a user fee. As Ryan Avent has explained on this page, a user fee assumes that everyone on the road pays for the time they spend and the burden they place on it.
Elana Schor // February 10, 2010
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 Yglesiasasserting that "a VMT [tax] has no advantages whatsoever over higher gasoline taxes" and Andrew Samwick suggesting that declining fuel tax revenues mean that tax rates need to go even higher.
That absence of a "direct nexus to road use" is a concept not easily understood by many Americans, especially drivers long inundated with misleading claims that the gas tax constitutes a user fee. As Ryan Avent has explained on this page, a user fee assumes that everyone on the road pays for the time they spend and the burden they place on it.
But while 25 gallons of taxed gas will last for an estimated 725 miles in a 2010 Ford Escape hybrid SUV (at a combined 29 miles per gallon), the lighter 2010 Ford Mustang (estimated at 19 miles per gallon) would go just 425 miles while paying the same amount of gas tax. The heavier car ends up putting more stress on the road while paying less for it. Is that an equitable system of maintaining the transportation network?
MOREVehicle Miles Travelled Tax??
The Washington Post
Ashley Halsey III
February 7, 2010
Within a few years, a driver who pulls up to the gas pump may pay two bills with a single swipe of the credit card: one for the gas and the other for each mile driven since the last fill-up.
That may be the result of what many transportation experts see as an inevitable revolution in the way Americans pay for their highways.
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Ashley Halsey III
February 7, 2010
Within a few years, a driver who pulls up to the gas pump may pay two bills with a single swipe of the credit card: one for the gas and the other for each mile driven since the last fill-up.
That may be the result of what many transportation experts see as an inevitable revolution in the way Americans pay for their highways.
MORE
U.S. DOT Previews How New Transit Rules Could Define ‘Livability’
DC.StreetsBlog.org
Elana Schor // January 21, 2010
Addressing the U.S. Conference of Mayors, assistant transport secretary for policy Polly Trottenberg was asked by the mayor of Clearwater, Florida, to outline how the agency might "quantify livability" in its upcoming rulemaking.
Trottenberg said U.S. DOT learned decision-making lessons from the TIGER grants, a $1.5 billion competitive program in the stimulus law that she said called for extra sets of hands from the EPA and HUD.
Though Trottenberg was careful not to predict the content of still-unwritten regulations, she described some livability questions that came into play last year and could be a factor as the agency writes its new transit funding rules.
"Is this project going to include all modes?" she said. "[Will the project] help boost businesses on Main Street?"
MORE
Elana Schor // January 21, 2010
Addressing the U.S. Conference of Mayors, assistant transport secretary for policy Polly Trottenberg was asked by the mayor of Clearwater, Florida, to outline how the agency might "quantify livability" in its upcoming rulemaking.
Trottenberg said U.S. DOT learned decision-making lessons from the TIGER grants, a $1.5 billion competitive program in the stimulus law that she said called for extra sets of hands from the EPA and HUD.
Though Trottenberg was careful not to predict the content of still-unwritten regulations, she described some livability questions that came into play last year and could be a factor as the agency writes its new transit funding rules.
"Is this project going to include all modes?" she said. "[Will the project] help boost businesses on Main Street?"
MORE
Thursday, February 4, 2010
North TX Leaders to Take Another Stab at Local Transit Option Bill
Dallas Morning News
Michael Lindenberger // February 2, 2010
The Star-Telegram reports that after the hearing North Texas leaders laid out their plans for another run at the local-option tax bill that would allow local communities to vote to raise their own fees or taxes to pay for additional transportation investment.
MORE
Michael Lindenberger // February 2, 2010
The Star-Telegram reports that after the hearing North Texas leaders laid out their plans for another run at the local-option tax bill that would allow local communities to vote to raise their own fees or taxes to pay for additional transportation investment.
MORE
New Report Links Homeowners’ Auto Dependence With Foreclosure Risk
DCStreetsBlog.org
Elana Schor // January 28, 2010
Homeowners in car-dependent areas without access to alternative transportation 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.
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Elana Schor // January 28, 2010
Homeowners in car-dependent areas without access to alternative transportation 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.
MORE
Tuesday, February 2, 2010
Congress & Transportation Reform - Is Anyone Listening?
citiwire.net
Neal Pierce // January 16, 2010
Most everyone agrees that efficient roads, rails and air service are vital for our economy and our quality of life. Most of us see that without them, America will have a hard time competing against rising powers worldwide.
So why is Congress stalling? Representatives and senators know well that the federal transportation program expired last September. They keep passing temporary extensions without facing up to core issues–for example the federal gas tax stuck at 18.4 cents a gallon, unchanged for 17 years, despite escalating asphalt and concrete prices.
MORE
Neal Pierce // January 16, 2010
Most everyone agrees that efficient roads, rails and air service are vital for our economy and our quality of life. Most of us see that without them, America will have a hard time competing against rising powers worldwide.
So why is Congress stalling? Representatives and senators know well that the federal transportation program expired last September. They keep passing temporary extensions without facing up to core issues–for example the federal gas tax stuck at 18.4 cents a gallon, unchanged for 17 years, despite escalating asphalt and concrete prices.
MORE
Monday, January 25, 2010
Experts Weigh In -- Are New Transit Guidelines An Improvement?
National Journal Expert Blogs Transportation
January 19, 2010
Last week Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood proposed new livability-based funding guidelines for major transit projects and rescinded Bush administration requirements that based funding decisions on how much a project shortened commute times compared to its cost. The criteria determine which projects get funded under the Federal Transit Administration's New Starts and Small Starts programs.
"We're going to free our flagship transit capital program from long-standing requirements that have allowed us only to green-light projects that meet very narrow cost and performance criteria," LaHood told the Transportation Research Board annual meeting on Jan. 13. "Instead, as we evaluate major transit projects going forward, we'll consider all the factors that help communities reduce their carbon footprint, spur economic activity and relieve congestion. To put it simply, we will take livability into account."
Experts Reply on: What do you think of the new criteria that Secretary LaHood proposed?
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