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
Florida Gov. Scott Finds a Rail Project He Doesn’t Hate
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Florida Transportation Secretary Ananth Prasad has announced that Gov. Rick Scott’s administration will support the development of SunRail commuter rail. Acknowledging the strong support of Florida Republican John Mica, chair of the House Transportation Committee, Prasad said that his recent conversations with citizens and stakeholders convinced him that the project was worthwhile and that the […]
Bring Transit to Senior Citizens, or Bring Seniors to Transit?
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You don’t hear me say this often, but here goes: Randal O’Toole of the Cato Institute made a good point. At yesterday’s Senate Banking Committee hearing on transit access for senior citizens and people with disabilities, the sprawl-boosting O’Toole posed this question: “Should transit come to the people or should people come to transit?” The […]
TIGER III Will Grant $527 Million For Innovative Transportation Projects
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It’s TIGER III time. The first round was $1.5 billion. The second round was $600 million. And now, get ready for round three. After surviving countless threats by budget-cutting Republicans in Congress, TIGER is back, granting $527 million for innovative transportation projects. The “Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery” program lets cities, states and regions compete […]
Stimulus-Backed Programs Struggle to Stay Alive After Funds Run Out
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In an old supermarket space in the Westlake neighborhood of Los Angeles, a diverse community of bicycle aficionados are getting greasy. Young and old, Latino and white, they are truing wheels and replacing cables and adjusting brakes in L.A.’s newest, and completely unplanned, bike co-op. Bici Libre, as it’s called, got its start when the […]
Rumor Mill: House Leadership Hostile to Transpo Reauthorization
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A few weeks ago, House Majority Leader Eric Cantor published his list of bills the House will attempt to get through before the August recess. The transportation reauthorization was not among them. Rumor has it that House leadership has put the kibosh on Transportation Committee Chair John Mica’s plans to get a bill out of […]
USDOT Announces Funding For Transit Projects, Minus ARC Tunnel
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Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood yesterday announced $1.58 billion in New Starts grants that will fund 27 transit projects around the country. The only major difference between this list and the list of proposed projects that came out in February 2010 is the glaring absence of the ARC tunnel project that New Jersey Governor Chris Christie unceremoniously […]
The Economist Issues a Reality Check to Rail Privatization Proponents
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The Economist’s blog on business travel, Gulliver, has a short post this morning about Rep. John Mica’s proposal to privatize the Northeast Corridor. Blogger “N.B.” has a healthy dose of skepticism for arguments on either side but does significantly more damage to Mica’s argument that that of his opponents. Gulliver strikes a blow at the […]
Expect Two (Radically Different) Reauthorization Proposals Soon
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The Environment and Public Works Committee is getting ready to introduce their transportation reauthorization bill, according to reports by the Journal of Commerce. The committee has, shrewdly, worked closely with Finance Committee Chair (and EPW leader) Sen. Max Baucus (D-MT) on a way to pay for the bill, in order to avoid a situation like […]
NJ Rep. Frelinghuysen Goes After HSR Money Destined For His Own State
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As towns flanking the Mississippi and Missouri Rivers continue to be inundated with historically high water, it’s good to see Congress taking action to provide some relief. Unfortunately, that relief comes on the back of high-speed rail programs. Last week, Rep. Rodney Frelinghuysen (R-NJ), who chairs the Energy and Water Appropriations Subcommittee, introduced an amendment […]
25 Senators Demand Robust Transit Funding
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In a letter to Finance Committee leaders [PDF], 25 senators today urged adequate funding for mass transit in the next transportation authorization bill. The letter notes that public transportation systems find themselves in a budgetary crisis just as more and more people, driven by $4/gallon gas, are seeking out transportation options. During the worst economic […]
Mica Extends Olive Branch to Amtrak, Dems Pound Rail Privatization Plan
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Rep. Corrine Brown (D-FL), the top Democrat on the Railroads Subcommittee, began her remarks at yesterday’s Transportation Committee hearing like this: My notes say that I’m supposed to say, ‘Thank you Mr. Mica for holding today’s hearing.’ I don’t think so. Because I think legislation that affects the entire passenger and freight rail system in […]
Think Privatizing Amtrak Services is a Good Idea? Think Again.
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House Transportation Committee Chair John Mica (R-FL) is moving forward with his plan to hand over the Northeast Corridor to private companies, despite (or because of) the fact that such a move could write Amtrak’s obituary. Is privatizing the corridor a good move? Mica and Rep. Bill Shuster (R-PA) say that with the participation of […]