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
Oberstar Says Goodbye, Mica Promises Rail and a Long-Term Bill
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Rep. Jim Oberstar said goodbye today after 36 years in the House, during which he helped pioneer federal support for biking and walking. “I go in peace of mind and heart, but with sadness,” he said in his concession speech. He said he wouldn’t change or take back any of his votes for transportation, especially […]
The Silver Lining: 73 Percent of Transpo Ballot Measures Win
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Ready for some good news? Voters around the country got to decide on 29 transportation-related ballot initiatives yesterday. According to an analysis by the Center for Transportation Excellence, transportation advocates and reformers won 73 percent of them. If you add in other initiatives that passed earlier this year, the victory rate jumps to 77 percent. […]
With Oberstar Gone, Who Will Lead the Democrats on T & I Committee?
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The Wall Street Journal has put out some thoughts about who might take up Jim Oberstar’s mantle now that he’s lost his seat by the narrowest of margins. (He would have lost the chairmanship in any case, since control of Congress flipped to the Republicans, but he would have been the ranking Democrat on the […]
Election Results: GOP Govs Win Big, Dems Take California, Oberstar Ousted
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The biggest news from last night, of course, is that the GOP won control of the House of Representatives. That means Republicans now control all the House committees, and Ohio’s John Boehner — a believer in wider highways — will wield the Speaker’s gavel. The Democrats hung on to the Senate, though, and pundits are […]
Will Georgia’s Next Governor ‘Unclog Atlanta’?
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This is the final installment of our series on high-stakes governor’s races. We hope you’ll be watching along with us tonight as the results come in for the races we’ve followed in Florida, Wisconsin, Ohio, California, Texas, Maryland, Colorado, and Tennessee. Now, we turn to Georgia. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood told Georgians two weeks ago, “If […]
Election Day Finds Two Livability Champions on the Ropes
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Rep. Jim Oberstar (D-MN) will likely lose his chairmanship of the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, as control of the House is widely expected to shift to the Republicans after today’s election. But Oberstar could also lose his seat in Congress. As committee chair, Oberstar has been a strong advocate for transit investment and livability reforms. […]
Will Florida’s Next Governor Sink the State’s Chances for Rail?
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We’re keeping the news coming on the governor’s races we’re following most closely. Check out our previous coverage of Wisconsin, Ohio, California, Texas, Maryland, Colorado, and Tennessee. This one could be the most important yet. The most high-profile election in Florida is the three-ring circus of a Senate race, with Republican-turned-Independent Charlie Crist trailing badly […]
Bike-Ped Funding Dips as Stimulus Spending Slows
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Via the League of American Bicyclists, new information is out about how much the feds are spending on bike-ped projects. While federal funding for bicycle and pedestrian projects is down a bit from last year’s all-time high, it still comes in at more than a billion dollars. A third of the money is from the American […]
Anti-Rail Candidates Take Aim at High Speed Dreams in the Midwest
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Here’s another installment of our series on key governor’s races. Here’s the news from Wisconsin and Ohio. Check out our previous coverage of California, Texas, Maryland, Colorado, and Tennessee. Let them serve as a reminder to vote on Tuesday. “I’m Scott Walker. And if I’m elected as your next governor, we’ll stop this train.” That’s […]
Governor Moonbeam versus eMeg: What’s at Stake for Transportation?
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Continuing with our series on key governor’s races, here’s some news on the contest in California. We’ve taken a look at some races in Maryland and Colorado where pro-transit, pro-bike candidates are likely to win. We examined the nuances of a candidate in Tennessee who’s a mixed bag on transportation issues. And yesterday we brought […]
T4America Maps TIGER Grantees: Find One Near You!
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Thanks to Transportation for America for putting together this handy-dandy map of TIGER recipients. It shows the geographical reach of the program, as well as the broad range of projects benefitting from the grants. Note that this map does not show planning grants. T4America says: In two batches in February and October 2010, USDOT gave […]
Texas Gov Rick Perry Could Get Four More Years to Build Mega-Highways
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This is the fourth installment of Streetsblog Capitol Hill’s series on key governor’s races. Earlier we brought you stories about a candidate who likes bikes but isn’t sure about transit in Tennessee, the choice between light rail and bus rapid transit in Maryland, and how bike paranoia is cutting the GOP off at the knees […]