Recent Streetsblog USA posts about Streetsblog Capitol Hill

New Poll: Support For Transit Expansion Transcends Rural-Urban Divide

By Elana Schor | Mar 30, 2010 | 2 Comments

How respondents replied to the following statement: "My community would benefit from an expanded and improved public transportation system, such as rail or buses." (Chart: T4A) Despite the frequent reluctance of rural lawmakers to support more federal investment in transit, a majority of rural and urban voters alike believe their home towns would gain from […]

‘A Dozen or So’ Senators Delay Passage of Oberstar’s Highway Funding Fix

By Elana Schor | Mar 29, 2010 | 3 Comments

A contentious congressional dispute over $932 million in transportation funding remains unresolved this week after the Senate approved a one-month extension of federal aviation law rather than a three-month version of the bill that included a fix to the provision at issue. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) (Photo: LV City Life) House transportation committee […]

Could D.C. Become Transit’s New Civil Rights Battleground?

By Elana Schor | Mar 29, 2010 | 7 Comments

A $189 million budget shortfall for next year is forcing some tough choices on Washington D.C.’s local transit authority, which is poised to approve a package of fare increases and service cuts that includes a 35-cent hike for bus trips. One in five of D.C.’s bus commuters lives without a car, compared with one in […]

Oberstar Stays Optimistic About New Transport Bill in 2010

By Elana Schor | Mar 26, 2010 | 2 Comments

House transportation committee chairman Jim Oberstar (D-MN) today renewed his call for action on a new federal infrastructure bill before year’s end, using a hearing on the Obama administration’s stimulus law to urge passage of long-term legislation as well as a second round of short-term investment in roads, bridges, and rail. House transport committee chairman […]

New Stimulus Data: Road Funds 77% Under Contract, Transit at 74%

By Elana Schor | Mar 26, 2010 | 2 Comments

As of the end of February, nearly $5.4 billion of transit stimulus money, or 74 percent, was under contract for projects in the 50 states and D.C., according to a Streetsblog Capitol Hill analysis of data released today by the House transportation committee. (Photo: DMI Blog) The success rate of transit stimulus spending was slightly […]

Boxer Aims to Put TIGER-Type Program in Next Federal Transport Bill

By Elana Schor | Mar 25, 2010 | 2 Comments

During an otherwise-abbreviated hearing yesterday, Senate environment committee chairman Barbara Boxer (D-CA) joined the chorus of praise for the stimulus law’s TIGER program, declaring her intention to add a version of the competitive infrastructure grants to the next long-term federal transportation bill. Bicyclists in Philadelphia, where $23 million in TIGER money was awarded to build […]

Show More Stories