Elana Schor
Recent Posts
How Much Would Most People Pay For a Shorter Commute?
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(Data: IBM’s CPI) As Washington conventional wisdom has it, raising gas taxes or creating a vehicle miles traveled tax to pay for transportation is impossible during the current recession. After all, who would want to squeeze cash-strapped commuters during tough economic times? As it turns out, the public is very willing to pay for the […]
Dodd Stays at Helm of Transit Panel — But at a Cost to Climate Bill?
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Sen. Chris Dodd (D-CT) announced this afternoon that he would stay on at the helm of the Banking Committee, which also has jurisdiction over federal transit issues, rather than move over to lead the health panel previously led by his friend, the late Sen. Ted Kennedy (D-MA). Sen. Chris Dodd (D-CT) (Photo: The Washington Note) […]
Compromise or Concession: Congress Faces Tough Transport Choices
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Health care and transportation funding are very different items on Congress’ to-do list, but the Washington Post’s assessment of the former issue fits the latter as well: Lawmakers return today from a month-long recess to find a political landscape that has barely shifted from the impasse of late July. Sen. George Voinovich (R-OH) (Photo: UPI) […]
Mmmm, This ‘Pork’ Sounds Tasty: Senators Serve Up Transit Aid
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One of Washington’s most enduring truisms is that "pork" is in the eye of the beholder. Self-styled anti-earmark crusaders are fond of bashing clean transportation projects as improper uses of taxpayer money, but most of them recognize privately that rail, bus, and bike investments are a good thing. He may not like to admit it, […]
Feds Still Forcing Transit Agencies to Bow to Private Charter Buses
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Streetsblog Capitol Hill reported yesterday that the U.S. DOT would end a Bush-era mandate to reward new transit projects for using private contractors — but a similar pro-privatization rule for bus service remains in effect, preventing local transit agencies from competing with private charter companies. Fairgoers in Minnesota depart a private charter bus that benefited […]
Killing the Myth of the ‘More Shovel-Ready’ Road Stimulus
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During debate over the White House’s $787 billion economic stimulus law, transit advocates watched as their projects were shortchanged and more "shovel-ready" road projects got the lion’s share of the transport pot — about $8.4 billion, compared with $26.5 billion for highways and bridges. (Photo: DMI Blog) But transit money is getting put to use […]
U.S. DOT to Stop Rewarding Transit Projects That Use Private Contracts
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The Obama administration will reverse a Bush-era policy that gave proposed transit projects a leg up in the chase for federal money if their operations and maintenance were to be contracted out privately, according to a regulation finalized today. Riders in New Orleans, where streetcars are soon to be operated by a private contractor. (Photo: […]
‘Clunkers’ Consequences: GM Sales Down, Ford Gas-Guzzlers Up
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When Congress tripled the size of the "cash for clunkers" program in July, both Congress and the White House billed the $3 billion program as a boon for struggling domestic automakers. But when those Detroit car companies released sales figures today, the numbers didn’t quite match up to the hype. (Photo: AFP/Getty) General Motors and […]
New Poll: Public Supports Congestion Tolling Over Gas Tax Hike by 2 to 1
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(Graphic: HTNB) The puzzle of how to pay for new federal investments in transportation is the single greatest stumbling block facing members of Congress — should a gas tax increase be combined with a vehicle miles traveled (VMT) tax? How about a national infrastructure bank that leverages private capital? A poll released today by the […]
EPA Chief Urges a More Urban Environmentalism to Fight Climate Change
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With Congress returning to work next week after a month away from Washington, a national dialogue long dominated by health care is about to open to the long-awaited Senate debate on climate change. EPA administrator Lisa Jackson (Photo: Legal Planet) But industry-funded efforts to derail legislative action are already receiving undeservedly credible coverage in the […]
Senator Dukakis? What the Loss of Kennedy Could Mean for Transport Policy
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As the nation mourns the loss of Sen. Ted Kennedy (D-MA), a discussion has begun over how to fill his outsized shoes, both in Massachusetts’ Senate seat and atop the Senate health committee — two vacancies that could have notable consequences for transportation policy-making. Is rail booster Michael Dukakis headed for the U.S. Senate? (Photo: […]
Know Your Transportation Lobbyists: The American Trucking Association
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Earlier this week, we took a closer look at the congressional lobbying teams employed by the transport sector’s biggest players, AASHTO and APTA. Today, it’s time to meet the representatives of the American Trucking Association (ATA), which reported $1.32 million in lobbying spending during the first half of this year on its congressional disclosures — […]