Printer-friendly versionSend to friend

November 30, 2009

Hartford CT Parking
Amount of parking space in downtown Hartford, CT -- 1960 vs 2000
(Photo courtesy Hartford Courant)

Highlights

  • Brookline seeking stimulus money to help fix the MBTA's 66 (Brookline TAB)
    By Neal Simpson -- Given that her new Coolidge Corner apartment was on the same bus route as her Harvard Square office, Karen Yajnik figured she could look forward to a pretty straightforward commute. But now, Yajnik, a marketing consultant who commutes by bus daily when not traveling, has had to schedule her entire workday around the peak rider hours on Route 66, when the packed buses bunch up and come three at a time, or not at all. Other times, she’ll go way out of her way to take the train to another bus, which often results in a shorter commute.
  • Starts & Stops: MBTA veteran delays retirement to become acting chief operating officer (Boston Globe)
    By Noah Bierman -- The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority quietly made a promotion earlier this month that will play a crucial behind-the-scenes role in the life of riders. John C. Lewis, a 23-year veteran of the system who rose through the ranks to management, was persuaded to delay a retirement planned next month and stay on as acting chief operating officer, effective Nov. 12. The chief operating officer runs the daily nuts and bolts of the T, the nation’s fifth-largest public transit system.
  • Hartford: It's A Parking Place (Hartford Courant)
    Tripling Space For Cars Hasn't Helped City Prosper — It's Only Devalued Downtown
    By Norman W. Garrick and Christopher T. McCahill -- For the past half-century, city leaders in Hartford have worked hard to satisfy what they deemed to be a critical need — the need for more parking, so that downtown Hartford could compete with suburban office parks and shopping centers. This summer the Center for Transportation and Urban Planning at the University of Connecticut conducted a detailed study of the cumulative effect on the city of 50 years of providing parking. What we found was startling: Since 1960, the number of parking spaces in downtown Hartford increased by more that 300 percent — from 15,000 to 46,000 spaces. This change has had a profound and devastating effect on the structure and function of the city (see accompanying maps) as one historic building after another was demolished.
  • On the Road to Safety (NPR)
    By Marilyn Geewax -- This week, more than 33 million Americans will drive at least 50 miles to visit family and friends for Thanksgiving. The great majority will return home safely. But for too many families, this holiday will bring tragedy. Last year, during the four-day Thanksgiving driving period, nearly 400 people were killed in traffic accidents in the U.S., according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. For all of 2008, more than 37,000 people were killed in car crashes. Throughout this week, National Public Radio will be airing stories and hosting conversations about highway safety. We'll explore the many ways that safety has been improved through better vehicle technology, smarter road designs, and reformed behaviors, such as reduced drunken driving.
    [Links to the entire series are below.]
  • New Report: Road Funding From Non-Road Users Doubled in 25 Years (Streetsblog)
    By Elana Schor -- The myth that U.S. roads "pay for themselves" thanks to user fees is a subject that's likely familiar to many Streetsblog readers -- but just how much of the nation's highway funding is provided by charging drivers? The answer may surprise even active critics of the current asphalt-centric transportation system. Between 1982 and 2007, the amount of federal highway revenue derived from non-users of the highway system has doubled, according to a study released today by Subsidyscope.
  • Take the Metrobus in Mexico City (The Atlantic)
    By Christine Russell -- With hopes largely dashed for completing a comprehensive global climate change treaty agreement in Copenhagen next month, the spotlight will shift toward 2010 and upcoming international gatherings such as the United Nations climate change summit scheduled for next December in Mexico City.  The greening of this gridlocked, sprawling metropolis is underway, so delegates to the meeting--or any visitors to the city--should consider doing their own small part to combat global warming by taking the Metrobús when they get there.

"Streets"

Walking

Bicycling

Transit

  • Sketchbook: The CharlieCard (Boston Magazine)
  • Brookline seeking stimulus money to help fix the MBTA's 66 (Brookline TAB)
  • Staying afloat: Despite dip in ridership, officials proclaim Salem Ferry season a success (Salem Gazette)
  • MBTA replaces all cars on the Blue Line: On a scale of 1-10, give it a 6 (East Boston Times)
  • Green Line report criticized at Somerville hearing (Somerville News)
  • CSX Rail Agreement, South Coast Rail Plans Move Forward (Commonwealth Conversations)
  • Starts & Stops: MBTA veteran delays retirement to become acting chief operating officer (Boston Globe)

Cars/Parking

  • Fuel trucks: Not just NIMBYism (Boston Globe)
  • State Spends Millions On Empty Parking Spaces (WBZ)
  • Shoppers to park free Fridays, Saturdays (Boston Globe)
  • Letter: Meters are not the solution to downtown parking issue (Walpole Times)

Transportation financing/Government

  • Brookline Water Division head could be tapped to lead Department of Public Works (Brookline TAB)

Parks

Development projects

Out-of-state

  • MTA: Market Street Pilot is Improving Conditions for Muni, Bicyclists (Streetsblog SF)
  • Stretching the Limits of Washington's Dense Core (Transport Politic)
  • New Study Quantifies High Personal Costs of Building CA Cities for Cars (Streetsblog SF)
  • Pedicabs Will Now Be Inspected and Licensed (New York Times)
  • Daily News uncovers the city's best booming bike-friendly lanes (NY Daily News)
  • Hartford: It's A Parking Place (Hartford Courant)
  • Charles Diez Gets 120 Days for Shooting Cyclist in the Head (Streetsblog)
  • To Snap Drivers Awake, State DOT May Sacrifice Cyclist Safety (Streetsblog)
  • A lesson from New York on how to make the case for cycling (BikePortland)

National trends

  • On the Road to Safety (NPR)
    • Series Overview: How Safe Are Our Roads? (NPR)
    • Letter To A Speed Demon (NPR)
    • The Deadliest Roads Are Rural (NPR)
    • Small Cars Don't Get Any Respect (NPR)
    • On Two Wheels, The Road Looks Different (NPR)
    • Reining In Tailgate Parties A Challenge For Colleges (NPR)
    • Waging War on Distracted Driving (NPR)
    • Personal Rapid Transit: Future Or Elevated Fantasy (NPR)
    • Automakers Help Aging Drivers Travel More Safely (NPR)
    • When Emotions Go Into Overdrive (NPR)
  • Underground Psychology (Slate)
  • High-Tech Devices Help Drivers Put Down Phone (New York Times)
  • New Report: Road Funding From Non-Road Users Doubled in 25 Years (Streetsblog)
  • 'Cities for Cycling' could have huge impact on bikeway innovation (BikePortland)
  • It's all relative: conditions shaping road speeds and safe, comfortable places (Rebuilding Place in the Urban Space)

International news