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February 17, 2009

Winter Cyclist
Winter cyclist on Mass Ave
(Photo courtesy Boston Globe)
 

Highlights

Winter Cyclist
Winter cyclist on Mass Ave
(Photo courtesy Boston Globe)
 

Highlights

  • BU bridge plans could spur road rage (Boston Globe, WHDH)
    By Stephanie Ebbert -- On the Boston University Bridge during a recent weeknight rush hour, bicyclists winced in the frigid air, moving quickly past the long line of cars whose brake lights glowed all the way from the rotary in Cambridge to the traffic light on Commonwealth Avenue.  Disgruntled drivers blamed the traffic chokepoint on a sidewalk repair project that has temporarily squeezed two lanes of bridge traffic down to one. Now, some fear that gridlock will become standard if the state proceeds with plans to close a traffic lane on the bridge to create two bike lanes.

    Letter to the Editor from advocates in response:
    BU Bridge work is an effort to forge path to better transit (Boston Globe)

  • T stops could wake up sleepy squares (Boston Globe)
    By Danielle Dreilinger -- SOMERVILLE -- Ball Square didn't draw much foot traffic on a typical sleepy afternoon last Sunday. A few people walked by the square's small shops - a salon, a wine store - and the square's popular brunch places. Wig Zamore, a Somerville transit advocate who holds unpaid positions on a number of transit-project boards, stood above a small, shabby parking lot. Across the street, a small building boasted a big "for sale or lease" banner. But if all goes according to the state's plan, in five years, that parking lot will be a station for the Green Line extension.

     

  • James Aloisi warns of dire cuts in T service, fare hikes (Boston Herald)
    MBTA riders face a 25 percent increase in fares, a 50 percent cut in evening service and an end to their commuter boat subsidies unless the state overhauls its transportation system, Transportation Secretary James Aloisi said yesterday. Aloisi also told Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority board members the state would have to cut 20 bus routes, RIDE van service to nine communities and its subsidy for suburban bus service unless reforms are adopted and new revenues found.

     

  • Massachusetts may consider a mileage charge (Boston Globe)
    By Glen Johnson -- A tentative plan to overhaul Massachusetts' transportation system by using GPS chips to charge motorists a quarter-cent for every mile behind the wheel has angered some drivers. "It's outrageous, it's kind of Orwellian, Big Brotherish," said Sen. Scott Brown, R-Wrentham, who drafted legislation last week to prohibit the practice. "You'd need a whole new department of cronies just to keep track of it." But a "Vehicle Miles Traveled" program like the one the governor may unveil this week has already been tested -- with positive results -- in Oregon.

     

  • Stimulus Roadblock? [Video] (NOW on PBS)
    President Obama's stimulus money is nearly out the door and on its way to the states, but will it be spent in the way it is intended? One alarming example: Mass transit. Cities and states, strapped for money, are cutting back on mass transit even as it becomes more popular with Americans. Meanwhile, President Obama is calling for increased mass transit as a necessary step toward energy independence. Will the government's investment dramatically revitalize our national travel infrastructure, or will states spend the money according to 'business as usual'?

     

  • The Day After -- Considering the Economic Stimulus (Transport Politic)
    House, Senate expected to vote on stimulus package over the next few days; Should we be content about transit’s share in the bill?
    Yesterday, the Congress’ Conference Committee finally came forward with its compromise stimulus legislation, which we detailed in the previous post. The final bill came as a bit of a shocker, as it substantially increased the amount of funds to be dedicated to intercity rail, from $1.1 billion in the House bill and $3.1 billion in the Senate bill to $9.3 billion in the final bill, which will be considered today by the House and Monday by the Senate. More evident in the blogosphere, however, was the negative reaction over the bill’s reduction in aid to transit, from $12 billion in the House bill to only $8.4 billion in the compromise legislation for formula grants, the New Start and Small Start programs, and fixed guideways modernization.
     

"Streets"

Walking

Bicycling

Transit

Cars/Parking

  • Should motorists ever talk on the phone? (CNN)
     

Transportation financing/Government

  • Transportation Finance Plan Position Paper [pdf] (A Better City)
  • Editorial: A transportation roadmap for the state (Boston Globe)
     
  • Gas tax hike fuels business ire (Boston Herald)
     
  • The Misuse of Stimulus Funds: South Coast rail exemplifies what isn't high-speed rail (Transport Politic)
     
  • Patrick taps real estate developer to oversee federal stimulus spending in Mass. (Boston Globe)
     
  • Radio Boston: Shovel Ready Massachusetts (WBUR)
     
  • When police park at HQ, regular rules do not apply (Boston Globe)
     
  • Massachusetts may consider a mileage charge (Boston Globe)
     
  • Mass Pike plan: Drive fast or pay up (Boston Herald)
     

Parks

Development projects

Land Use/Zoning

Out-of-state

National trends

  • You Told Us! What the new President and Congress should know about transportation [pdf] (AASHTO, Streetsblog)
     
  • When Shovel-Ready Infrastructure is Wrong (Right Now) (Popular Mechanics)
     
  • Earl Blumenauer talks transit, stimulus, bikes and Obama (Streetfilms)
     
  • Obama: The Days of "Building Sprawl Forever" Are Over (Streetsblog, WorldChanging)
     
  • Final Stimulus Bill Rewards HSR Massively; Falls Somewhere Between House and Senate on Transit (Transport Politic)
     
  • The Day After -- Considering the Economic Stimulus (Transport Politic)
     
  • Stimulus Roadblock? (NOW on PBS)
     
  • Does Stimulus Package Keep Green Goals in Sight? (NPR)
     
  • High-Speed Rail is Not Pork (Transport Politic)
     

International news