Today's Headlines - more at Metro

12/18/2009

Transportation Headlines for Friday December 18, 2009

TheSource.metro.net

Another Court Decision Goes In Favor Of State Transit Agencies
LA StreetsBlog

Avenue Becomes Bike-Friendly: Street Markings Called Sharrows Indicate Where Bicyclists Should Travel On Roads
Glendale News Press

City Of Burbank Adopts Far-Reaching Bike Master Plan!
Los Angeles County Bicycle Coalition

Debate Panelists Split Over Buses, Broader Impact Of Transit Investments
Transportation For America

Deficient Roadways Cost Los Angeles Drivers Nearly $2,500 Annually, $40 Billion Statewide: Without A Reliable, Significant Boost In Funding, Transportation Woes Will Worsen
(2p. PDF)
TRIP National Transportation Research Group
Los Angeles Metro Area details (4p. PDF)

Gold Line Safety Gates On Fast Track
EGP News

Highland Avenue, Interstate 5 Cited As Among L.A. Area’s Most Deteriorated Roads
Los Angeles Times

L.A.’s Transportation Department Likely To See 10% Reduction In Staffing
LAist

Metro Seek Millions For Westside Subway & Connector
LAist

Metrolink To Receive New Crash-Resistant Cars Next Month: The 117 Cars Have Energy-Absorbing Ends To Distribute The Force Of Head-On Crashes And Feature Breakaway Interior Tables
Los Angeles Times

Modern Streetcars Debut In Vancouver (after 65 years absence)
Regarding Place

[New York] M.T.A. Approves Big Service Cuts In Mass Transit
New York Times

Recession Obsession: Eating On The Purple Line
LAist

Report Details California’s Transportation Shortfall
Sacramento Bee

Roll Up the Pavement: Gravel Is Making A Comeback
Associated Press

Senate Climate Bill Invests Big In Transit, Reaps Big Deficit Reduction
LA StreetsBlog

This Is Not Your Father’s DOT: Transportation Sec. Ray LaHood (interview)
The Takeaway

Transit Coalition’s “Simplified Network” Could Create Millions For Metrolink
LA StreetsBlog

Transit Jobs Nearly Twice As Cheap To Create As Roads – By Congress’ Math
LA StreetsBlog

Two Dems Propose To End Bush-Era Rule on Transit “Cost-Effectiveness”
DC StreetsBlog

Updated: MTA Changes Its Mind, Offers Orange Line On New Year’s Eve
Los Angeles Daily News

Villaraigosa In Copenhagen: L.A. Needs To Do More For Bikes
LA StreetsBlog

Westchester, El Segundo Maintenance Facility Sites Taken Off Grid; Light Rail Line Gets New Name
Argonaut

White Paper: Transportation Adaptation To Global Climate Change (64p. PDF)
Bipartisan Policy Center, National Transportation Policy Project, Rockefeller Foundation

Wilshire Subway: Fed Funds Requested, Crenshaw Stop Blasted
LA Curbed

Worth The Wait? (how advertisers are transforming the drab city transit stop)
New York Times

12/17/2009

Transportation Headlines for Thursday December 17, 2009

TheSource.metro.net

The 4 [U.S.] Highway Projects That Would Be The Biggest Waste Of Money (includes California I-710 extension)
Infrastructurist

$8 Billion In High-Speed Rail Funds To Be Allocated – Soon
Popular Mechanics

California Transit Agencies Receive $29 Million In Homeland Security Grants
California Emergency Management Agency

Council Unhappy With Proposal: Members Tell City Planners To Focus On A Plan That Doesn’t Include Less Parking
Burbank Leader

CTA Opens Transit Data
Planetizen

Federal Highway Administration Revises Rules To Make Highways Safer: U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood Calls Updates Needed And Welcome
U.S. Department of Transportation

House Jobs Bill Answers Some Key Transportation Questions
LA StreetsBlog

House Jobs Bill Could Make General Electric’s Amtrak Wish Come True
DC StreetsBlog

Improving Environmental Efficiencies In Transit
Transport Politic

L.A. Metro To Operate Metro Orange Line All Night New Year’s Eve (in addition to all other rail lines)
Metro Press Release

Metrolink Got A Waiver To Not Post Simple Safety Signs: More Than A Decade Ago, The Commuter Rail Agency Bypassed A Federal Requirement That Was Intended To Help Avoid Accidents Like Last Year's Deadly Chatsworth Crash
Los Angeles Times

The Next Internet Boom – Connected Cars: Users Expected To Amount to 55 Million In 2016
iSuppli Applied Market Intelligence

Opinion: West Can’t Support High-Speed Rail Scheme
Denver Post

Putting The Stimulus To Work
(graphic representation of top municipal recipients and to which sectors they’re funneling their funds)
GOOD

Safe Routes To School, Putting Traffic Safety First: How Safe Routes To School Initiatives Protect Children Walking And Bicycling
(22p. PDF)
Safe Route Partnership

Secretary Napolitano Announces Grant Guidance For More than $250 Million In Fiscal Year 2010 Transit Security Grants
Department Of Homeland Security

Solar Panels Installed At Gold Line Station
Brigham Yen

Southern California's Roadways Costly And Crumbling
Contra Costa Times

A Suite Of Solutions Necessary For Energy Efficient Transportation
Environmental Defense Fund Way2Go

Tracking Bicycle Trips
(smartphone app that allows cyclists to communication seamlessly with area transportation planners)
The City Fix
San Francisco County Transportation Authority Cycletracks for iPhone and Android page

Video: LaHood Visits “The Daily Show” To Talk Transportation
DC StreetsBlog

Wireless Parking (video: What if sensors on the street knew exactly which parking spots were free? San Francisco utitilizes real-time information as a smarter way to park)
GOOD

With New Extension In Place, Light Rail Officials To Put Best Foot Forward For Rose Bowl, Parade
Pasadena Star-News

12/16/2009

Transportation Headlines for Wednesday December 16, 2009

TheSource.metro.net

2010: Turning Point For American Communities?
On The Commons

California Port Truckers Will Protest, Reportedly Strike
Land Line

Clean Truck Program At [Los Angeles And Long Beach] Ports Wins EPA Award
Daily Breeze

The Daily Drudge: Who Is Most Frustrated By The Daily Commute? (U.S. ranks 12th of 13 nations in study of average commute to work)
The Economist

Demographics May Be Destiny, But Mind The Assumptions
New Geography

Driveway Shenanigans In Silver Lake? Another Curb Removed
LA Curbed

The Eastside Gold Line Rail As A Learning Tool For At-Risk Youth
LA StreetsBlog

Ensuring California HSR Doesn't Become The Next Seattle Monorail
California High Speed Rail Blog

Fare Confusion On Silver Line
MetroRider LA

How The Streets Of New York Got More Dangerous (the dangers of texting while walking…but there’s an app for that)
New York Times

Improving Pedestrian And Motorist Safety Along Light Rail Alignments
Transportation Research Board
Full-text report (159p. PDF)
Selected appendices (341p. PDF)

Media Mayhem - Driving Around In Circles: When All Reason Says We Ought To Be Backing More Transportation Options, The Media Is Still Obsessed With Automobiles
Mother Nature Network

MIT Unveils New “Smart” Bike Wheel
CNET

Move L.A. Wants To Get Moving!
LA StreetsBlog

New Report: Minority-Owned Businesses Left Out Of Transportation Stimulus
DC StreetsBlog

On The Pitfalls And Benefits Of National Transit Safety Standards
DC StreetsBlog

Orange Line Riders Left Out Of The Part[y] On New Year's Eve
Los Angeles Daily News

Reinventing Cities Critical To Climate
American Public Media Marketplace

The Return Of The Two-Way Street: Why The Double-Yellow Stripe Is Making A Comeback In Downtowns
Governing

A Streetcar Named Monorail
Long Beach Post

TOD Help For Metropolitan Planning Organizations: Center for Transit-Oriented Development Is Building Expanded Best Practices Guide For MPOs
Reconnecting America

Transportation-HUD Omnibus Favors High-Speed Rail
Mass Transit

Transportation ID Program Lacks A Reliable Disaster Recovery Plan, GAO Says
Government Computer News

Truckers Protest In Downtown L.A. Against New Clean-Air Rules At Ports
Los Angeles Times

Your Turn: What Do You Want To See On Los Angeles’ Streets In 2010?
LA StreetsBlog

12/15/2009

Transportation Headlines for Tuesday December 15, 2009

TheSource.metro.net

The 2009 Business Plan Is Out (higher cost, higher fares)
California High Speed Rail Blog

AASHTO Testifies That ARRA Is Delivering Jobs, Boosting Economy
ThomasNet News

Bike Coalition’s Bike Count Hints At Chronic Undercounting Of L.A. Cyclists
LA StreetsBlog

Can Entrepreneurs Drive People Movers To Success?
Harvard Business School Working Knowledge

Congress Increases Funding For Public Transportation And Provides For New Funds For High-Speed Rail
APTA

Crash Course In Transit Safety (examining motor vehicle collisions with light rail trains)
Texas Transportation Institute

The Exodus: 2,400 City Of L.A. Employees Prepare To Retire
(includes 161 from Department of Transportation)
LAist

Google Maps Feature Watch: Nearby Transit Stops In Search Results
Trillium Solutions

Greenways Can Achieve Most Of 2020 US Climate Goal (transforming our transportation system from polluter to solution)
Huffington Post

How The Connected Car Is Altering The GPS Landscape
GPS Business News

In Compton, A Runway From The Past With An Eye On The Future
Los Angeles Times

Map: A Beefed Up Vision Of High Speed Rail In The West
LAist

Metrolink Looks Into Crossing: Board Of Directors Considers Closing The Doran Street Train Junction After Fatality
Glendale News Press

Modern Train Service Slowed By Freight
Chicago Sun-Times

New Center For National Policy President Hopes To Rescue U.S. Infrastructure
The Infrastructurist

Oberstar: Much Unfinished Business Remains
Roll Call

OCTA Scales Back Plan To Add Metrolink Trains
Orange County Register

Railroads Await FRA’s Final Implementation Rule On PTC (Positive Train Control)
Progressive Railroading

Rethinking Green: Save The Environment – Don’t Take Transit
Vancouver Sun

Scientists Create Formula For Perfect Parking (mathematical formula to help motorists park perfectly)
Telegraph (London)

Social Media Called Just Another Communications Tool: Agencies Should Look At The Technology As Another Way To Interact With The Public, Experts Say
Federal Computer Week

Streetcar Project Receives Federal Funding, Wants To Ask For More (downtown Los Angeles streetcar project)
Blog Downtown
Press Release from the Office of Councilmember Jose Huizar (2p. PDF)

U.S. System For Tracking Traffic Flow Is Faulted
New York Times

Valley Eyes $1 Million In New Fed Transportation Funding
San Fernando Valley Business Journal

What Are All Those Roadway Devices?
IN Denver Times

12/14/2009

Transportation Headlines for Monday December 14, 2009

TheSource.metro.net

The 9th Annual Year In Ideas: Bicycle Highways
New York Times Magazine

Airport Breaks Ground On New Parking Garage
Long Beach Press-Telegram

BART Board OKs Peoplemover To Oakland Airport
San Francisco Chronicle

Bus Vs. Rail: An Oversimplified Comparison
Human Transit
Express Bus Vs. Rail Transit: How A Marriage Of Mode And Mission Affects Transit Performance
Transportation Research Record

City Council Has An Opinion On The 710 Extension
LA Curbed

Expo Line Authority Says They Are Not Over Budget
LAist

L.A.'s Metro Takes Aim At Cheaters
USC Annenberg Neon Tommy

Lawmakers Want To Expand Cell Usage (U.S. subway systems without cell service considered a public safety hazard during an emergency)
The Hill

Metrolink Board Decides To Delay Fare Hikes, Route Cuts
Los Angeles Times

Metrolink's Chief Executive Takes A Demotion: David R. Solow, Head Of The Regional Commuter Rail Service For More Than A Decade, Will Become An Advisor For Implementig A New Train Safety System - Eric Haley Will Become Interim Chief
Los Angeles Times

New Metro Line Makes Van Nuys Convenient
Los Angeles Daily News

New MTA Blogger Talks Transit From Both Sides Of The Tracks
USC Annenberg Neon Tommy

NYC Cyclists Bike Into Buildings
(new city law allows cyclists to bring bicycles into office buildings to encourage alternative transportation)
American Public Media Marketplace

Opinion: Shifting Gears In L.A.: Many Cities Around The World, Including Some In The U.S., Are Putting The Focus On Bicycles For Short Trips, And They're Making It Happen - Shouldn't Los Angeles Go With The Flow?
Los Angeles Times

Pew: "Self-Sustaining" Highways Are Increasingly Subsidized
Transportation For America

Plans To Overhaul Accident Prone Rail Crossing In Industry Encounters Problems
San Gabriel Valley Tribune

Rise In Sea Levels Threatens California's Ports
Los Angeles Times

We're Thru: Has The American Romance With The Drive-Through Gone Sour?
Slate

Will Black Contractors Participate In Crenshaw Light Rail Project?
Los Angeles Sentinel