2/07/2011

Expo Line Testing, Westside Transit Rivalries, Free Transit For Homeless, How Late Is Late?, CalTrain Freefall, Innovative Bus Stops & More

19 Most Innovative Bus Stop Concepts (fascinating photos and renderings)
Waylou

$200 Million Settlement Fund Finalized For Victims Of Deadly Los Angeles Metrolink Train Wreck
Los Angeles Times

AASHTO Suggests Some Tools For Getting Out Of The Transpo Funding Mess
StreetsBlog DC

Announcing CicLAvia 2011: April, July, October
(dates and preliminary routes announced)
CicLAvia

Brooklyn Bus Riders Get Real-Time Bus Tracking Via Cellphone
Engadget

Caltrain Proposes Shuttering Half Its Stations (Service would be cut 44%, half the stations would close, mid-day and weekend service would be eliminated unless $30 million can be found for the West's oldest commuter rail)
San Jose Mercury News

Do American Drivers Get A "Dictator Discount" On Gasoline?
The Atlantic
Egypt And The Gas Pump: Do Revolutions Mean Higher Gas Prices?
Newsweek

Efficient Use Of Highway Capacity Summary: Report To Congress (100p. PDF : Evaluation of safety shoulders as travel lanes as a method to increase the efficient use of highway capacity)
Texas Transportation Institute

Establishing Best Practices For Removing Snow And Ice From California Roadways: Final Project Report (113p. PDF)
Western Transportation Institute, Montana State University for Caltrans Department Of Research And Innovation

Expo Line Train Testing To Start
Curbed LA

Getting It Done Or Getting It Right
("The surface transportation bill is likely to come up short on funding for everything the administration wants, but is it better to pass half a bill than no bill at all? Is this year the best chance for major transportation legislation to be completed? Or should we wait until Congress is less divided and budgets are less tight?")
National Journal Transportation Blog

GOP Targets Transportation, Housing For The Deepest Cuts (Sets spending ceilings, "cutting the budget for the Transportation and HUD Subcommittee by 17 percent, or $11.6 billion.")
StreetsBlog DC

Government Social Media: Five Questions For 2011 (Who are the public faces of government agencies online? Why is government social media organized around agencies and not topics? What is the relationship between social media for government and things citizens care about? Is government prepared to interact with Citizen 2.0? Where are the open government entrepreneurs?)
Fast Company

Homeless To Get Free Rides On Mass Transit In Santa Clara County
San Jose Mercury News

Infrastructure Needed For Proposed Downtown Stadium, But So Far No One Will Commit To Paying For It ("Among them are a scarcity of parking, outdated roadways and meager mass transit options.")
Whittier Daily News

The Interdependence Of Land Use And Transportation
Transport Politic

Is Six Minutes Late "On Time"? The [N.Y.] MTA Thinks So
Gothamist
PCAC Releases New Research Report On Performance Measurements (Permanent Citizens Advisory Committee To The [N.Y.] MTA)
Minutes Matter: A Review Of Performance Metrics At The MTA: Research Report (65p. PDF)

Letter From Bike Lane Opponents To DOT: Don't Make Us Pursue "Legal Remedies"
Transportation Nation

[N.Y.] MTA Eyes Sliding Doors On Subway Platforms To Prevent Falls Onto Tracks, Litter Thrown Onto Rails
New York Daily News

New York's Open-Fare Transit Plan Starts Down The Development Path
Digital Transactions

Simi Valley Residents Want More Highway 118 Sound Walls
Ventura County Star

Transportation Secretary Optimistic About Bill
Reuters

The Ugly Political Rivalries Of Westside Mass Transit
CityWatch

2/04/2011

Metro's 2-Minute Films, Expo Line Contract, South Vermont Subway?, Stimulus' Transportation Jobs, Bicycle Transit Center, Taxis Of Tomorrow & More

Architecture Firm Gensler To Move From Santa Monica To Downtown L.A.
Los Angeles Times

Award-Winning Transit-Oriented Development May Never Get Transit
StreetsBlog Network

Bicycle Transit Center
(includes impressive photos and architectural plans for Bikestation, Washington's Capital Bikeshare program's storage, repair and retail facility at D.C. Union Station)
Designboom

Bringing Science To Bike Sharing
Wired

Cavernous Crusades: With A Variety Of Construction Solutions, $15 Billion Worth Of Mass Transit Construction Is Well Under Way In New York City
Engineering News-Record

Editorial: A Bus Only Brouhaha: Bus-Only Lanes For Wilshire Boulevard Are The Latest Casualty Of The Political Wars Over Transit Policy In L.A.
Los Angeles Times

Expo Board Awards Light Rail Contract, Satisfied That Questions About Firms In Joint Venture Are Not Serious
Los Angeles Times

Feasibility Of A South Vermont Subway Line
Wilshire/Vermont

High-Speed Rail Leaders Delay Release Of Bay Area Plans For At Least A Year
San Mateo Mercury News

In U.S., Alternative Energy Bill Does Best Among Eight Proposals
Gallup

L.A. Air Officials To Vote On Pollution Trading
Los Angeles Times

LA's First Bus-Only Lane Hits Some Roadblocks
Natural Resources Defense Council Switchboard Blog

Montebello City Council To Consider Full Trench Resolution: A Townhall On Grade Separation Of The Alameda Corridor Railroad Tracks In Montebello Is Set For Feb. 24
EGP News

New Report Reveals Smart Transportation Spending Creates Jobs, Grows The Economy
Smart Growth America
Recent Lessons From The Stimulus: Transportation Funding And Job Creation (16p. PDF : February, 2011)
Smart Growth America
Which States Squandered Their Stimulus Money?
The Daily Beast

NYC Tunnel Tour, Part 1: Inside The Second Avenue Subway
(video : Insider tour of the first phase of a long-planned $4.5-billion Second Avenue Subway serving Manhattan's East Side)
McGraw-Hill Construction

Planning Department Considering Stronger Bike Parking Ordinance
StreetsBlog LA

Rosendahl Cuts Bus-Only Lanes In His District, Then Urges Santa Monica To Add Them
Santa Monica Lookout

SANBAG Board Balks At Condemnation Plan For Transit Project
Riverside Press-Enterprise

South Bay Group Submits Highway Projects List To MTA
Daily Breeze

Submit Your Videos About L.A. To Screen On The City's Buses
("Out The Window is looking for two-minute videos that are either created by local artists and filmmakers, or prominently feature Los Angeles as a subject or a setting. The selected videos will be shown on more than 2,000 Metro buses driving throughout the county daily -- that's an audience of over one million viewers a day.")
GOOD
Out The Window: About/By/In Los Angeles
Freewaves

Taxi Of Tomorrow (Outcome of Invitation to auto manufacturers and designers to submit their best ideas for a purpose-built vehicle to serve as a New York City taxicab. Whichever of these designs that the City selects, if any, will be the next New York City taxicab)
City Of New York

With A Deep Dig into Its Past, Perugia Built An Energy-Saving Future ("Perugia shows how even a small city can reap benefits from investment in pedestrian-friendly infrastructure. All it took was a succession of progressive-minded city officials, urban planners, and resident-dreamers who saw how Perugia’s geographic and historical preservation challenges could be used to its advantage.")
National Geographic

2/03/2011

Wilshire Bus-Only Lanes, Figueroa Redesign, CicLAvia II, Transpo Bill & Transit Jobs, Title VI, Flickr Milestone & More

1,000,000 And Counting: Metro Library's Historic Photo Collection On Flickr Hits A Major Milestone
Metro Transportation Library's Primary Resources Blog

AEG Lobbies Legislators For NFL Project In L.A.
("may be seeking a controversial environmental exemption.")
Los Angeles Times

APTA Survey: Transpo Bill Delay May Force Job Losses In U.S. Transit Industry
StreetsBlog DC

Commuters Look For Options As Road Work Causes Closures, Congestion In San Bernardino County
Redlands Daily Facts

Council Stands Ground On Wilshire Bus-Only Lanes
NBC Los Angeles

Council Votes For More Study For Wilshire Bus Only Project
StreetsBlog LA

Design Your Figueroa: Workshops To Preview Design Upgrades For Figueroa Corridor
Los Angeles Downtown News

The Dividends Of Car-Free Parenting
StreetsBlog Network

Florida Republican John Mica Could Be A Key Ally On High-Speed Rail
Transportation For America

Gas Prices Drop In LA County
Los Angeles Daily News

Interstate Of The Union
(audio : Discussion of President Obama's plans for transportion as laid out in the State of the Union address)
WNYC

L.A. Council Requests Study Of Shorter Wilshire Busway Route: Transit Officials Are Asked To Study A 5.4-Mile Alternative To The Planned 7.7-Mile Wilshire Busway. Both Routes Run From MacArthur Park To S. San Vicente Boulevard; The Longer Route Picks Up Again From Westwood To Centinela Avenue
Los Angeles Times

Planning Transit-Oriented Development Around High-Speed Rail Stations In Fresno And Bakersfield: Best Practices, Current Planning Efforts, And Recommendations
(148p. PDF)
Daniel Krause, San Jose State University

Residents Of Award-Winning, Transit-Oriented Development Say No To Transit
Sustainable Cities Collective

S.F. Parking Meters To Alert Drivers When Spot Is Open
Government Technology

Some Congressional Republicans Backing HSR
California High Speed Rail Blog

Transit Agency Compliance With Title VI: Limited English Proficiency Requirements (20p. PDF)
Transit Cooperative Research Program

We Love LA! (County And City!): Valentine's Celebration And Spring Transportation Conference (2p. PDF : February 17)
Move LA

What Are Best Practices In Transit Branding, Marketing And Communications? ("You can see elements of LA Metro uniform design guidelines across various print materials. This helps maintain a unified brand so that the agency is easily recognizable to its customers and other stakeholders.")
The City Fix

What Will Become Of Amtrak If It's Left Out Of Plans To Expand HSR?
StreetsBlog DC

What's Left Of BRT?: Bus Rapid Transit Won't Be Coming To Berkeley And Will Only Extend A Short Distance Into San Leandro. Even In Oakland, It May Face A Tough Road
East Bay Express

Wheels Are Rolling For A Second CicLAvia
Blog Downtown

Wilshire BRT Envy: Size Matters In Transit, Too
LA Observed

2/02/2011

Metro Service Changes, L.A. Port Plan, Carpooling & Freeway Lanes, Post-Petroleum World, Research Roundup & More

8 Weirdest-Looking Roads Around The World (photo essay)
Huffington Post

As Number Of Carpool Riders Fall, Why Is L.A. Doubleing Down On New Lanes?
StreetsBlog LA

Back Of The Bus: Mass Transit, Race And Inequality
Transportation Nation

Beverly Hills Residents Fight Westside Subway Extension Shop
USC Annenberg Neon Tommy

China To Create Largest Mega City In The World With 42 Million People
Telegraph (U.K.)

City Council Candidates Warn MTA At Subway Forum: Candidates For Beverly Hills City Council And BHUSD Board Members Lead Criticism Of MTA At Community Meeting
Beverly Hills Patch
MTA Plans Two More Beverly Hills Forums: The MTA Is Also Seeking Citizens To Join A Station Advisory Group To Help Plan The Design Of Each New Station
Beverly Hills Patch

Cut Or Restore? Metro Bus Service Changes for June 2011
StreetsBlog LA

House GOP Readies Severe New Restrictions On EPA
Huffington Post
Democrats Plan To Neuter EPA's Climate Regs
Mother Jones

Is Extending South Bay Bike Path Worth A Debate? LADOT, NIMBY's Say No
StreetsBlog LA

Key Democratic Panel Approves McDonnell's Transportation Plan
Washington Post

L.A. Council Rejects 1,000-Job Shipyard Plan For Fear Of Complicating Port's Channel-Deepening Project
Los Angeles Times

Los Angeles Aims To Win NFL Team As Farmers Insurance Puts Name On Stadium
Bloomberg

The Moms Aren't Wrong: Why Planning For Children Would Make Cities Better For All
GOOD

MTA Staff Wants To Cut 10 More L.A. Bus Lines By June, Shrink 16 Others
LA Weekly

New Metra CEO Vows To Boost Passenger Satisfaction, Bring Reforms: Former Los Angeles Transit Official Launches Customer Survey
Chicago Tribune

Official Wants To Downsize Busways Linking Downtown L.A. And Westside: L.A. Councilman Bill Rosendahl Proposes That The Bus-Only Lanes End At Beverly Hills And That The Westwood Section And The Remaining Route To Santa Monica Be Eliminated. Environmentalists And Transit Advocates Oppose His Plan
Los Angeles Times

Opinion: Renovating CRAs: The State's Community Redevelopment Agencies Should Be Reformed. Gov. Brown's Plan To Eliminate Them Is Overkill
Los Angeles Times

Peering Into A Post-Petroleum World: As Protests In Egypt Underscore The Hazards Of Relying On Imported Oil, A Bus And Bike-Riding Scientist At UCLA Is Working On Clean Fusion Energy That Could Wean Us From Foreign Fuel
Los Angeles Times

Recession Slows Use Of Orange County's Toll Roads: Drivers Are Opting To Spend More Time On Freeways And Less Money On Tolls
Los Angeles Times
O.C. Toll Roads Hit By Recession: Would You Pay For A Faster Commute?
Los Angeles Times

Red Light Cameras: Money Makers -- And Life Savers
Transportation Nation
Effect Of Red Light Camera Enforcement On Fatal Crashes In Large US Cities (18p. PDF)
Insurance Institute For Highway Safety

Re-Thinking TOD: The Transportation Planner's Dilemma To Transit Oriented Development
The Alan Note

Research Roundup: Which High-Speed Rail Corridors Are Poised For Success? How Does Smart Growth Promote Wealth? Why Is Intercity Bus Travel The Fastest Growing Transportation Mode?
Metro Transportation Library Primary Resources Blog

Transit Plans Topic Of Neighborhood Forum
Blog Downtown

2/01/2011

Expo Bike Lane?, Sunset-405 Bridge, High-Tech Intercity Buses, Pacific Electric Photostream, New & Notable Titles, Reading L.A., Brown's Budget & More

Above It All In L.A. Traffic (Taking public transportation around Los Angeles proves surprisingly easy and enjoyable)
Washington Post

Alhambra To Discuss Response To High-Speed Rail's Aerial Structure
Pasadena Star-News

Amazing Image From The Future: The Sunset-405 Bridge Of Tomorrow: The MTA Has Released An Artist's Rendering Of What We'll See When The 405 Construction Project Is Finished
Brentwood Patch

BHUSD's Softer Approach Aims To Calm Dealings With MTA
Westwood-Century City Patch

Biggest TRB Meeting Ever Highlights Visionary Bicycle Research
StreetsBlog DC
Transportation Research Board 90th Annual Meeting (Washington, DC : January 23-27, 2011)

Brentwood On The Bus: What Are The Odds?
Westside Today

Brown Argues For His Budget Plan In State Of The State Address
Los Angeles Times

City Submits Its Proposal To Run ONT
San Bernardino Sun

Cloud Computing In Government Explodes
Governing

Committee Of 100: Most Of The Streetcar Routes Make Sense (The Committee Of 100 On The Federal City is a non-profit planning and land-use advocacy organization which has been studying the viability of a streetcar system in Washington, D.C.)
Washington City Paper
Building A World-Class Streetcar System For A World-Class City: System Recommendations And Route Assessment (95p. PDF)
Committee Of 100 On The Federal City

Get On The Bus!: New Project Puts Endangered Species On [S.F.] MUNI Buses
Bay Nature

The High-Tech Bus Is The Fastest Growing Form Of Intercity Transportation
Transportation Nation

How Cars Won The Early Battle For The Streets
StreetsBlog Network

Interesting Pacific Electric Photographs
Various Sources on Flickr via Flickriver Application

Is A Vehicle Mileage Tax Coming To A State Near You?
Infrastructurist

More Republicans Take To Obama's High-Speed Rail Plan
AltTransport

National Bike Summit
League Of American Bicyclists

New And Notable: Reinventing The Automobile Through Personal Urban Mobility, Sustainable Urban Development Reader & Urban Design For An Urban Century
Metro Transportation Library Primary Resources Blog

New San Francisco Bike Lanes Too Dangerous To Use: Shared Lanes In The Middle Of Busy Downtown Streets Are Going Unused -- Just One Of the Challenges Facing The City's Bike Plan (includes video)
Bay Citizen

Rail Transit: Reliability Of FTA's Rail Accident Database (10p. PDF)
U.S. Government Accountability Office

Reading L.A.: Louis Adamic And Morrow Mayo (Discussion of the first two titles in the foundational literature of Los Angeles' urban development. Two titles will be discussed each month for the rest of the year)
Los Angeles Times
Reading L.A.: An Update And A Leap From 25 To 27
Los Angeles Times

Twitter, Facebook Are Part Of New Terror Alert System: National Terrorism Alert System Replaces Former Color-Coded Alerts
Federal Computer Week

Watching Our Words: "Route" Or "Line"?
Human Transit

Will President Obama Raise The Gas Tax?
Washington Post

Will West LA Have A Bike Path Along The MTA Expo Line? It Depends Who You Ask
Rancho Park Online