Today's Headlines - more at Metro

1/06/2011

Metrolink "Express?", Reactions To Proposed Metro Service Changes, Carpool Lane Expansion, CA Amtrak Ridership Up, Abandoned Railroad Tracks Of L.A.,

10 Transportation Trends That Rocked 2010
Wired

America's High-Speed Rail Shambles: Where Has All The Money Gone?
Telegraph (U.K.)

Bob's Big Boy In West Covina Closes In Anticipation Of 10 Freeway Carpool Lane Expansion
Pasadena Star-News

BP Develops Improved Ethanol, Hasn't Spilled It Yet
("Scientists have created a supercharged yeast that can gobble up sugar faster and more efficiently than any other yeast.")
Fast Company

Brown To Propose Broad List Of Budget Cuts ("Brown wants to eliminate redevelopment agencies altogether; it is not clear whether that would require voter approval. He intends to use the money to offset state budget costs for one year and then give the money to counties and schools thereafter.")
Sacramento Bee

BusChopper: Metro Weighs More Cuts, Changes To Lines
Curbed LA

Calif. Amtrak Ridership Rising On State Trains
San Francisco Chronicle

China To Invest More Than $100 Billion In Rail
MarketWatch

CicLAvia Organizers Plan For Round 2
Los Angeles Times

Critics Charge New GOP Rules Will Hurt Transportation Funding
Bond Buyer

Dramatic Spike In Gas Prices Forecast
Washington Times

Federal Officials Give OK For Preliminary Engineering On Westside Subway
Los Angeles Times

Highway 330 Repair May Take Two Years
San Bernardino Sun

L.A. Budget Chief Says Police Hiring At Risk Without Lease Of City Parking Garages
Los Angeles Times

Metro Proposes More Cuts To Bus System
StreetsBlog LA
Full Statement Of Dana Gabbard On Metro Proposed Service Changes For June Of 2011
StreetsBlog LA
Preliminary Statement Of The Transit Coalition On Metro's Proposed Service Cuts For June Of 2011
StreetsBlog LA
Kymberleigh Richards' Statement On Proposed Metro Service Changes For 2011
StreetsBlog LA

Metro To Hold Six Public Hearings In February On Proposed Bus Service Changes For Implementation In June 2011
Metro

Metro To Move Forward With Westside Line, Downtown Subway Connector
Beverly Hills Courier

Metrolink Looking To Test Express Service, Could Save Riders 45 Minutes
KCET SoCal Focus

NYC Tries "Rapid" Buses In Bid To Cut Transit Costs
New York Times

Port Of L.A. To Ensure That Small Businesses Get 5% Of Contracts
Daily Breeze

A Powerful Argument For U.S. High-Speed Rail ("The first response to a proposed rail project these days is that it’s too expensive and won’t pay for itself. But if economic efficiency is the ultimate goal, then all types of transportation should have to pay for their infrastructure. That means drivers should cover the cost of road maintenance and construction (which they don't), and that means raising the gas tax (which we won't)")
Infrastructurist

Railroad Bridge Retrofit To Cause Traffic Delays In Arcadia
Pasadena Star-News

The Secret Underground World Of New York City
Wired

Send In Your Transpo Questions For The 112th Congress
StreetsBlog DC

South Bay Bicycle Coalition To Hold Meetings On Regional Bike Path Plan
Daily Breeze

Stick Shift: Chris Burden Makes Automated Art Out Of L.A. Freeways
Vanity Fair

Subway And Regional Connector Chugging Along Into 2011
(Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa)
Huffington Post

Transport Study Derails Thinking On Outer Suburbs ("Residents in the outer suburbs should not have to wait for higher housing densities before getting better public transport, according to research that could defuse one of the most bitter controversies in urban planning...Higher densities did not always mean better mass transit, citing the relatively low rail and bus use in Los Angeles, even though it is the most densely populated city in the United States.")
The Age (Australia)

US Approval Brings LA's Westside Light Rail Closer ("Los Angeles has received federal approval for preliminary engineering work on a $4.2 billion light rail line connecting downtown with the city's west side." Westside Subway Extension is erroneously depicted as light rail)
San Francisco Chronicle

What's Bugging You? Old, Worn Railroad Tracks
("If you have old abandoned railroad tracks in your neighborhood, the MTA can let you know if they're the ones set to be replaced. Rail companies such as BNSF have a website where you can report rough railroad crossings and they will send engineers to check them out.")
KABC-7

1/05/2011

Transit Music Videos, BBB Award, Skateboard Commutes, Ideology & Transpo Funding, Do Roads Pay For Themselves?, CityVille Takes Over & More

2010: The Year In Transit
Riding In Riverside

BBB Receives Award For High Tech Bus Stops
Santa Monica Daily Press

CityVille Overtakes FarmVille As Facebook's Top App
Grist

Do Roads Pay For Themselves?: Setting The Record Straight On Transportation Funding (45p. PDF)
CalPIRG Education Fund

Don Ward: Advocate Of The Year Acceptance Speech
StreetsBlog LA

Earmarks To Nowhere: States Losing Billions
USA Today

Food Deserts: Another Way The Deck Is Stacked Against Car-Free Americans
StreetsBlog DC

High-Tech Upgrades To Drive MBTA In '11: Riders Will Get More Apps, Info
Boston Herald

Highway Trust Fund Rescue Effort
Bond Buyer

Hutchinson: EPA Climate Rules Like "A New Gas Tax"
The Hill

Ideological Debate Simmers Over How To Determine Appropriate Transportation Funding Levels
Transport Politic

Lots Of Worry: Businesses Fear Hikes At L.A. Parking Garages
Los Angeles Business Journal

Minding The Gap: Deficit Spending And Transportation
Natural Resources Defense Council Switchboard Blog

Pedestrian-Only Shopping Streets Make Communities More Livable ("Particularly when they are well designed, managed and strategically connected to networks of public transit, pedestrian paths and bike routes.")
Planetizen

Planning The Future Of Our Streets: An LA StreetsBlog Event (Free event : Pasadena : January 18)
Southern California Public Radio

Port Of Long Beach Celebrates Centennial Year: Seaport Marks 100-&ear Anniversary With Events, Website
Everything Long Beach
Port Of Long Beach Centennial Website

Skateboarders Aim To Flip Commuter Bans (With rising gas prices and green consciousness, skateboarding is growing as a viable commute alternative, but laws involving skateboards as transportation vary widely)
USA Today

Transit Rocks!: Riding Valley Metro Is Fun And Easy -- Learning How To Ride Should Be, Too
(Phoenix-area transit provider has commissioned a series of earnest, unironic music videos and free MP3 downloads in which local bands sing about the virtues of public transit)
Valley Metro

Transportation Chair Opposes Change In House Spending Rule
Trucker

Use Of American Recovery And Reinvestment Act Funds By The Federal Emergency Management Agency For The Transit Security Grant Program (16p. PDF)
U.S. Department Of Homeland Security, Office Of Inspector General

A Year Later, L.A.'s Ports Continue Struggling With Clean Air Violators
USC Annenberg Neon Tommy

1/04/2011

2011 New Transit Starts And Openings, Union Station Goes 24/7, "Peak Travel?", U.S. Highway Bill, Year Ahead For Calif HSR, Oil From Carpet & More

2011: The Year Ahead In California HSR
California High Speed Rail Blog

Actually, Highway Builders, Roads Don't Pay For Themselves
StreetsBlog DC

Advancing Congestion Pricing In The Metropolitan Transportation Planning Process: Four Case Studies (60p. PDF)
Federal Highway Administration

Alt 6 Top Transportation Stories Of 2010
AltTransport

As The South And West Grow, The Urban Agenda Should Adjust Accordingly
Next American City

Automated Measurement Of Stress In Continuous Welded Rail (4p. PDF)
Federal Railroad Administration Research Results

Bikers Unwelcome On Many L.A. Trails: A Comprehensive Update Of The City's Bicycle Plan Still Gives Precedence To Hikers And Equestrians
Los Angeles Times

Business-Style Planning: A Key For hard-Pressed Metros
CitiWire

The Four Keys To Moving LA In 2011
CityWatch

High-Speed Rail: Obama's High-Stakes Gamble
Time

Highway Bill Still Stuck In Neutral
Fleet Owner

Highway Trust Fund Battles ("Is there a way to stay within a budget and also maintain adequate maintenance of the nation's highways and runways? Is the "user-fee" model of financing outdated, and if so, what should replace it? Politically, is it really that easy for congressional appropriators to cut transportation funding, as AASHTO and other organizations fear? Or are those groups crying wolf?")
National Journal Transportation Blog

Is California's "Train To Nowhere" A Waste Of Tax Dollars?
CNBC

A New Source Of Oil: Old Carpet (Four billion pounds of old carpet get dumped every year in the United States, and five pounds of oil goes into producing a single pound of nylon. New recycling methods could save all that oil by producing new nylon from old with little energy cost)
Green Tech Enterprise

New Study Shows Walkable Neighborhoods Make People Happier
TreeHugger

New Twist Enlivens Old Station ("Reasonable and reliable 24-hour retail has arrived at Los Angeles’ Union Station!")
StreetsBlog LA

NYC Subway Service Ads Replace Poetry, Literature
Associated Press

Ontario Set On Landing Airport
Inland Valley Daily Bulletin

Opening And Construction Starts Planned For 2011
Transport Politic

Proposed Wilshire Bus Lane: Good Idea Or Bad?
Westside Today

Republicans Want To Hoard Transpo Money And Call It Deficit Reduction
StreetsBlog DC

A Road Less Traveled: Passenger Travel In The Industrialized World Has Been Stagnant For Nearly A Decade, Researchers Say (“With talk of ‘peak oil,’ why not the possibility of ‘peak travel’ when a clear plateau has been reached?”)
Miller-McCune

San Francisco Mobility, Access, And Pricing Study (63p. PDF : "This Study evaluates the applicability of congestion pricing to San Francisco’s transportation system within the context of a wider mobility management strategy that encompasses efforts in demand management and investment in Transit First1 modes, among other strategies.")
San Francisco County Transportation Authority

Stop, Look And Love: 8 Redesigns Of Classic Traffic Lights
Web Urbanist

Tea Partiers See A Global Conspiracy In Local Planning Efforts
Next American City

Top 10 Infrastructure Stories Of 2010
(photo essay)
Infrastructurist

A Transportation Manifesto For A New Decade
StreetsBlog Network

Transportation Research Board 2010 Annual Report (76p. PDF : Summary of TRB's programs and activities over the last year and an overview of its divisions)
Transportation Research Board

The Urban Landscape From A To Z (An alphabetical look back at 2010)
Grist

Would Bike-Only Boulevards Be All Bad?
TreeHugger

The Year Ahead In Bikes
Grist

1/03/2011

2010 Year In Review, Prospects For 30/10 In 2011, Century City Subway Stop, Alameda Corridor Debt, L.A.'s Stimulus Lag & More

2011: The Year In Transit
MetroRider LA

After Two Years Of Democratic Control In Washington, A Transportation Roundup
Transport Politic

Arroyo Seco Parkway Marks Its 70th Anniversary
(photo courtesy Metro Transportation Library & Archive)
Southern California Public Radio

Best Of 2010: New Transit Systems
The City Fix

Best Of 2010: Tech Innovations For Transit
The City Fix

The Beverly Hills Freeway (Part of a series titled "Unbuilt Highways")
Slate

Blue Line Keeps Grim Distinction
Los Angeles Daily News

Can Trains, Subways Be Protected From Terrorists?
USA Today

Cash-Strapped California Increasing Traffic Fines Again
Los Angeles Times

Central Valley Farmers Take Issue With Proposed High-Speed Rail Route
Los Angeles Times

CTA Train Tracker Arriving In Early January
Chicago Now

Expo Line Wish List For 2011: A Bridge Over Sepulveda
Curbed LA

Former Supervisor Burke Appointed To State Transportation Commission
Daily Breeze

Jerry Brown, Urban Hipster And Trend Setter?
(California's Governor-elect Jerry Brown will be living part-time in the first modern mixed use project in Sacramento. Jerry's new neighborhood has a WalkScore of 95 and is walkable to the Capitol building)
California Planning & Development Report

L.A. Lags Behind Other Big Cities On Spending Of Federal Stimulus Funds: Layoffs In City Hall, Worker Furloughs And The Slow Pace of Bureaucracy Have Meant That About 25% Of The $630 Million Received From the Obama Administration For Job Creation Has Been Spent
Los Angeles Times

Light Rail Transforming Cities, Guiding Development
("It's hard to find a city in America that isn't planning, proposing, studying or actually building a light rail system...there are 35 light rail systems operating in the U.S. today. At least 13 metro areas are currently building others. Many more are being planned.")
NPR

Livable Streets People Of The Year
StreetsBlog LA

Los Angeles Fuel Cell Truck Test Starts Early 2011
Hydrogen Journal

Los Angeles Needs A Game Plan: AEG's Plan For A New Football Stadium In Downtown Los Angeles Point To Bigger Problems: The City Follows, Not Leads, And Allows Developers To Shape Los Angeles One Mega-Project At A Time
Los Angeles Times

Mica is Against "Paving Over America," For "Cars In Shoulder Lanes"
StreetsBlog DC

Moody's Cuts Alameda Corridor Debt Rating Despite Strong Year
Los Angeles Times

New Building Tools Detect Varied Shades Of Green: Computer Models Take Into Account More Than Building Materials, Adding In The Effects Of Transportation, Other Indirect Emissions
Chicago Tribune

The (New) Social Network: A Look At Trucking's Unexpected Flirtation With Social Media
Truck News

Opinion: No Bond Guarantee From Rep. Mica
Wall Street Journal

Opinion: Optimism On Villaraigosa's 30/10 Initiative: Despite The Democrat's Losses In November, The Mayor's Proposal To Compress A 30-Year Public Transportation Expansion Into 10 Years Has Wide Endorsement
Los Angeles Times

Park, Art, Bathrooms: Plans To Dress Up The Fashion District
("They're asking for some public transportation other than buses...the Regional Connector would come close, but not actually land in the District; the streetcar would graze it.")
Curbed LA

Ports Of L.A. And Long Beach Are Surging Back: The Twin Ports Together Handled 20.3% More Cargo Boxes This Year Than In 2009 As Trade Began Recovering From The Global Recession
Los Angeles Times

Railroad Close Call Reporting System Wins Praise (The Federal Railroad Administration's Confidential Close Calls Reporting System, modeled on NASA's Aviation Safety Reporting System, is still in a multi-year pilot phase)
Occupational Health & Safety

Rain, Snow And the Prospects For 30/10 In 2011
Huffington Post

Recent Research: Urban Congestion Trends, High-Speed Rail Lessons & Travel Assistance Device Deployment
Metro Transportation Library Primary Resources Blog

Residents Question Impact Of Transit-Oriented Development
Argonaut

Rough Ride For Century City Subway Stop: A Conflict Over The Location of The Line's Century City Stop Is Pitting Businesses And Property Owners Against Riders
Westwood-Century City Patch
Century City Subway Stop Requires Further Review: Nobody Knows How Much It Would Cost To Build A Stop Parallel To An Earthquake Fault Line. Let's Find Out
Westwood-Century City Patch

Schwarzenegger Names Key Transportation Appointments
Los Angeles Times

Streetsies 2010: It Was The Best Of Times
StreetsBlog LA
Streetsie 2010: It Was The Worst Of Times
StreetsBlog LA

Strong Support In CA Legislature For HSR
California High Speed Rail Blog

What About A Fly Away Bus In West Hollywood?
Pink Line

Year-End Awards: Streetcars, Parks, And Everyone's An Armchair Planner
Curbed LA