The U.S. Senate voted 51-48 today to reject an amendment to their transportation bill that would overturn measures in President Obama’s signature health care law dealing with contraception coverage. The vote clears the way for the Senate to finally begin considering actual transportation issues rather than dealing with delay tactics. The so-called “conscience” amendment, proposed […]

UPDATE (3:45 p.m.): Citing a lack of support from his colleagues, Speaker John Boehner has dropped his 18-month transportation proposal and has not yet offered an alternative, according to Politico. “A five-year bill is the best way to do this,” he said. We’ve known for a few days now that the House, in the wake […]

Photographer and blogger Jay Mallin, whose video of Woodbridge, VA police ticketing injured pedestrians was picked up by Streetsblog NYC a year ago, has turned his attention to the congressional transportation debacle. Mallin’s new video is entitled “Get a Car,” and is named for the apparent message of the House transportation bill, and, to a lesser […]

On Monday we wrote that Americans can’t afford a transportation bill that locks households into the expenses of car dependence. Yesterday the Center for Neighborhood Technology hammered the point home, releasing new data showing how communities are getting less and less affordable nationwide. Only 28 percent of American communities meet CNT’s definition of “affordable,” which accounts for […]

Last week’s big news — that the House transportation bill faces a likely overhaul by its Republican authors — rippled through Washington faster than you can say, “gas tax increases are off the table.” Very little is known yet about the revised House bill, except that it will probably restore dedicated funding for mass transit, […]

Gas prices, you may have heard, are on the rise again. And so is pandering about pain at the pump. Four years after $4 a gallon gas spawned “Drill, Baby, Drill” and insane political gimmickry on the presidential campaign trail (remember the “gas tax holiday” favored by John McCain and Hillary Clinton?), gas price populism […]

Hold that victory lap: While it’s true that House Republicans are revamping their transportation bill, it’s time once again to wait and see just how bad the bill still is. Indications out of Speaker John Boehner’s office are that the GOP leadership will no longer try to eliminate dedicated transit funding, but odds are that some […]

While there is no official statement yet, sources on the Hill (and CQ for subscribers) are saying that House Republicans are revamping their 5-year, $260 billion transportation bill and will discard their proposal to eradicate the dedicated transit funding mechanism enacted by Ronald Reagan in 1983. The bill is unlikely to see floor debate next week. Michael […]

Congress is in recess, and the House’s atrocious transportation bill has been dismembered and delayed, but if you want to preserve funding for transit and active transportation, don’t let your guard down yet. There’s still plenty to watch out for as the House and Senate attempt to reauthorize federal transportation programs. As we’ve reported, there are […]

Distracted driving has become one of the U.S. Department of Transportation’s banner issues under secretary Ray LaHood’s tenure, with agencies launching safety programs and awareness campaigns aimed at preventing the practice. Last week, LaHood stepped into new territory by recommending that cars be built to automatically disable potentially distracting electronic devices when in motion. The […]

Both houses of Congress are in recess this week, putting off their mountain of unfinished transportation business until next Monday. The momentum carrying transportation bills forward in each chamber has eroded recently. Last week, the House split its transportation bill — the one that eliminates dedicated funding for transit, bicycling, and walking — into three […]

During the current push for multi-year transportation bill, the Senate has been known more for its spirit of bipartisanship than any visionary policy advances. Now that the bill has hit the Senate floor, however, it’s getting a little ugly. Republican Senators have proposed a number of contentious amendments in order to stall the bill’s passage. […]