Elana Schor
Recent Posts
Higher Gas Prices Alone Won’t Make Cleaner Cars a Reality
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The average carbon emissions of U.S. vehicles. (Image: EPA) It’s a storyline that the media and the auto industry have embraced: Higher gas prices are the magic ingredient that U.S. carmakers need in order to sell more fuel-efficient vehicles to consumers. The narrative is tempting, especially for those who believe federal gas taxes need to […]
Senate Health Bill Holds Onto Grants For Healthier Transportation
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Back in June, when the Senate was in the early stages of its marathon health care reform debate, several Republicans blasted the proposed legislation for including a grant program aimed at encouraging construction of local infrastructure to promote healthier movement. The new Senate health bill held onto a billion-dollar grant program to promote walking to […]
To Thrive, Suburbs Might Become More Urban
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A very interesting article in USA Today on the future viability of suburbs came up in our Twitter feed this morning, via Community Research Partners of Columbus, Ohio. The piece, by Haya el Nasser, starts out talking about how population is falling in many of the suburbs that grew most quickly over the last few […]
A Warning From America’s Cities: The Recession Has Only Just Begun to Hit
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President Obama may be optimistic about continued U.S. economic growth as 2009 ends, but the reality on the ground in urban America — which an estimated two-thirds of the population calls home — is undeniably, disturbingly bleak. Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter (Photo: PennLive) That was the message delivered today by two economists and a bipartisan […]
‘This Needs Attention’: Senators Seek Shot in the Arm on Transportation
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Senate environment committee chairman Barbara Boxer (D-CA) and fellow lawmakers today pressed the Obama administration to take a more active role in ending the current political stalemate over federal transportation funding, but the sense of urgency they sought emerged only intermittently during an 80-minute session on infrastructure. Deputy U.S. Transportation Secretary John Porcari (Photo: DayLife.com) […]
Bipartisan Support Builds for Six-Month Extension of Current Transpo Law
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The senior Republicans on three of the Senate’s four infrastructure-centric committees signed a bipartisan letter on Tuesday asking the leaders of Congress’ upper chamber to call up a six-month extension of the 2005 transportation law. Senate environment chairman Barbara Boxer. Photo: Politics Now In the letter, Sens. Jim Inhofe (OK), Kay Bailey Hutchison (TX), and […]
Introducing the Samuelson Gas Tax Increase: A Penny Every Month
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Democratic lawmakers are discussing the possibility of a one-year stopgap transportation bill but have yet to reach consensus on how to pay for the measure, Sen. Tom Carper (D-DE) said today. Sen. Tom Carper (D-DE) (Photo: Politics Daily) Carper, speaking at a National Journal policy conference, said the prospects for short-term transport legislation still depend […]
Dems, AFL-CIO Step Up Push for Infrastructure Spending as Job Creator
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AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka today called for more investments in infrastructure as one plank of a job creation proposal that he plans to bring to the White House employment summit next month — as congressional Democrats continued jockeying over how and whether to pursue and long-term transportation bill in the coming months. AFL-CIO President Richard […]
Feds Propose to Expand Opportunities for Biking and Walking to Transit
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When it comes to infrastructure improvements that encourage more people to walk or bicycle to transit stations, how long will commuters be willing to travel? The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) has officially answered that question, proposing a significant expansion of the rules governing how close bike-ped projects should be to transit in order to receive […]
Which is the Fastest-Rising U.S. Emissions Source: Transport or Electricity?
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The climate change bills being considered by Congress treat electric utilities very well, giving more than a third of the revenue generated by CO2 regulation away — for free — to power providers. This move pleased coal country Democrats while seeking to lock down benefits for consumers by averting electricity rate hikes. But did the […]
Report: After MN Collapse, Bridge Repair Got Just 11% of D.C. Earmarks
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In the wake of the 2007 collapse of Minnesota’s I-35 bridge, Washington policymakers vowed a renewed focus on repairing the nation’s aging infrastructure. But weeks after the fatal collapse, Congress approved a transportation spending bill with 704 earmarked projects, at a total cost topping $570 million — and just 11 percent of those earmarks went […]
Chrysler: Taking Taxpayer Money and Running Away From Cleaner Cars
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(Chart: Chrysler Restructuring Plan) When Chrysler asked the government for a second round of bailout money in February, it submitted a 177-page restructuring plan that vowed to usher in a new era of fuel-efficient vehicles at the famously gas-chugging automaker. The chart above, taken from that restructuring plan, shows six models of electric and hybrid […]