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 April
16, 2002 - Volume
8, Issue 7
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Administration / Hill
Update |
US DOT Gets Serious About TEA-21
Reauthorization
The US Department of
Transportation is expected to draft its proposal for the
reauthorization of the surface transportation program by
this summer through a process that includes modal
administrators, senior political appointees, and DOT
staff serving on ten task forces assigned to developing
themes ranging from environment to finance. Key target
dates include September 2002, when the Administration's
proposal is due at the Office of Management and Budget,
and January 2003, when the Administration expects to
send its proposal to Congress.
US DOT has indicated plans to
conduct its outreach process primarily through
individual modal administrations and through listening
sessions held in conjunction with existing meetings,
although some task forces are expected to gather
additional input. The Administration's principles
expected to frame its reauthorization proposal can be
found here.
Senate Adopts Pro-Bike
Ammendment
In the midst of a debate on
the energy bill, the US Senate adopted an amendment on
August 11 promoting bicycling as a way to conserve
energy. The amendment, introduced by Illinois Senator
Richard Durbin and Maine Senator Susan Collins,
established a new "Conserve By Bicycling" program within
the US Department of Transportation. The new project
will oversee pilot programs across the country that are
designed to promote and document bicycling as a clean
and responsible alternative to regional automotive
travel. The program still needs approval by the US House
and President Bush before it can be
implemented.
“We have been spending a
modest amount of federal, state and local funds on
bicycle facilities since 1991," said Senator Durbin.
"This amendment will leverage those investments and help
people take advantage of the energy conservation choices
they have in getting around their
communities.”
For more information, click
here.
"Segway Bill" Markup
Delayed
The Senate Environment and
Public Works Committee's has postponed the planned
markup of S. 2024, the "Segway Bill," (originally
scheduled for April 11). The bill is designed to amend
Title 23 to allow the new electric vehicle onto
sidewalks and multi-use trails. The bill defines Segway
as an "electric personal assistive mobility devices" or
EPAMDs, and it is a product of Segway LLC's national
lobbying effort to get state and national laws in
support of their product. The speed with which
legislation has been introduced across the country
caught the bicycle, pedestrian, and injury prevention
communities off guard, and many of these groups are
asking that Congress and state legislatures slow down
their efforts in order to give more time to fully
consider the bills and to allow for public hearings. As
of April 16, the hearing has not been
rescheduled.
For more information on
Segway's state legislation efforts, click
here.
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Amtrak High-Speed
Ridership Increases |
Amtrak's Northeast corridor is now
carrying a higher share of commuters between Washington,
DC and New York than their airline counterparts. In the
immediate wake of Setpember 11, ridership on Amtrak's
Acela lines in the Northeast corridor surged from 96,037
(or 218 passengers per train) in August, to 201,176 (or
340 per train) in October. Attributing the surge to
panicked travelers, Amtrak skeptics predicted that the
trend would not last long. However, recent numbers
released by Amtrak show that ridership was back up over
200,000 again in February and, as of last report, stood
at 219,917 (or about 300 per train). Amtrak's high speed
"tilting" trains shave time off of commutes with speeds
of up to 150 miles per hour (135 mph maximum between
Washington and New York).
Additionally, Amtrak’s
reservations system will now be synchronized with the
existing on-line airline booking search engines used by
more than 800 large corporations, so that travelers will
be able to directly compare airline and Amtrak schedules
and fares. Amtrak signed the deal with GetThere, a
subsidiary of internet travel giant Sabre.
For more information on
Amtrak's partnership with GetThere, click
here.
For more information on
Amtrak's increased ridership numbers, click
here.
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Deconstruction of
Boston's Central Artery Begins |
After almost five decades of
existence, Boston's Central Artery is being torn down.
The elevated highway, which snakes through downtown
Boston, is being demolished as part of the city's
$14.6-billion Big Dig project, with this part of the
project continuing until 2005. The demolition will
create more than 30 acres of open space stretching from
Chinatown to Boston's North Station. Plans have yet to
be finalized, but 75 percent of the area have been
reserved as public open space.
For more information on the
Big Dig, click
here.
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Washington Anti-Tax,
Anti-Transit Activist Investigated
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Anti-tax and anti-transit activist
Tim Eyman has been accused by the Washington State
Public Disclosure Commission of using campaign donations
to pay himself a salary, support his private watch
company, make repairs to his Lexus, and reimburse
himself for a contribution to the Republican National
Committee. Transfer reported on Eyman on September 5,
2000, for his referendum to reduce funding for public
transportation and curtail efforts to manage growth in
the state by requiring that 90% of all transportation
funds, including local taxes now dedicated to transit,
be spent on road building and maintenance. His current
project, a bill that will appear on next fall's ballot,
would abolish state and local fees on vehicle
registration.
For more information, click
here.
For the September 5, 2000
Transfer article, click
here
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MI Governor Backs
Windsor-Detroit Gondola Proposal |
Michigan Gov. John Engler has proposed the
idea of a gondola that would link Detroit with Windsor,
Ontario. A recent study predicted that such a project
would create 5,200 area jobs and pump $481 million into
the economy. The goal of the link is to lure more than 1
million new visitors to Detroit and to increase trade
and transnational business between the two cities.
For more information, click
here. | |
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In
Brief... |
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cooperation with Google, has introduced a new search
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Calendar |
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"Transportation at the
Crossroads: TEA-21" A presentation by STPP President David
Burwell April 19, 2002; City College of
NY
Transportation and University
Communities Conference
June 15-18, 2002: Amherst,
MA
House
Transportation Committee
Schedule April.
17: Highways and Transit: How Transit Serves
and Benefits US
Communities
Senate
EPW Hearings Date
TBA: Operations and Security in
Metropolitan Areas
Date TBA:
Rescheduled
hearing, full committee business
meeting
Transportation and University Communities
Comference June 15-18, 2002:
Amherst, MA
BikeFest
2002 August
2-4, 2002; Amherst,
MA
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Quote
of the Week |
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"As an
institution, charter (schools) are not working in our
state. We treat them like road contractors - give them
the money and God knows what they do with
it."
- Rep. Jim Dunnam (D) of
Waco, TX, as quoted in a New York Times article on
Friday, April 5, 2002
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