Transportation
Fiscal and ridership changes are impacting transportation policies at the state and local levels. These articles focus on innovative and successful transit planning, funding and upkeep for intercity and commuter rail, electric vehicles, mass transit and more.
Democrat Josh Shapiro is redirecting federal highway funds to Philadelphia’s transit system. Officials with the nation’s sixth-largest system had just approved a 29 percent fare increase.
Future in Context
The recent fortunes of local initiatives reveal a shifting landscape in U.S. transportation policy — driven by political, economic and environmental factors. What lies ahead is, as yet, unclear.
Gov. Gretchen Whitmer announced the investment and others tied to a clean hydrogen hub project in a news release on Wednesday.
The city government will discuss a proposed state of emergency over pedestrian and cyclist safety just six days after the city’s 31st traffic death of 2024.
State air regulators voted last week to update the Low Carbon Fuel Standard to aim to reduce carbon emissions of transportation fuels by 30 percent by 2030.
The Texas city has just 4 percent of land left to develop, making future development above ground more appealing. The city is considering air taxis, Uber-like gondolas and other aerial solutions to further develop microtransit.
The Los Angeles Metropolitan Transportation Authority has a $3.3 billion list of projects to achieve ahead of the 2028 Games that is only 5.2 percent funded so far.
The majority of U.S. agricultural exports rely on the Mississippi River to reach the international market.
Voters will weigh in on at least 18 ballot measures raising taxes to pay for transportation improvements. Transportation infrastructure is becoming more expensive to build.
Massachusetts has the lowest rate of traffic deaths per vehicle mile traveled, according to recently published federal data. State transportation leaders credit safety strategies — and congestion.
The percentage growth in daily commuters from outside Birmingham, Huntsville, Montgomery and Mobile far exceed internal growth. Alabama’s average commute time of 23.5 minutes is average among U.S. states.
Sales of e-bikes in the U.S. grew more than 280 percent from 2019 to 2022. However, from 2017 to 2022, there have also been 233 deaths associated with e-bikes, e-scooters and hoverboards.
Transit police have issued more than 700 citations over the past two months. Instead of fines, riders who don’t pay are being sent to court.
Out of order ever since Hurricane Katrina, Gulf Coast passenger rail service is expected to start up again next spring after a key City Council vote this week in Mobile, Ala.
As the transit agency publicly worked to ensure their riders felt safe during their daily commutes, top executives experienced an internal breakdown in communication so bad that it resulted in a wrongful-termination lawsuit.
From buckling roads to twisted rails, it’s under a lot of stress. Engineers have some ideas for minimizing the problems.
Philadelphia's mayor has ordered city workers back to the office. Unfortunately for them, the state is not providing the amount of funding that local transit needs.
Jonathan Daniels, an experienced crisis manager, is getting Baltimore’s port back in business.
Atlanta limits e-bike motors to 20 miles per hour on shared-use paths, but there have been several reports of bikes traveling at speeds up to 70 mph.
The top 10 percent of drivers in the U.S. consume more than a third of the gasoline. Some lawmakers hope targeting them with EV incentives will help reduce emissions more quickly.
The $935.4 million system upgrade will launch on Aug. 1, allowing riders on the Green Line and Mattapan Line trolleys to tap their credit/debit card, phone or watch to pay for fares.
From cars to school buses to battery manufacturing, no state can match Georgia's corporate investments. They’re making a real impact in communities across the state, creating thousands of permanent jobs.
Urban interstate highways displaced hundreds of thousands of households, destroyed neighborhoods and enforced racial segregation, and they continue to harm low-income communities. We need to ameliorate this tragic history.
Vermont will charge $89 a year for registered electric vehicles, directing revenue to more charging stations. It’s among a handful of states with both incentives and fees for EV owners.
It’s not just the decline in fuel tax revenues and its impact on highway construction and maintenance. Real estate will also be affected, and sales taxes are likely to take a hit. States need to begin developing strategies.
Many cities view rail transit as an enticing boost to civic fortunes. But there’s a better, cheaper way to accomplish the same thing.
The current transportation budget falls short of the state’s litany of needs. As lawmakers prepare to craft a major transit package next session, they will need to figure out how to increase revenue streams despite logistical and political challenges.
Future in Context
As ridership continues to lag amid a stubbornly slow recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic, cities experiment with free rides and micromobility to prove public transit’s worth in worsening financial conditions.
Gov. Kathy Hochul’s decision to pull the plug on a congestion pricing plan for New York City was seen as a move calculated for advantage in the November elections, but it hasn’t made her many new friends.
Sixteen states and D.C. have signed on to California’s latest unworkable mandate for zero-emission vehicles. Virginia is the first of those to abandon California’s regulations. That’s a win for the state, its workers and its businesses.
A state House committee voted 8-3 to pass a cluster of bills that would devote billions over 10 years to Michigan’s economic development and transit. But Democrats will need at least one Republican to vote to pass the package.
