Archive for the 'Public Transit Policy' Category

What the Ikea Shuttle says about NYC’s transit

Wednesday, July 9th, 2008

In a secluded and idyllic corner of Brooklyn, where South American taco vendors mingle with Fairway-bound foodies, a giant blue box recently opened its doors, and with it came an interesting experiment in public transit.
Just over three weeks ago, the highly-anticipated New York City Ikea opened its doors on the waters of the New [...]

House delivers $237 million for MTA operating budget

Friday, June 27th, 2008

Following up on yesterday’s item about Rep. Jerry Nadler’s (D-N.Y) promises to deliver federal funds for the MTA, the House voted to approve a bill authorizing $1.7 billion for public transit systems. Ostensibly, the money is earmarked for lowering fares and expanding operations as commuters the high cost of driving for public transit. This is [...]

House approves Amtrak bill, but Bush may veto it

Thursday, June 12th, 2008

The House of Representatives yesterday approved a $14.4-billion rail investment bill. The bill will reauthorize Amtrak’s funding, provide some money to long-awaited Moynihan Station project and provide money to construct a high-speed bullet train from New York City to D.C. While the White House may veto this bill, it has the votes in the House [...]

Gas spending tracks access to public transit

Tuesday, June 10th, 2008

Click the map to enlarge
The New York Times yesterday posted the above map on their Website. With vacation season upon us and gas prices rising, everyone is concerned about how $4-a-gallon gas is impacted the wallets of American consumers, and you can see the full breakdown here.
As the map shows, the percent of income spend [...]

Reassessing U.S. infrastructure investment plans

Monday, June 2nd, 2008

The big news this summer as vacation season kicks off has focused around rising gas prices and the high cost of a gallon of gas. At the same time, people are flocking to mass transit systems around the nation and the dramatic increase of ridership coupled with rising fuel prices and poor infrastructure investments are [...]

Public transit relieving our gas pains

Thursday, May 29th, 2008

With gas prices climbing well past the $4-per-gallon mark, Americans are feeling the squeeze. But here in New York, we’re feeling it less than others, reports the New York Post. Why? Because of our extensive public transit network, of course. If only other big cities around the country would follow New York’s lead, our country [...]

Gas prices, mass transit ridership up nationwide

Monday, May 12th, 2008

Gas prices have been on the climb in America for years, but investment in mass transit has lagged far behind acceptable levels. Most major cities in the country have only nascent systems, and while new light rail and other mass transit networks are starting to spring up around America, it’s all been a bit [...]