“Sales of the company’s electric cars dropped in the first three months of the year, even as other automakers sold more battery-powered vehicles,” The New York Times reports.
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A year after East Palestine disaster, rail safety little improved
“Trains are still rolling through East Palestine, Ohio, at 50 mph — the same speed allowed last February when an accident spilled toxic chemicals in the rural town. Bipartisan safety legislation proposed a month after the crash is bogged down in the Senate. And derailments are happening at roughly the same pace,” writes Thomas Black for Bloomberg News.
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High-speed rail can curb America’s summer travel woes
“America’s holiday travel quagmire is a reminder that we are a global laggard when it comes to high-speed rail,” writes Ray LaHood.
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We can’t fix distracted driving, but we can fix street design
“Once we’re inside our cars, we enter our own little bubbles and anything that prevents us from getting to where we want to go in the rushed time we need to get there becomes an inconvenience,” writes D.C.-based freelance writer Matthew Koehler.
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Coronavirus order saves $1 billion from fewer car crashes
Via The Los Angeles Times: “California’s stay-at-home order reduced vehicle collisions on roadways by a little more than half, saving taxpayers an estimated $1 billion since the order went into effect, according to a UC Davis survey that estimated the impact of the order on traffic.”
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Politico Magazine marvels at Seattle’s Link light rail powered mass transit boom
In this piece, Erick Trickey takes a look at “how a fast-growing city has invested heavily in mass transit alternatives to keep a lid on gridlock”.
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Why the West Coast is suddenly beating the East Coast on transportation
The New York Times reports on the important work that cities like Seattle and Los Angeles are doing to expand their transit systems following a trip by New York City Transportation Commissioner to California.
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Self-driving cars aren’t the panacea libertarian tech futurists say they are
They have imbued autonomous vehicles with the possibility to solve every problem that was ever created in transportation since the beginning of time… That might
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Elon Musk doesn’t understand why mass transit succeeds
Big cities don’t function without transit, and that means transit has to be allowed to succeed. That means it won’t go to your door, or
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Schematic shows where Amtrak Cascades 501’s rolling stock ended up after derailment
Schematic shows where Amtrak Cascades 501’s rolling stock ended up after derailment
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Smartphones are killing Americans, but nobody’s counting
Honestly, I think the real number of fatalities tied to cell phones is at least three times the federal figure… We’re all addicted and the
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Amtrak’s new “Break The Travel Quo” campaign showcases the advantages of rail travel
Amtrak, America’s passenger railroad, has been facing the prospect of deep service cuts ever since Donald Trump and his minions rolled out their first budget proposal. But, buoyed by Congress’ refusal to (so far) implement the proposed evisceration of its long distance routes, Amtrak this week rolled out a brand new ad campaign that brilliantly showcases the advantages of rail travel, called Break the Travel Quo.
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I-84 closure an important reminder that the private depends on the public
Interstate 84, Oregon’s main east-west link, is closed indefinitely in stretches between Hood River and The Dalles due to the Eagle Creek Fire and unstable slopes produced by the fire. That’s hurting truckers like David Cassidy, whose livelihood is made possible by the availability of public infrastructure paid for by taxpayers.
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Heads up: Lots of construction projects will affect Puget Sound highways this weekend
Check out the map and travel prepared.
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World’s first light rail on a floating bridge: For I-90, Sound Transit had to invent ‘a brilliant solution’
“Sound Transit’s consultants have invented a flexing track connection, using earthquake science, to safely move future light-rail trains on the I‑90 floating bridge,” reports The Seattle Times’ Mike Lindblom.
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Seattle isn’t doing enough to make its streets safe and pedestrian friendly
People who walk regularly around Seattle are torn between bafflement and dismay at what they traverse on foot. On any given day, they encounter buckled,
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California Legislature votes to raise gas taxes, vehicle fees by $5.2 billion a year for road repairs and transit
Patrick McGreevy and Melanie Mason, reporting for The Los Angeles Times: “After a week of fierce debate between opposing interests, the state Legislature on Thursday approved a plan to raise gas taxes and vehicle fees by $5.2 billion a year to pay for the repair of California’s pothole-ridden, decaying system of roads, highways and bridges.”
LaunchTolling: it’s something we get used to
We know how this works from 520, 405 HOT, and lots of other toll projects in other cities. At first people say “I’LL NEVER PAY.”
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A first-timer’s fresh view of Vancouver, B.C
One highlight was riding Amtrak across the border. There’s something about train travel that melts stress away. — Daniel Beekman: A first-timer’s fresh view of
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A letter of thanks to King and Snohomish counties for ST3
Addressing King and Snohomish voters, who supported Sound Transit 3, Tacoma News Tribune columnist Matt Driscoll writes on behalf of people in Pierce County to say thanks for “saving our transportation bacon”.
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Sound Transit 3: The opportunity of a generation
Seattle Subway: “Over a century after the first vote for a fast and reliable train system in the Seattle area, it’s finally our generation’s chance
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