July « 2009 « The Transport Politic

MBTA Moves Forward With Blue Line Extension Planning

July 28th, 2009 |

Long-planned link between Revere to Lynn, however, still lacks funding source.

Yesterday, the Government of Massachusetts announced that it would sponsor the completion of a planning report on a northeast extension of the MBTA Blue Line. The completion of the Draft Environmental Impact Study, which is a required step on the path to building a major infrastructure project in the United States, will demand about $300,000 in consulting fees. Yet this new guarantee of planning funds in no way ensures the eventual completion of the project, which would stretch from the Blue Line’s existing terminus at Wonderland to Lynn, several miles up

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Federal Transportation Funding Dilemma Raises State Equity Questions

July 27th, 2009 |

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New Brookings report suggests that highway funding formulas are not fair if money comes from the general fund.

In the United States, highway funding is primarily distributed to states through set formulas based on a variety of (sometimes arbitrary) factors such as the mileage of existing roads and per capita crash rates. These formulas don’t always produce fair outcomes, however: some states pay far more into the Highway Trust Fund through gas taxes than they receive back in federal highway funds. As a result, over time, Congress has ramped up the Equity Bonus Program, which ensures that most states that fit a

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New U.S. High Speed Rail Association Presents Network Plan

July 27th, 2009 |

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Organization envisions 17,000-mile network stretching across the country, but its phasing and route plans need work.

More than any time in U.S. history, there is strong, bipartisan support for public investment in expanded rail networks. The momentum behind what may be the country’s next major national project is developing quickly, with states recently applying for more than $100 billion worth of planning and construction programs in corridors throughout the continental 48. The U.S. House’s approval last week of $4 billion in allocations for high-speed rail in fiscal year 2010 alone suggests that the stimulus’ inclusion of $8 billion for train service

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Kansas City Begins Construction of Troost Avenue BRT

July 24th, 2009 |

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Project would be city’s second rapid bus line and is sponsored by federal Small Start funds.

Next month, Kansas City will begin construction on its second bus rapid transit line, to run 13 miles from downtown to 95th Street, mostly along Troost Avenue. Costing about $30 million, the effort will modestly improve public transportation along the corridor, whose buses currently carry about 8,000 passengers a day. New buses will begin using the route next fall, after a bridge is replaced over Brush Creek near Country Club Plaza.

Kansas City opened its first MAX BRT line a couple of years ago along the 5-mile

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