trains

KQED takes a look at California’s high-speed rail ballot measure

Great look at California’s Proposition 1A: The mind-boggling myopia it takes to call something like this an “extravagance” mystifies me. When did we get so hinky about investing in our future? I will bet anyone $100 right now that ridership on this train, if it is built, exceeds the most optimistic assessments. I’ll bet another […]

Idle thought of the day

I sure hope Californians are smart enough to vote yes on Prop 1A so they can get some SUPERTRAIN up in this b*tch.

$13 billion Amtrak bill heads to Bush’s desk

The Senate this week voted 74-24 to approve the Federal Railroad Safety Improvement Act, which would boost funding for Amtrak. With high gas prices and tough economic times pushing more Americans to ride the rails, Congress is aiming to improve rail infrastructure. The five-year, $13 billion bill would fund new safety measures for trains, like […]

L.A. train collision dismays new riders

Speaking of trains, the horrific train wreck in L.A. last Friday came as ridership on the region’s rail network was on the rise, The New York Times reports. Los Angeles has long been known for its car-choked freeways. But after gas prices in California rose to more than $4.50 a gallon over the last several […]

Will train travel get annoying too?

As more trains catch up to air travel, time-wise, one thing that can put them over the top is the time saved avoiding the hassles of getting to the airport, parking, security, waiting, etc. But what if one of the first mid- or long-range train systems suffers some kind of attack, or even threat of […]

Transportation stuff

Still catching up with stuff I missed. On the public transportation front, check out this article about the rare prospect of having an Amtrak fan (Biden) in the White House, a cool chart from Brookings comparing Obama and McCain on a range of important transportation issues, and this happy AP story about transit ridership skyrocketing.

Toward the post-oil society

This is the fourth in a series on how we can build an energy future based on our best science and no longer critically dependent upon exhaustible and polluting fossil fuels. The tripartite approach allows our society to cut oil demand and dependence substantially within a decade, much more quickly than a sole reliance on […]

Leading indicators

When the conservative Washington Post editorial board is stumping for smart growth and transit-oriented development, you know the tide is turning!

A three-pronged approach to getting off oil for transportation

This is the third in a series on how we can build an energy future based on our best science and no longer critically dependent upon exhaustible and polluting fossil fuels. Getting off oil: a three-pronged approach Oil is not “evil,” it’s an undervalued resource that has been squandered on tasks that could be much […]