Kate Hinds

Top stories on TN:
Post-Sandy Gaps In The NYC Subway Map Remain Stubbornly Unrepaired (link)
NY Thruway Cancels 45% Toll Hike (link)
New York Chooses Builder for $3.1 Billion Tappan Zee Bridge Replacement (link)
Orlando MagLev Plan Gets Tentative Approval (link)

(photo by Kate Hinds)

Goldman Sachs has quietly loaned $41 million to help finance the start of New York City’s much anticipated, and long-delayed, bike-sharing program. "While Citigroup is paying $41m over five years to sponsor the project and has thousands of rental bicycles branded with its name, Goldman’s role in the programme has until now remained behind the scenes. The bank’s $41m loan is being used as the seed financing needed to get the project off the ground." (Financial Times; sub. req.)

On the agenda for the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee next year: rail legislation, Amtrak privatization, and -- oh yeah -- how to fund transportation. (Politico)

The CEO of Houston's Metro resigned abruptly. (KUHF)

Study: transit apps make us happier commuters. (FastCoDesign)

Never before have annual car sales surpassed 80 million vehicles around the world, but they're on track to reach that milepost by year's end. (Marketplace)

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Plans to build a light rail connection to Los Angeles International Airport are advancing with the unveiling of four potential station sites that would link to a people mover serving passenger terminals. (Los Angeles Times)

Oakland's year-old pilot permit program for mobile food trucks comes under review today as city council considers renewing the policy. (KQED)

The federal government fined Toyota over $17 million for failing to report safety defects to regulators in a timely fashion. (Wall Street Journal)

Want Siri to use Google maps instead of Apple's program? The magic word is "transit." (Lifehacker)

Poland is one of Europe's most dangerous places to drive. How to make it better? Better roads -- and stronger legislation. (video from BBC)

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New York Governor Andrew Cuomo (R), with advisor Brian Conybeare, standing in front of a model of the new design. (Image courtesy of @NYGovCuomo)

UPDATE: It's official: New York has awarded the contract to construct the new Tappan Zee Bridge.

In a press release, Governor Andrew M. Cuomo said, “the Thruway Board has selected the Tappan Zee Constructors’ plan which offers New York toll payers the biggest bang for their buck – with the best price, shortest construction time, minimal dredging, and can accommodate mass transit in the future. This is a major milestone for a bridge project that was a metaphor for the dysfunction of government and is now a national model for progress.”

Earlier Monday, Tom Madison, the executive director of the New York State Thruway Authority, said he was supporting a $3.1 billion plan to replace the Tappan Zee Bridge.

The (presumptive) new Tappan Zee Bridge. (New York Thruway Authority)

The board unanimously approved the contract at its meeting on Monday.

The wining design was recommended by a selection committee earlier this month.  At $3.1 billion, it's the least expensive of the three design finalists; Madison pointed out that with a construction time of five years, 2.5 months, it's also the fastest to build. It's one of the largest contracts ever executed in New York -- and it will be the first project constructed under the state's new design-build legislation.

The winning bidder is Tappan Zee Constructors -- a consortium led by Fluor Enterprises, Inc.. One of the team members is American Bridge -- the company which constructed the original Tappan Zee back in 1955.

No financing plan is yet in place to construct the bridge. Cuomo reiterated Monday "the tolls on the Tappan Zee will be one of the main funding sources for that bridge." The state is also waiting to see if the federal government will approve its request for a $2.9 billion TIFIA loan.

New York's comptroller has to sign off on the contract.

Top stories on TN:
Bike Share Coming to Portland — When Alta Finds a Sponsor (link)
D.C. to Start Testing Streetcars Next Spring (link)

PATH train (photo by Kate Hinds)

The New York State Thruway will pick a Tappan Zee Bridge design at a meeting today. (Newsday)

The lack of PATH train service is really starting to grate upon Hoboken's financial nerves. (New York Times, Marketplace)

As Greeks reel from the financial crisis, they're leaving the cars at home and rediscovering transit. "Rail traffic between Greece's two biggest cities - Athens and Thessaloniki - surged by 33 percent in the first 11 months of 2012." (Reuters)

Go inside the lab where D.C.'s Metro troubleshoots its plentiful escalator problems. (Washington Post)

Bus ridership is surging in St. Louis. (St. Louis Post-Dispatch)

Auto makers are adding features for older drivers -- and they go way beyond push-button ignition switches. "The Ford Focus Park Assist can basically park itself. New Infinitis can alert drivers to vehicles located in the blind spot area. And Mercedes-Benz's Lane Keeping Assist technology sends a warning before drivers drift out of their lane." (NPR)

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The MTA's FASTRACK program will expand to the outer boroughs next year. (New York Daily News)

India's love affair with public-private partnerships is facing a test: Chennai’s new airport terminal is due to open in 2013. Work started in 2008. (Economist)

Rep. Earl Blumenauer (D-OR) introduced a bill that would require the Treasury Department to study the viability of raising new federal highway funds by taxing cars for each mile they drive. (The Hill)

How pedestrians navigate crowded sidewalks: 1. Avoid bumping into people. 2. Follow the person in front of you. 3. Keep up with those next to you. (New York Times)
But if you must enter Midtown during the holiday season, none of the above will protect you from Fifth Avenue. (DNA Info)

Could a train based on a theme park ride solve Japan's post-tsunami transpo problems? (New Scientist)

Sri Lanka is color-coding passenger transport vehicles. "Private passenger transport buses will be painted light blue- Pantone colour code 2707C while public passenger transport buses of the Sri Lanka Transport Board will be painted red- Pantone colour code 185C." (Sri Lanka Daily News)

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Top stories on TN:
NY MTA Head Formally Backs Fare Hike (link)
Taking Uber for a Test Drive in San Francisco (link)
LOOK: Gold Line Rail Bridge is California History “With Some Artistry” (link)
Taxi E-Hail App Approved in NYC (link)
How Sandy Might Tweak Today’s High-Speed Rail Privatization Hearing (link)

The Acela (photo by Gary Pancavage, Amtrak)

New York's MTA fired its D.C. lobbyists earlier this year as part of cost-cutting efforts -- and now it has to win $5 billion in federal aid without them. (Bloomberg)

Without rain, water levels on the Mississippi are projected to reach historic lows this month -- which could bring shipping along the waterway to a halt. (Guardian)

Amtrak is buying an entirely new set of Acela cars; the railroad hopes to have the first new trains within five to seven years.  (CNN Money)

Democrats are hammering Congressman John Mica for his "unhealthy obsession with privatizing" Amtrak. (The Hill)

New York City's comptroller may try to block the city's contract for "the taxi of tomorrow." (Capital NY). Mayor Bloomberg's response: "It isn't worth spending a lot of time trying to decipher why some of these things are done." (tweet via @DanaRubinstein)

Google maps returns to iPhones --but the map wars are far from over. (Marketplace)

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Los Angeles is allocating almost $7 million for safety improvements along its busy Blue Line light rail, which has seen eight deaths so far this year. (Los Angeles Times)

Bike-share in the Bay Area will now arrive no sooner than the summer of 2013, roughly a year and a half after the original launch date. (SF Streetsblog)

Commuters got their chance to tell NJ Transit's board how they felt about its post-Sandy customer relations. (Star-Ledger)

The air traffic controllers union is warning of layoffs unless the "fiscal cliff" is avoided. (Washington Post)

BEEEEEEEEEP! This bike horn sounds like a car horn. (Atlantic Cities)

Opening today: two-way protected bike lanes -- outfitted with bike signals -- in the heart of Chicago's business district. (Chicago Tribune)

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As expected, the head of the New York Metropolitan Transportation Authority is recommending the agency raise the base fare for subways and buses by 25 cents, and increase the cost of a 30-day MetroCard from $104 to $112.

Joe Lhota outlined his recommendation in a memo sent to MTA board members Thursday. The board is expected to approve the fare hike at its meeting next week. It would go into effect in March 2013.

Lhota says in his memo that the increase in fares and tolls will raise an additional $450 million annually for the agency.

To learn more, read the memo below, or download a pdf of it here.

Top stories on TN:
CHARTS: Whites Ride Transit Less Often Than Everyone Else (link)
Manhattan Community Board Rejects Bike Lane Extension, But “We’re Not Done With This” (link)
Report: National Weather Service Says NJ Transit Didn’t Ask About Flooding (link)

A giant rubber duck floating down the Thames (photo by worldoflard via flickr)

United, Delta, and American Airlines are within weeks of having their first international flights with Internet service. (AP via Seattle Times)

New York's post-Sandy decision: how to spend limited funds to defend themselves from what climate experts call "the new normal." (NPR)

Rep. Bill Shuster (R-Pa.) has named 10 new Republican members of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee.  (The Hill)

A Houston nonprofit is providing free bikes and helmets to children from low-income communities who earned them by doing well in school. (KUHF)

New Jersey confirmed that jet fuel was accidentally sold at gas stations across the state...(The Trentonian)
...which, by the way, makes cars stall -- not explode or fly. (Gizmodo)

New Hampshire politicians want to establish a commuter rail system for the state. (Nashua Telegraph)

Mayor Michael Bloomberg hit the brakes Wednesday on a proposal to keep tourist-toting pedicabs from charging confusing, sometimes exorbitant rates. (AP via Crain's New York)

And Politifact's "Lie of the Year" goes to...a Mitt Romney campaign ad that claimed Barack Obama "sold Chrysler to Italians who are going to build Jeeps in China."(Link)

State officials overseeing construction of the new San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge agreed this year to pay a public relations company nearly $10 million for services the Brown administration says it knew nothing about, including hundreds of thousands of dollars to conduct tours and to produce a video and commemorative book. Yes, the contract has been rescinded. (Sacramento Bee)

San Francisco's Muni turned 100. Listen to a conversation about the city's transit history -- and future -- at KQED.

Phoenix transit riders will likely face fare hikes in March, service changes in January and may have to navigate a light-rail strike as early as New Year's Day. (Arizona Republic)

A Houston neighborhood is getting parking regulations designed to help the bustling corridor's bars, restaurants and residential streets mix better. (Houston Chronicle)

A cardboard-lined bike helmet -- inspired by the corrugated cartilage of woodpeckers -- will go on sale in the U.S. next year. (NPR)

German bicycle designer Didi Senft, known during the Tour de France as "El Diabolo", created a Santa bicycle. (Click the Boston Globe link for a photo.)

A marketing campaign floated a giant rubber duck down the Thames River in London. (Laughing Squid)

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(photo by Kate Hinds)

Over 100 people turned out Tuesday night for a marathon community board hearing to discuss extending the Upper West Side's only on-street protected bike lane. The city wants to extend the Columbus Avenue lane from its current terminus at 77th Street down to 59th Street, where it would connect to a bike lane on Ninth Avenue, giving Upper West Side bikers a protected ride to Midtown Manhattan.  The city would also lengthen the Columbus Avenue bike lane up to 110th Street.

Many of the attendees wore stickers supporting the Columbus Avenue lane, and over the course of the meeting, dozens of people -- including the former "Ethicist" columnist for the New York Times -- spoke out in favor of a proposal to double its length. But by the time the three hour meeting was over, the transportation committee of Community Board 7 failed to pass a resolution supporting it.

Here's how it went down.

First up: the  New York City Department of Transportation presented data about the Columbus Avenue protected bike lane as it exists now.  The DOT's Hayes Lord painted a rosy picture: cycling has increased by 48 percent since the lane was installed. Vehicular speeding is down. The travel time for cars has improved. But the real benefit, Lord said, is that while total crashes have increased slightly, pedestrian injuries along the corridor have dropped by 41 percent. Moreover, he said, the bike lane is good for business: the retail occupancy rate for the Columbus Avenue BID south of 82nd Street is at 100 percent.

("I don't believe a word of it," hissed a man sitting next to me, one of the relatively few naysayers in the audience.)

Josh Benson (L) and members of Community Board 7 (photo by Kate Hinds)

In fact, said the DOT's Josh Benson, who was up next to talk about the lane's extension, the biggest problem with the lane is its "lack of connectivity" to the city's bike network.

As Benson got into the nuts and bolts of how the lane would be extended, two facts immediately stood out:  to accommodate necessary turning lanes and pedestrian islands, he said, the DOT would need to eliminate about 61 parking spaces along the east side of Columbus Avenue -- affecting 24 percent of the available parking. Also, because of the way Columbus and Broadway intersect, the bike lane south of 69th Street would not be protected. Instead, he said, it would be an "enhanced shared lane" -- meaning cars and bikes would mix together in a travel lane, with the understanding that cars won't be allowed to pass bicyclists. And south of 64th Street, ongoing long-term construction projects would hamper the installation of a permanent lane.

Crowd at CB7 meeting (photo by Kate Hinds)

When the public comment period opened, most people spoke out in favor of the extension. School children talked about commuting to school on the protected lane. The manager of the local Patagonia store said "it has been nothing but a positive for our business." The worries of a business owner -- who operates a moving company -- were assuaged by the DOT's assertion that it could create loading zones for moving trucks.  Two future City Council candidates spoke in favor of the lane. Even Randy Cohen -- the former "Ethicist" columnist for the New York Times-- said supporting it was a moral imperative.  "The improvements in safety are so fantastic," he said, "it seems like an ethical responsibility." But even that impassioned plea couldn't save the proposal.

When debate opened, it became apparent that committee members were divided. The loss of parking was a major objection. There were other, more arcane concerns: if the lane is on the left side of the street, one wondered, how would bicyclists safely make right turns? And some worried about the safety of the proposed enhanced shared lane. "Perception is everything," said board member Ken Coughlin. "If the lane is perceived as being unsafe for cyclists, it's not going to be used by cyclists." He presented a resolution in support of the lanes -- and asking the DOT to look into turning the shared lanes into protected lanes when construction of the water tunnel is done. But Coughlin made clear, "I would rather see an enhanced shared lane than nothing."

Nothing was what he got. When it came time to vote, Coughlin's resolution didn't get the majority it needed for committee support.

But Mark Diller -- the chair of Community Board 7 -- said it's not over.

"The resolution failed -- for tonight," said Diller. "But there's still potential for other resolutions, so we will continue to work on it."  Because the community board had to be out of the space by 10pm, the clock ran out. At future meetings, Diller said, "I'm sure somebody else will present another resolution, and I'm sure that will be discussed and hopefully we'll finally get to one we can approve."

Andrew Albert, co-chair of the transportation committee, said the board wanted more details about parking, loading zones, and its outreach plans for local businesses. "When DOT gives us the information we asked for," he said, "next month there will probably be a very different kind of vote."

"We're not done with this," added another board member, "by any means."

For a PDF of the DOT's presentation, click here.

Hoboken Terminal, post-Sandy (photo by NJ Transit via flickr)

The National Weather Service says New Jersey Transit didn't call.

The Star-Ledger is reporting the agency never consulted the National Weather Service, which predicted storm surges of up to 11 feet.

But NJ Transit isn't backpedaling from its costly decision to store rail cars in yards that later flooded during storm Sandy.

NJ Transit director James Weinstein told a State Legislative panel Monday the agency relied on weather reports and past storm experience to determine where to store hundreds of rail cars and locomotives.

The transit agency's Kearny facility, which sustained almost $100 million in damage, is only ten feet above sea level.

Weinstein told lawmakers the agency's decision-making process was sound.

New Jersey Transit says it's standing by his testimony.

To see what areas flooded during Sandy, check out the map below.

Top stories on TN:
D.C. Unveils Four New Taxicab Colors (link)
Could NYC’s ‘Bike Lane to Nowhere’ Get A Boost? (link)
Confusion at the Gas Pump: Which Grade is Best? (link)
As Connecticut’s Transit Funds Shrink, the Call for Tolls Grows Louder (link)

Earth at Night 2012 (google maps)

After Hurricane Sandy, would you bury a rail yard under a neighborhood of skyscrapers? That's New York's plan for the Hudson Yards on the far west side of Manhattan. (WNYC)

NJ Transit keeps insisting it made Sandy-based decisions on the weather information it had available. But the National Weather Service says it never heard from the agency. "If they had called we would have helped them," said the region's meteorologist. "On Sunday morning, when it looks like they pulled the trigger, we would have told them it was highly likely to a near certainty that this yard was going to take on water." (Star-Ledger)

The NTSB wants every state to require convicted drunk drivers to use devices that prevent them from starting a car's engine if their breath tests positive for alcohol. (Detroit Free Press)

A Texas judge has issued a temporary restraining order to halt work on the Keystone XL pipeline. (Houston Chronicle)

NJ Transit is rolling out real-time bus arrival information for buses in the Princeton/Trenton area; the transit agency says it should be state-wide by spring. (Star-Ledger)

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Google maps now has an earth at night layer. Check it out here. (Atlantic Cities)

The much-awaited groundbreaking for the Boston region's Green Line extension took place yesterday, as the state plans to begin work renovating bridges and underpasses to bring the trolley through Somerville to Medford. (WBUR)

Security workers at JFK airport are threatening to strike next week. (Crain's New York)

Zambia is looking for partners to help run its rail network and national airline. (Bloomberg)

Opinion: California's bullet train project is headed for some kind of political collision. (Sacramento Bee)

A panel of Lackawanna County Court judges is hearing arguments on Scranton's request for a one percent commuter tax. (Times-Tribune)

Polar express: a picture of a frozen bathroom on a train in Poland has gone viral -- and serves as a reminder that some of that country's rolling stock dates back well into the communist era. (Telegraph)

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(photo by Kate Hinds)

A previously-tabled Manhattan bike lane plan will get another look at a community board meeting Tuesday night.

As Transportation Nation reported in October, the Upper West Side's Community Board 7 is taking another look at extending the neighborhood's only on-street protected bike lane.

The Columbus Avenue bike lane is occasionally referred to as a "bike lane to nowhere" because it's less than a mile long and doesn't connect to other bike lanes.

Here's some history: in 2009, the community board requested a study from the city for two bike lanes: one on Columbus Avenue lane from 110th Street to 59th Street, and a matching northbound lane on Amsterdam Avenue.

After heated debate in 2010, only the Columbus Avenue lane went in -- and only from 96th to 77th Streets. (Amsterdam was considered too narrow by the NYC DOT to accommodate a bike lane.)

On Tuesday night, the New York City Department of Transportation will make a public presentation about bike lane usage in the neighborhood -- and weigh in on the Columbus Avenue extension. TN will cover the meeting -- and, should our cell phone signal allow, live tweet.

Columbus Avenue , with a protected bike lane on right side (photo by Kate Hinds)

Top stories on TN:
Amtrak Breaks Holiday Travel Record, Readies for Contentious Congressional Hearing (link)
NY Conflicted on Hiking Tolls for Trucks (link)
NJ Transit Chief: We Thought We Had 20 Years to Respond to Climate Change (link)
VIDEO: See What 25,000 LED Lights on the Bay Bridge Will Look Like (link)
NY MTA Enters 21st Century–You Can Now Claim a Lost or Stolen Metrocard Online (link)

A NYC ghost bike (photo by Kate Hinds)

Even as deaths behind the wheel of an automobile fell last year to the lowest level since the Truman administration, there was an increase in fatalities among bicyclists, pedestrians, motorcycle riders and big-rig truck drivers. (Washington Post)

What's on tap for New York's upcoming transit fare hike? Tune into the Brian Lehrer Show at 10am to hear a discussion. (WNYC)

Government officials are quietly installing sophisticated audio surveillance systems on public buses across the country to eavesdrop on passengers, according to documents obtained by The Daily.

Massachusetts plans to eliminate toll collectors and switch to an entirely electronic system. (Boston Globe)

During the Twin Cities' recent snowstorm, ridership on mass transit jumped 25%. (KTSP)

Disney cruises won't be sailing from Galveston anymore -- leaving the port scrambling to make up for that lost revenue. (Houston Chronicle)

The cast of Downton Abbey! In a New York City subway station! Which looks to be Columbus Circle! (Entertainment Weekly)

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With the state budget in the red and federal aid at risk of plunging in two years, how will Connecticut maintain its highways and expand its mass transit network? Three words: transit-oriented development. (Hartford Courant)
Or maybe just one: tolls. (CT Mirror)

Ladies and gentlemen: meet the members of the Tappan Zee Bridge Mass Transit Task Force.

All aboard the walking school bus in the East Bay. (KALW)

A federal judge has permanently blocked North Carolina from issuing an anti-abortion specialty license plate. (Reuters via Yahoo)

Video: 13 minutes of "road behavior I've never imagined, find hard to explain, which raises all kinds of questions." Because in Russia, every driver has a dashboard camera. (NPR)

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Hoboken Terminal, flooding during Sandy (photo by accarrino via flickr)

The head of New Jersey Transit dug in his heels on Monday, defending the agency's preparations in advance of Sandy -- and adding it previously thought it would have at least 20 more years to adapt to climate change.

As Transportation Nation reported, critics say there's a direct line between NJ Governor Chris Christie's  inaction on climate change and New Jersey transit’s costly decision to store brand-new trains in low-lying, flood prone rail yards during storm Sandy.

At a Senate subcommittee hearing last week, New Jersey Senator Frank Lautenberg questioned NJ Transit's decision to park trains in rail yards that flooded during Sandy. But when agency head James Weinstein defended that decision, saying his information indicated an "80 to 90 percent range that no flooding would happen," the questions stopped.

For four days.

At a New Jersey Assembly Transportation Committee hearing in Trenton on Monday, Weinstein was asked to retread the steps the agency took to secure its fleet in the face of the oncoming storm -- and explain why it decided not to study the impact of climate change on its rolling stock.

Assemblywoman Linda Stender picked up the issue.  "Back in March," she said, "it was reported that New Jersey Transit declined to have climate change consultants do an analysis -- they were told to skip it."

Not so, Weinstein said.

"Basically, it was a study to determine a study," he said. 'It was sort of the beginning of a process, and I think the response and the decision that as made at that time was  that if we understand the vulnerability of our properties, where we store equipment -- the way you deal with equipment is to move it to places where it's not vulnerable.  So I'm not quite sure what a consultant would have told us, other than ' this facility is in harm's way,  you need to move it out of harm's way.'"

Stender wasn't mollified. "I guess my concern is I don't understand why a decision like that was made," she said, pointing out that other transit agencies were studying the issue. "It really seems to me that was a very bad choice to have skipped something like that."

Weinstein disagreed with that characterization. The agency did the study, he said -- just not all of it.

"We did not skip the study," Weinstein retorted. "We actually executed the study. The only thing we didn't do in that study was an analysis of the actual equipment. We did an analysis, the beginning of an analysis, on the facilities...and the reason that we did that is because if you determine that the Meadowlands Maintenance Facility, for instance, is flood-prone, then.. that informs your decision not to keep equipment there...We actually -- that study is actually complete, I've seen a copy of it, although I confess I have not studied it, but I don't want to leave the impression that we just said 'no, we're not going to do that.' That's not what we did. We did the study; we just concluded that the way you address the equipment problem, the rolling stock problem, is by moving it."

But wouldn't a study show that the facility was vulnerable and the equipment should have been moved, countered Stender?

"Actually, Assemblywoman, that study showed -- concluded -- that we had as much as 20 years to start making -- to adapt to climatological changes that are taking place," said Weinstein, "and I just go back and say this: it was the worst storm in my memory, in our generation, and the reality is that there is no history of flooding at the Meadowlands Maintenance Complex. I know everybody says it's in a flood zone. It's not! The western part of Hoboken Terminal is not in a flood zone. Now, having said that, we are informed. We know now that under circumstances like Sandy that that's going to flood. So we've got to come up with a better idea."

"I would really recommend that ... you revisit that issue," said Stender. "The fact that it happened means that there was a possibility that it could happen and somebody didn't see it."

Later in the hearing, Weinstein said the Meadowlands facility could not be relocated -- "nor frankly do I believe, at least at this point, that there is a necessity to do it. I believe that we can build some resiliency in, and we're going to be looking that those, but frankly, rail yards have been located in that area of our state for well over 100 years."

He said NJ Transit planned to elevate some electrical substations. And, he said, it had learned from Sandy's experience. "I can assure you that we will not be parking equipment at the Meadowlands Maintenance Facility in the face of a similar storm in the near future."

Weinstein  also assured lawmakers NJ Transit wouldn't raise fares to cover the hundreds of millions of dollars worth of damage it sustained during the storm.  "Absolutely not. There will be no fare increase to cover the costs. We believe all of those costs will be covered by other means -- insurance, FEMA reimbursement. Period."

That assertion was questioned by Assemblyman Upendra Chivukula, who sounded incredulous. "You're assuring [us] that there won't be any rate increases, even though the insurance companies -- once they cover your damages -- they're going to hike up your premiums?"

"There will be no fare increases," Weinstein said firmly.

"For how long?" pressed Chivukula. "This is the question the committee - "

"For as long as I am executive director," Weinstein interjected.

"I don't know how long that will be," said Chivukula.

"Nor do I, sir," responded Weinstein, causing the assemblyman to dissolve into laughter.

Top stories on TN:
Critics: Christie Deep-Sixed Climate Change Prep (link)
Census Data Show Public Transit Gender Gap (link)
What Does Acquittal of Chinatown Bus Driver Mean for Safety? (link)
NYC Vintage Buses Called into Service — For Holiday Spirit (link)
NYC Bike Share Delayed Again — Until May, Sandy Flooding Cited (link)

Happy holidays, LIRR riders: your trains are back to normal. (Photo of Atlantic Terminal, Brooklyn by Kate Hinds)

The Long Island Rail Road is running on a normal rush hour schedule for the first time since Superstorm Sandy forced it to trim service. (AP via Newsday)

Another look at what New York City's coming fare hike could look like: base fare up 25 cents; monthly passes up $8. (New York Daily News)

California's high-speed rail project now has a policy of hiring disadvantaged people. (Modesto Bee)

A private company wants to start operating two-person lunar missions by the end of the decade. (Los Angeles Times)

The New Jersey Assembly will hold a hearing today on the damage Hurricane Sandy did to roads and transit in that state. (NJ Legislature)

The great decline of American driving: miles driven in September 2012 are 8.60% below the 2005 peak. (Business Insider; graph)

BART is looking at raising parking prices. (San Francisco Chronicle)

After rescuing several people who were trapped in the wilderness after using Apple's map app, police in Victoria, Australia, issued a warning discouraging iPhone users from relying on it. (cnet)

Stockton (CA) thieves are targeting truck catalytic converters. (Recordnet)

Metal recyclers are reporting an uptick in business due to cars scrapped post-Sandy. (WNYC)

Traffic congestion is costing the U.K. economy more than £4.3bn a year, or £491 per car-commuting household. (Telegraph)

Having Alaska license plates is a great way to meet the neighbors, when you're new to suburban Chicago. (WBEZ)

Today in transportation history: On December 10, 1868, the first traffic lights were installed outside the British Houses of Parliament in London, by a railway engineer. (ASCE)

Wait, how do those newfangled lights work? Check out a 1937 film from Chevrolet that takes you "inside the electrochemical 'brain' of the traffic light."

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Top stories on TN:
So You’ve Landed On A New York City Subway Track: 5 Bad Options To Consider (link)
NJ Transit Chief: NJ Transit Trains, Equipment, Suffered $100 Million In Sandy Damage (link)
Bloomberg: In Reponse to Climate Change, NYC Needs Levees (link)
Virginia Governor Promises Action on State’s Transportation Funding Woes (link)
California County Cancels Transportation Tax Recount (link)

London's Overground (photo by Hectate1 via flickr)

Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood is opening the door to serving in President Obama's cabinet for a second term. (The Hill)

A new branch of the London Overground -- the city's orbital railway - opens this weekend. (Atlantic Cities)

The Port Authority approved a $3.5 billion preliminary 2013 operating budget. Two notes: of that $3.5 billion total, $2.57 billion is the operating budget and the remainder is for debt repayment. And: the agency is still totaling Sandy damage. (Asbury Park Press)

The oil boom in Montana and North Dakota is boosting ridership on that region's Amtrak line. (NPR)

DC's Metro will have some employees log their work and sleep habits as part of a study into how fatigue affects their performance. (AP via Washington Post)

Taiwan's bike share program was languishing -- until the city made it possible to rent bikes with a mobile phone. BOOM. (CNet)

Air pollution has worsened markedly in Asian cities in recent years and presents a growing threat to human health. (New York Times)

Because "incomes are now at that sweet spot of just passing $4,000 per capita" in parts of Southeast Asia, General Motors sees the possibility of a new market. (Marketplace)

The head of the Federal Communications Commission called on the FAA to allow "enable greater use of tablets, e-readers, and other portable devices" during flights. (The Hill)

A rash of pedestrian fatalities and injuries in the past week has Metro Vancouver municipalities searching for ways to improve safety. (Vancouver Sun)

Apartments are sprouting at a rapid clip along Charlotte’s Lynx Blue Line in South End, as developers look to cash in on a booming rental market and cater to young professionals who want to live near uptown. (WCNC)

A note for the transit chief: beware the endorsement from Giuliani. But even if Joe Lhota "dodged the Giuliani curse, he would be running right after having presided over an increase in the subway and bus fare. That ought to make him really popular." (New York Times)

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(The hearings have ended.  Here's our story. Follow along with the live webcast of a Senate subcommittee hearing here . It begins at 10:30 eastern time.

We will be tweeting highlights -- so follow along.

Here's who's on tap to testify.

Top stories on TN:
Uber Now Legal in D.C. (link)
New Tappan Zee Bridge Designs Released (link)
Hey, I’m Parking Here (link)
Senate Hearing Will Detail Hurricane Sandy’s Transit Damage (link)
Homeowners Group Notches Up Fight Against Billion Dollar Highway Expansion (link)

A toy train barrels down the track at 11th annual Holiday Train Show at Grand Central Terminal. (Metropolitan Transportation Authority / Patrick Cashin)

The $600 million dilemma: should NYC rebuild the South Ferry subway station -- located squarely in a flood zone -- or should riders walk six minutes to the next station? (Bloomberg)

California's high-speed rail brawl hits the House floor today -- with added fiscal cliff pressure. And yes, the Secretary of Transportation will testify. “Ray’s very agitated," reports one source. (Politico)

The Trans-Texas Corridor: the failed infrastructure plan that keeps on giving. "Along with the approach to financing the project, the toll road’s 85 mph speed limit, the fastest in the country, also has roots in Perry’s corridor plan." (Texas Tribune)

Pay-per-mile car insurance launches in Portland. (The Oregonian)

The official portrait of John Mica -- the outgoing House Transportation and Infrastructure committee chair -- was unveiled Wednesday at the Capitol. (The Hill)

Human Rights Watch decried Singapore's prosecution of mainland Chinese bus drivers who went on strike, calling for the charges to be dropped and discrimination to be ended. (Reuters)

At least 16 cities across the U.S. have installed bicycle traffic signals. (USA Today video)

Washington State is now a right-to-toke state. But that may be at odds with another new law: the state recently set a legal DUI impairment level for THC, the psychoactive composite in marijuana. "Activists worry that medical pot users could be forced to give up their freedom to get around –or incur the costs of taking taxis." (Oregonian)

A perilous stretch of one Northern California road -- where the state was found liable in 2010 for endangering pedestrians -- continues to claim victims as people try to cross the busy six-lane thoroughfare. (The Bay Citizen)

It will cost more for commuters to ride Go Transit in the Toronto area, but parking will still be free. (Buffalo Business First, Toronto Star)

A New York Post editorial begs MTA head Joe Lhota to run for NYC mayor.

A long-planned movable median barrier could have prevented a fatal crash on the Golden Gate Bridge -- but the earliest it will be in place is 2014. (San Francisco Chronicle)

Reminder: we'll be live-tweeting the Senate hearing on the impact Hurricane Sandy had upon transportation. Read up on it here. And watch @TransportNation starting at 10:30!

Traffic thought experiment, courtesy of The Onion: "The U.S. Department of Transportation announced plans Wednesday to stage Traffic Jam 2013, a brand-new highway concert series that will feature popular musical acts performing for passing motorists on America’s shoulder lanes, median dividers, and overpasses." As always, come for the story, stay for the photoshopping. (link)

Tribute: Dave Brubeck Quartet:"Take the A Train" (1966)

New York City Council Member Jimmy Vacca (2nd from right.) Photo by Kate Hinds

The New York City Council Transportation Committee met Wednesday to discuss a slate of bills designed to make life easier for New Yorkers who park.

Three bills are under consideration: Int. 762 would make it easier for vehicles to stand near a school or day care center; Int. 527 would require the DOT to post notice of permanent street sign changes that affect parking, and Int. 824 would make it expressly legal for homeowners to park in front of their own driveways -- something committee chair Jimmy Vacca called "a simple bill -- quite frankly, it should be a no-brainer."

That last idea didn't fly with Kate Slevin, the New York City Department of Transportation Assistant Commissioner testifying on behalf of the NYC DOT.

"It's unclear what issue the bill attempts to address," she said, adding it was "particularly troubling" that the bill, as written, could effectively provide 'blanket forgiveness" for a variety of parking violations.

Slevin also said the DOT wouldn't support the other two bills. The no-standing regulations near schools, she said, are necessary to protect children. And as for posting advance notice for permanent parking sign changes: Slevin said the DOT maintains over 1.3 million signs -- of which 20 percent are devoted to parking. Providing advance notice, she said, would "essentially double the workload" of staff people who change signage, which would result in increased costs.

Rather than debate if people should read signs, or signs about signs, the hearing first focused on a topic not on the agenda: prices, specifically an already-rescinded rate increase notice the DOT had sent out to people who use municipal parking facilities.

Jimmy Vacca, reading from the letter, said "Effective January 1st, the City Council has approved rate increases for all New York City DOT municipal parking facilities."

"This City Council never approved any rate increase," Vacca said, adding that the same letter had been sent out last year. "This is two years in a row that this is a mistake."

He took the occasion to argue for more Council control over parking regulations, and said he wanted the City Council to be brought in as a partner when it comes to parking rate increases -- not an afterthought. "I don't appreciate agencies telling me what they're going to do, after they've decided what they're going to do."

The often-tense hearing did deliver some choice exchanges that reveal a persistent tension in city transportation planning.

"What do people do who have cars in this city?" Vacca wanted to know.

"Well, luckily for us, we have a wonderful transportation system," said Slevin, "and less than 50 percent of the households in New York City own cars, so there's a lot of other options people use to get around town."

This did not placate Vacca.

"Some people who live in boroughs outside Manhattan do need a car," snapped Vacca. "I hate to break that to DOT. Some people who do not live in Manhattan, especially, need a car. We do not have mass transit options that you think we have, or that we should have."

Slevin told him the new municipal parking lot rates were going into effect in February 2013.

The heads of transit agencies affected by Sandy will testify on Capitol Hill Thursday, in what will be the most public assembly of the top brass of the NY MTA, NJ Transit, Amtrak and the Port Authority of NY &NJ in one public place for the first time since the storm.

New Jersey senator Robert Menendez called Hurricane Sandy the "largest mass transit disaster in our nation's history" last week. Thursday's Senate hearing should reveal additional details about the damage and destruction.

The transit agencies of both New York and New Jersey are largely functional -- but none are back at 100 percent. New York's MTA suffered $5 billion worth of damage. One-quarter of New Jersey Transit's passenger rail cars were flooded. And the Port Authority still can't say exactly when its Hoboken PATH train terminal will reopen.

Because so many Northeasterners use transit to commute, Senator Menendez said last week Hurricane Sandy affected 40 percent of the nation's mass transit users.

Thursday's hearing is being chaired by New Jersey Senator Frank Lautenberg. A spokesman for the senator said "the hearing will allow Senator Lautenberg and his colleagues to further review the devastation to the region's infrastructure and move forward rebuilding New Jersey's transportation systems so they're stronger and better prepared to handle the next storm."

One question expected to come up: why New Jersey Transit parked so many rail cars in an area that had been predicted to flood.

Lawmakers from both states are eager to receive federal disaster relief. New Jersey estimates that it suffered $37 billion worth of damage; New York is requesting $42 billion in aid.

We'll be live tweeting the hearing, which starts at 10:30am. Follow along on @TransportNation.

Top stories on TN:
Capital Bikeshare Expansion Halted By Parts Problems (link)
LA Mayor: Parties Agree to Federal Mediator to Resolve Los Angeles Port Strike (link)
H is for Hoodie: Rockaways Shuttle Swag Will Benefit Hard-Hit Queens Neighborhood (link)

Boarding a Muni bus in San Francisco (photo by Lulu Vision via flickr)

San Francisco's MTA voted unanimously to spend an estimated $1.6 million in federal funds on a 16-month program offering free Fast Passes to low-income San Franciscans under 18. (San Francisco Chronicle)

On the table in fiscal cliff talks: raising the federal gas tax. (Politico)

NY MTA chair Joe Lhota met on Monday with Mayor Bloomberg to discuss running for mayor. (New York Times)

One side benefit of the Brooklyn Battery Tunnel flooding during Hurricane Sandy: it acted as a drainage ditch. (Capital NY)

Downtown L.A.'s streetcar is the missing transit link. (Los Angeles Times)

Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel is defending his decision to constrict traffic on a popular street that runs through the heart of Chicago’s congested downtown area — by installing 12 blocks of protected bike lanes. (Chicago Sun Times)

A former head of NJ Transit takes to the opinion page to defend his former agency's handling of Sandy. "Rather than sit back and play Monday-morning quarterback, we should commend NJ Transit and its staff for restoring the system quickly." (Times of Trenton)

The city of Greenville, South Carolina, is getting a six-station, 28-bike bike share program. (Greenville Online)

Once a funeral procession hits DC's streets, respect for the dead falls by the wayside. (Washington Post)

Do Bloomberg's waterfront redevelopment efforts make sense in a post-Sandy New York? (WNYC)

Houstonians are now ready to embrace public transit, says the head of that city's Metro. (KUHF)

New Hampshire will consider selling naming rights to roads and bridges. (Union Leader)

A stern letter from lawyers representing Greyhound Canada nixed plans for a student-run, low-cost bus service from London, Ontario, to Toronto during the holidays. (The Star)

Months of gridlock, power outages and business interruption: Afghans hope paving roads in Kabul will be worth it. (NPR)

Discuss: does The Mindy Project accurately portray the NYC subway? Judging from the height of the subway car pictured, the answer would seem to be 'no.' (Gothamist)

Take a trip back in time to 1963 and see what it took to build British Columbia's George Massey Tunnel.

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For $34, you too can dress like MTA chair Joe Lhota.  Note: the catwalk is his actual office. (Photo courtesy of NY MTA)

You can ride the H train for free -- but the shirt is a different story.

On Tuesday, the New York Metropolitan Transportation Authority launched the Rockaways Collection -- shirts, magnets, and pins branded with the logo of the shuttle now plying the heavily damaged Queens neighborhood.

The MTA says all profits from the sales will go to the Graybeards, a Rockaways non-profit helping rebuild after Hurricane Sandy. Products will be sold through the New York Transit Museum.

But can the MTA afford to give away money? The transit agency sustained $5 billion in damages from Sandy. It will cost $650 million alone just to restore A train service from mainland Queens to the Rockaways. It had to truck subway cars out to the neighborhood just to operate the free H train shuttle service.

An MTA spokesman says yes.

"We have a financial plan," says Aaron Donovan. “We will have money available through issuing short-term notes to restore the service and we expect to be reimbursed by FEMA and our insurance.”

The MTA announced last week it was taking on debt to pay for Sandy damages and will issue $950 million in bonds. At that time, chairman Joe Lhota said he had "an enormous amount of confidence" that the MTA would receive "a substantial amount of money" from the federal government.

Since then, both New York City's mayor and the state's governor have gone to Washington to make the case for federal aid.

To learn more about the H train, and to watch a video of how the MTA got subway cars out to the Rockaways, go here.