Kate Hinds

A European Union policy paper calls for halving conventional cars in cities by 2030 -- and banning combustion engines altogether by 2050. "Transport Commissioner Siim Kallas also set out plans to shift half of "middle distance journeys" from road to rail, and to cut shipping emissions by 40%. He said: 'Freedom to travel is a basic right for our citizens. Curbing mobility is not an option. Nor is business is usual.'" (BBC, Bloomberg)

Massachusetts is vying for the high-speed rail funds rejected by Florida, and the Boston Globe writes about the state's application process -- and how state officials all got on the same page.

Meanwhile, New York City's bike lanes continue to be covered by the world's major media outlets. An op-ed in the Wall Street Journal says the lawsuit over a Brooklyn bike lane "isn't a culture war, as many would have it. It's about New Yorkers who want to walk safely across the street—maybe even while smoking a cigarette or eating a salty pretzel." The New York Times writes of Senator Charles Schumer's reticence to go on record about whether he supports the bike lane -- or the lawsuit. And the British paper The Guardian asks: "is New York really "too New York" for cycling ever to be acceptably mainstream?"

Banner recently spotted on Bergen Street and 4th Avenue, Brooklyn (photo by Jody Avirgan/WNYC)

San Antonio launched a bike-sharing program this weekend, the first of its type in Texas. (Houston Chronicle)

New York collects 90 tons of garbage a day on the subway system. (NY Daily News)

New York Senator Kirsten Gillibrand is backing legislation that would allow cities to rail fuel-efficiency standards in taxis.  From an email sent by her office: "Just weeks after the U.S. Supreme Court blocked a New York City program aimed to create a fuel-efficient taxi fleet, U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), Congressman Jerrold Nadler (D-NY), New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg and TLC Commissioner David Yassky will announce federal legislation ...(today)  MARCH 28th that would allow all major cities to raise fuel efficiency standards for taxis. With the City’s green taxi plan now at a legal impasse, an act of Congress is required to give the City and other local governments the ability to upgrade to fuel-efficient taxi fleets."

The Cincinnati Zoo installed four acres of solar panels over its parking lot, which should produce 20% of its energy needs. (USA Today)

A Baltimore Sun transportation reporter writes about driver's ed and bicycles: "Most likely, the subject of interacting with bicycles got short shrift in your driver's ed class...many of us could use such a bit of midlife education in the things our driving instructors failed to mention. And nowhere is that more apparent than in the devastating consequences of clumsy interactions between motor vehicles and bicycles."

San Mateo County's "Comprehensive Bicycle and Pedestrian Plan" has some people worried about what they call a lack of coordination at the county level, leading to a patchwork network of bike routes. The plan lists projects throughout the county’s 20 cities that would cost an estimated $57 million to build and cover some 290.4 miles of roadway. (San Francisco Examiner)

Top Transportation Nation stories we're following: New York State is continuing to issue thousands of parking placards -- despite Governor Cuomo's promise to end "business as usual." A recent air traffic control issue has raised larger questions about how towers are staffed. And: high-speed rail might be dead in Florida, but some are hoping that the governor will agree to move forward with a commuter rail project.

Nearly two weeks after the earthquake and tsunami struck Japan, engineers still do not know the full extent of damage to roads, bridges, rail lines and other infrastructure. (NY Times)

Meanwhile, Toyota is warning factories and dealers in North America that production delays are coming, while Nissan is looking for ways around its factory closures in Japan by flipping the supply chain around. (Marketplace)

The Los Angeles MTA approved sweeping bus service cuts, eliminating nine lines and reducing 11. Officials say they are still providing adequate service while making the bus system more efficient; critics say L.A.'s low-income residents will be hurt the most. (Los Angeles Times)

WNYC looks at the 2010 New York census map.

A Boston-based band uses bikes to power their concerts. "One person can sustain about 100 watts without breaking too much of a sweat. Five people can amass enough wattage to power a small live show." (WBUR)

City-funded parking garages at Yankees Stadium have become a "financial swamp for taxpayers," writes a NYDN columnist. "Ever since it opened...two years ago, the 9,000-space parking system has operated at barely 60% capacity, even on game days. Meanwhile, its operating expenses have run twice what was expected."

NJ Transit paid nearly $3.6 million for unused vacation and sick time last year -- even as it raised fares and cut service. Gov. Christie says the agency should go to a 'use it or lose it' policy. (Asbury Park Press)

The Bay Area's Metropolitan Transportation Commission made a $10 million commitment to a new $50 million revolving fund for loaning money to developers to build affordable housing near rail stations and bus stops. (San Jose Mercury News)

The Ohio Senate voted to pass a measure banning signs that tout federal stimulus spending along Ohio's roadways. (AP via BusinessWeek)

Top Transportation Nation stories we're following: As massive bus cuts loom, Long Islanders get emotional at a hearing. A NYC deputy mayor goes on the BL Show to defend the city's bike lane program -- and voice support for the city's transportation commissioner. And: after reports that a former DC Metro employee left the agency to become a lobbyist, the agency's board put the brakes on a contract.

Long Island Bus (photo from mta.info)

(Kate Hinds, Transportation Nation) An emotional NYC MTA hearing went well into the night last night in Hempstead. The transit authority is considering cutting service for some 16,000 Long Island Bus riders beginning this summer. And the financially troubled Nassau County government says it wants to privatize all bus service.

Alfonso Castillo covers transportation for Newsday.  He was at the hearings at Hofstra University, and he spoke with WNYC's Amy Eddings about what happened at the hearing, what the cuts would mean for some Long Islanders, and what the next steps are.

You can listen to the interview here.

Read more about the hearing here. For more about Nassau County's troubled finances, go here and here.

After a wintry mix fell on New York overnight, snow blanketed Central Park on Thursday morning.

(Washington, DC -- David Schultz, WAMU)  Metro is delaying the extension of a nearly $500 million contract after reports that the contractor may have hired one of Metro's former top executives to lobby on its behalf.

(Kate Hinds, Transportation Nation) Yesterday, it was attorney Jim Walden's turn; today, it's Howard Wolfson's. The New York City deputy mayor will be on WNYC's Brian Lehrer Show this morning at (about) 10:25am to talk about the city's bike lane program. In the New York area, you can find the program on AM820 and FM 93.9; it also streams live on wnyc.org.

Columbus Avenue bike lane being installed last year (photo by Kate Hinds)

NYC deputy mayor Howard Wolfson goes on the Brian Lehrer Show this morning at around 10:25 (give or take a few minuites) to counter charges that the city has gone too far with its bike lane program.

Long Island Bus may put the brakes on 27 of their 48 lines this summer because, according to MTA chairman Jay Walder, Nassau County is not paying enough toward the service's $134 million annual budget. Walder said 16,000 people may lose bus service and 200 workers will be laid off. (WNYC)

After two planes landed without being able to reach an air traffic controller at Reagan National Airport, DOT head Ray LaHood ordered an additional controller to staff the overnight shift (Washington Post) -- and a study of air traffic controller staffing at airports around the country. (AP via BusinessWeek)

Towns in the Boston area are exploring a regional bike share program. (Boston Globe)

Accused of raiding local transit money, a Republican-led Minnesota House committee  dropped a provision from a major state transportation bill that would have shifted money from new rail projects to existing bus operations. (Minneapolis Star-Tribune)

The Queensboro Bridge will soon be known as the Ed Koch Bridge. (WNYC)

Vice President Joe Biden chastised Gov. Rick Scott in Tampa, saying he cost Florida thousands of jobs and cutting-edge infrastructure improvements by rejecting $2.4 billion in federal funding for high-speed rail. “Your governor, God bless him — I don’t know him — but I don’t get it,” Biden said at a private fundraising reception for Sen. Bill Nelson. (Miami Herald)

Changing Gear's Micki Maynard looks at Detroit's decline. "Sixty years ago...people in all parts of the city could walk to work, or take a streetcar or bus. Some of them chose to drive, because they earned enough to afford to vehicles they were making (something their parents and grandparents might not have been able to do)."

A day in the life of Manhattan parking court -- real life, in-person court, not the newfangled online court. (NY Times)

Top Transportation Nation stories we're following: The Central Park Conservancy is removing the confusing signs that led the NYPD to ticket nine cyclists improperly for speeding. What’s more, the NYPD took the unusual step of making house calls to apologize for the erroneous citations.  Speaking of Central Park: a NYC council member has introduced legislation that would ban cars from both Central and Prospect Parks. The attorney litigating the Prospect Park West bike lane lawsuit appeared on WNYC's Brian Lehrer Show. And: a new transportation advocacy group grows in Houston.

Central Park (photo by Kate Hinds)

(Kate Hinds, Transportation Nation) A New York City Council member is pushing to ban cars from the loop drives in Central Park and Prospect Park.

Gale Brewer, who represents the Upper West Side, said this isn't the first time the idea's been floated. In 2006, the City Council held a hearing on this issue, but the legislation was withdrawn after Mayor Michael Bloomberg banned cars in the parks for much of the day.

Which, Brewer said, made the parks even more popular.

"Parks are supposed to be livable, and you're supposed to be able to do exercise, and you're supposed to be able to breathe," Brewer said. "I think that cars do not have a place in these two parks...That’s why I’m introducing this legislation – to just have the people, not the cars."

Read the full story at WNYC.

A City Council member is pushing to ban cars from the loop drives in Central Park and Prospect Park.

Prospect Park West Bike Lane (photo: Andrea Bernstein)

(Kate Hinds, Transportation Nation) If you follow two-wheeled news (and even if you don't), you probably know about the lawsuit to remove the bike lane along Brooklyn's Prospect Park.

On this morning's Brian Lehrer Show (WNYC), Jim Walden (the attorney representing the group suing the city) will be talking about why he thinks the lane should be removed. Tune in this morning around 11:30am --in NY, that's AM820, FM 93.9 -- or listen live on the internet at wnyc.org.

On tomorrow's Brian Lehrer Show, the city will air its point of view when New York City Deputy Mayor Howard Wolfson (who recently wrote a memo defending the bike lanes), comes on the show.

Read more about the lawsuit here.

Detroit viewed through a window on the People Mover (Gehad83/Flickr)

The Takeaway looks at how the disaster in Japan is affecting car manufacturing in the US.

And here's how the decline in car manufacturing is affecting the Motor City: New census numbers reveal that one in four Detroiters have moved out. "With 713,777 people, the city reached its lowest count in 100 years, though officials will contest it." (Detroit Free Press)

Seattle City Council is considering a one-year experiment to limit disabled parking in 14 blocks of downtown Seattle. The goal is to create more turnover of parking spaces and minimize disabled parking placard abuse. (Seattle Times)

North Carolina transportation officials announced an agreement that will free up $461 million in federal money to begin modernizing the state’s rail system. (Greensboro News & Record)

Confusion in Manhattan over exactly where the East Side begins and the West Side ends. (Or vice versa.) Surprise: the west side of Fifth Avenue is, technically, the West Side. Even if you're walking along Central Park. (NYT)

"Horrible" transit cuts (15% reduction in service, 29 bus lines eliminated) begin in Pittsburgh this Sunday. (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)

A NYC councilwoman is introducing a bill today that would restrict vehicles from traveling along the main, 6-mile loop in Central Park and inside Brooklyn's Prospect Park. (NY Post)

The attorney handling the Prospect Park West bike lane lawsuit will be on the Brian Lehrer Show (WNYC) this morning.

Ray LaHood is in Honolulu to report on that city's transit expansion. (KHON)

Watch the NY MTA's monthly board meeting here, starting at 9:15am.

Top Transportation Nation stories we're following: Safety problems are widespread on New York's inter-city bus companies. New York's bridges receive their worst grade ever, and California's aren't too great, either. Airlines carried more passengers in 2010 than they did in 2009, but have yet to fully rebound from the recession. And transit riders love their technology -- at least until someone looks over their shoulder.

The American Society of Civil Engineers gives New York its worst report card ever:  42 percent of bridges are structurally deficient, drinking water needs a $15 billion investment, and nearly half of major roads are in poor or mediocre condition.

WXXI of Rochester's Bob Smith spoke to Transportation Nation Director Andrea Bernstein about how it has come to this...and why negative political campaigning has created a populace skeptical of government spending of all forms...including infrastructure spending.

You can listen to the program here -- part of New York State Public Radio's series State of Disrepair -- Transportation Nation

(Kate Hinds, Transportation Nation) Airlines carried 2.1% more passengers in 2010 than the previous year, according to the US Department of Transportation's Bureau of Transportation Statistics, which released 2010 data today. But passenger totals still remained 3.2 percent below 2008's level of 812.3 million.

2010's top airline was Delta. Following its merger with Northwest, the Atlanta-based airline carried over 110 million passengers last year.  More total system passengers boarded planes in 2010 at Atlanta Hartsfield-Jackson International than at any other U.S. airport; and more international passengers boarded planes at New York John F. Kennedy than at any other U.S. airport.

You can read the full report here.

Manhattan in 1847 (via Wikimedia Commons)

On this morning's Brian Lehrer Show: Happy 200th anniversary, Manhattan street grid! Tune in around 11:40am to hear Joel Towers, executive dean of Parsons The New School for Design, talk about the anniversary of the grid layout of streets in Manhattan. (For the NYC area, that's AM820 and FM 93.9. For everyone else, the show streams online at wnyc.org.)

For more on how the grid was built -- way back when Houston Street was called North Street -- listen here to a WNYC interview with New York University professor Hilary Ballon, who's curating an upcoming exhibit on the street design.

Image from the "One Bay Area" presentation of the Metropolitan Transportation Commission and the Association of Bay Area Governments.

San Francisco's regional transportation and housing agencies (One Bay Area) are floating a 25 year-plan to prepare for a future in which the Bay Area has 2 million more people and 902,000 housing units -- and most of it built near rail stations, bus lines, walking paths or bike lanes. (Contra Costa Times)

Half a century after cities put up freeways, many of those roads are reaching the end of their useful lives. But instead of replacing them, a growing number of cities are thinking it makes more sense just to tear them down. (NPR)  You can see our earlier coverage of this issue here, on Marketplace.

Massachusetts transportation officials hoping to build a new commuter rail line have decided on a preferred route to connect Boston to New Bedford and Fall River. The state hopes to have the line built by 2017 -- but the funding has not been secured yet. (Boston Globe)

New Yorkers can now contest parking tickets online. (WNYC)

The Federal Highway Administration launched new standards for bridge inspections (The Hill), which Ray LaHood says will allow the FHWA to more clearly and easily identify bridge issues in each state.

United Auto Workers made concessions in 2008, when the American auto industry was limping. Now, Detroit car manufacturers are newly profitable -- and UAW officials are meeting today to map out strategy in advance of labor contract talks. (Marketplace)

Google has become the first customer for a new wireless EV charging station. The inductive charging system requires only proximity to the charging unit -- no plug or outlet necessary. (Wired/Autopia)

Some fuel-efficient cars can take years to reach the break-even point.  (KUHF)

Georgia's DeKalb County is expected today to approve a $2.7 billion wish list of transportation upgrades, but county officials are still reluctant to support asking residents to pay more in sales tax. And it sounds like no one thinks there's enough local control of the money. (Atlanta Journal-Constitution)

A Foursquare add-on will give users real-time transit schedules when they check in near a transit stop. (Mashable)

Top Transportation Nation stories we're following: NY's City Hall goes on a bike lane offensive, and Mayor Bloomberg speaks -- diplomatically -- about Iris Weinshall, who's not a bike lane fan. The Chinese demand for coal is pushing some American freight lines to the max. A former Metro executive is now working for a transportation lobbying firm. Watch a visualization of London's bike share system on the day of a tube strike. And: happy 200th anniversary, Manhattan street grid.

Senator Charles Schumer in Chinatown (photo by Arun Venugopal/WNYC)

A vehicle checkpoint in NY found that 14 out of 14 tour buses stopped had safety problems, leading NY Senator Charles Schumer to call for auditing the  drivers' licenses of all tour bus operators in New York State. (WNYC)

As Los Angeles moves to expand rail service, officials also aim to reduce bus service by 12%. (Los Angeles Times)

Bicyclists in Illinois want the state transportation department to start tracking "dooring" collisions. (Chicago Tribune)

New York Magazine looks at the city's bike lane culture wars.

Analysts worry factory shutdowns in Japan could slow shipments of popular cars to U.S. — including Toyota's Prius and Honda's Fit — and the shortages could spread to other models. (WNYC)

Military action in Libya helped push the average U.S. price of a gallon of gasoline up another 7 cents over the past two weeks, making the the average price for a regular  gallon $3.57 (AP via Forbes).  The increase in gas prices is negatively affecting NYC taxi drivers (WNYC).

Hundreds protested planned transit cuts in Pittsburgh. (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)

President Obama criticized Florida Governor Rick Scott for spurning high-speed rail. (Miami Herald)

Want to know how important buses were for the civil rights movement? Check out this NY Times article about one man's legacy. "Mr. Crawford’s work was simple. He kept a segregated population moving."

One man writes about his experiences using London's bike share program. "Sponsoring 5,000 bikes is one thing; building mythical “bike superhighways” on streets in which every square inch of asphalt is already fiercely competed for, moment by moment, is another." (NY Times)

The NY Daily News says the #7 tunnel is the MTA's #1 headache.

Top Transportation Nation stories we're following: A poll found that New Yorkers prefer bike lanes, 59% to 34%. Virginia's Loudoun County may withdraw its funding from the Dulles Metrorail project. Florida Senator Bill Nelson said the state's high-speed rail hopes were dashed. Travelers from Japan trickled into JFK airport. And the MTA christened two tunnel boring machines for its East Side Access project.

A bike waits for its casting call (photo by Kate Hinds)

(Kate Hinds, Transportation Nation) Walking out my door this morning, I saw that a scene from the NBC show "30 Rock" was filming on my block. There were all the usual sights that accompany a filming -- lights on cherry pickers, electric cables running down the sidewalk, huge trailers parked on the street, and an enticing food service cart. But I got to see something I've never seen before: a bike, waiting for its 15 minutes of fame. Even filming someone riding a bike is a production!

While construction of Phase I of the Silver Line is already underway, Phase II is having trouble getting off the ground. (Photo by David Schultz)

(Washington, DC - David Schultz, WAMU) Cost estimates continue to rise for the second phase of the Dulles Metrorail project -- from Herndon to Dulles Airport and beyond. And now Loudoun County may withdraw its share of the funding for the project.

Loudoun County Supervisor Stevens Miller says a majority of his colleagues on the board think the cost of the so-called Silver Line is no longer worth it.

"Loudoun County's contribution to that project would be on the order of $300 million," Miller says. "But as of yet we haven't committed to fund that part. If we don't, then Phase II would be in complete jeopardy."

Board chairman Scott York says Miller is incorrect and that Loudoun will pay its share of the project -- just as long as its designers choose an above-ground aerial station at the airport.

"We have been communicating to the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority Board that they had better well choose the aerial alignment," York says, "because of the fact that it is several hundred million dollars cheaper."

York says if the Authority chooses an underground station, Loudoun County will have a very serious discussion about opting out of the project.

You can listen to the story here.

One-quarter of those arrested on the DC Metro are younger than 20, and the transit agency has hit a five-year high in the number of rapes, robberies and assaults. (WAMU)

Criticism continued over news that state transportation officials did not immediately reveal that a light fixture fell inside a Big Dig tunnel last month. (WBUR)

Crain's New York reports the city has chosen two (or three!) finalists for its bike share program.

Flint (MI) built a $8.1-million parking deck -- and it's now surrounded by a sea of free street parking, making the city's financial investment in the structure shaky. (Flint Journal)

The FAA and US airlines are watching Japan's radiation plume to ensure that planes avoid the cloud. (Marketplace)

GM plans to temporarily close a plant in Louisiana because it can't get enough parts from Japan. (NY Times)

Top Transportation Nation stories we're following: Central Park is center stage for NYC's bike crackdown. Florida Governor Rick Scott is a man with a port plan. And: we mull the ethics of using a subway seat as a bag rest -- while the injured rider stands.

Spurred by complaints about cuts in local bus service, federal officials said they would investigate whether the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority had discriminated against minority and low-income transit riders. (Los Angeles Times)

The TSA initially refused to send officials to a Congressional hearing on body scanners, but they later relented (WSJ). Republicans said the technology was "flawed and that "sometimes there's nothing like a good old-fashioned German shepherd." (The Hill)

Money from New Jersey's Transportation Trust Fund will pay for much of a proposed commuter rail line between Camden and Gloucester County, according to the state senate president. (Philadelphia Inquirer)

Downtown Brooklyn is putting together proposals for a bike share program. (The Brooklyn Paper) (UPDATE: The NYC DOT says this is the same RFP that was announced last November.)

The December blizzard spurred a shake-up in the MTA's management. (NY Daily News)

The governor of Connecticut is meeting with Ray LaHood today to lobby him for some of Florida's rejected high-speed rail money. (NECN)

Jalopnik writes that Scott Burgess resigned today as The Detroit News auto critic after his editors bowed to a request by an advertiser to water down his negative review of the Chrysler 200.

Did your commute take longer than usual today? INRIX says Thursday is the worst commuting day of the week.

Top Transportation Nation stories we're following: The MTA's pothole-filling truck hits YouTube. Massive megaloads travel through a Montana city. And: two city planners talk about trying to de-sprawl Houston.