Kate Hinds

What a difference a week makes: the last time we were on the bridge, no canvas was in sight.  But now the draping of the bridge has begun in earnest.   Workers are installing canvas to be as part of the paint removal containment system.  As Hasan Ahmed of the NYC Department of Transportation promised, "it will be lots of material."  One coworker who bikes over the bridge reported this morning that the canvas is surprisingly disorienting for pedestrians.  On the walkway, "you can see the sky, not the water," she said. 

We were out on the bridge yesterday taking pictures--see the slideshow here. 

Delhi has quite the public buy-in for transportation.  Some residents volunteer to monitor the subway to help enforce rules.  Now, it's bringing its battle for traffic safety to Facebook.

According to this New York Times article, the Delhi Traffic Police (which have the rather enigmatic, if Debbie Gibson-esque, motto of "With You! For You! Always!") started a Facebook page a couple of months ago.   It was immediately flooded with residents' complaints, admonishments, and reports of traffic jams, as well as cell phone pictures of vehicles that, in their opinions, were flouting the law.

"Unauthorized Taxi Stand near Rohini (west) Metro Station red light...numbers of taxi causes obstruction to traffic.  Pedestrians are forced to walk on busy road, " is one typical, recent post. 

Two men were convicted of plotting to blow up jet fuel tanks at JFK Airport. (WNYC)

The highest paid DC Metro board member attends the least amount of meetings (WAMU).  Meanwhile, one NPR employee on his morning commute snaps a pic of a rather graphic road safety ad on the Metro. Walk defensively, pedestrians.

New Jersey's Transportation Trust Fund is almost bankrupt, but Governor Christie has said that a gas tax hike is off the table.   Current plan: refinance bonds, hope for less potholes.   (Star Ledger)

Pennsylvania Governor Rendell begins a four-day intrastate bus tour to lobby residents for transit funds.  (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)

Bus strike. In Tucson. In August.  (Arizona Daily Star)

Has bringing a bike lane to Prospect Park West reduced automobile speeding by 95%? One group's answer is an emphatic yes; others say not so fast.  (Brooklyn Paper)

A four-year, $508 million dollar renovation of the Brooklyn Bridge is currently underway.  But beyond some lane closures and a few construction signs, you might not have noticed much ...

One of Brooklyn's most recognizable landmarks, the Brooklyn Bridge is not just a static monument to innovation in the borough. It continues to undergo developments and WNYC has been following the recent, $508 million renovation project. But we've also been looking at its early beginnings.

If you toll it, they won't car pool: Bay Bridge traffic decreases after car pool toll goes into effect (San Francisco Examiner).

Bumpy ride in store for Pennsylvanians? As stimulus funds dwindle for the state's transportation projects, future spending on roads and bridges to be cut by 32% (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)

New aviation safety legislation would require six times as much flight experience from pilots (Bloomberg)

Where's the pork? The House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee releases searchable earmark database; download the spreadsheet here.

New York's Transit Workers Union suing city to keep commuter vans from taking over slashed bus routes (NY1)

Reaction to the National Transportation Safety Board's report on last year's DC Metro crash. (Washington Post)

The New York City MTA is giving riders two choices:  higher fares, or higher fares.  (WNYC)

Massachusetts thaw:  the Federal Transit Administration has lifted its freeze on funding for Springfield's Union Station project after FTA says local transit authority has shown a "remarkable turnaround."  (The Republican)

Check out "Life in the Bike Lane," WNYC's short video about navigating the city on two wheels.

The National Transportation Safety Board's announcement on the June 2009 DC Metro crash will come today. And the implications might be national. (Washington Post)

New York City's commuter railroads say 96% of them are on time. Commuters -- and the New York Times -- beg to differ.

The Takeaway wants to know: has BP affected the way we consume gasoline?

Sacramento County may open 20,000 acres of land to future development. The county says it needs the space; detractors say it's transit-unfriendly sprawl. (Sacramento Bee)

Charlotte's city council narrowly approved the construction of its $37 million streetcar line. (Charlotte Observer)

As part of the station’s role as a watchdog of government transparency, WNYC has been following the $508 million renovation of the Brooklyn Bridge. So when a database detailing exactly what New York City is spending went live this month, we took it for a test drive.

Will the Tesla become the DeLorean of electric cars?  (New York Times)

Senator Schumer wants to make the mass transit tax break--which is due to expire at the end of the year--permanent.  (WNYC)

Alabamans brace for the largest --and most expensive--road project in Birmingham-area history: the $169 million link between Corridor X and I-65.  (Birmingham News)

Auto accidents soar on one Tuscon road; state DOT says it's because drivers aren't obeying a yield sign.  And not that many offenders are being ticketed for this offense, either.  (Arizona Star)

Your NYC subway commute may get even louder: a plan to bring cell service and Wi-Fi to underground stations is back on track.  (New York Daily News)

Parsing Nevada's rail proposals:  mag lev versus high speed versus good old fashioned diesel.  (Las Vegas Review-Journal)

New Jersey's free roadside assistance program  may be on the way out.  "I can take that $12 million and use it for asphalt," says one official.  (The Record)

As part of the station’s role as a watchdog of government transparency, WNYC has been following the $508 million renovation of the Brooklyn Bridge.  So when a database detailing exactly what New York City is spending went live this month, we took it for a test drive.

A new Federal Transit Administration study says that it would cost $77.7 billion to bring rail and transit systems into "a state of good repair." And then they would still need $14.4 billion for maintenance. Meanwhile, 80% of the nation's transit agencies are raising fares and cutting services. (Washington Post)

High speed rail in California: one reporter drives the proposed route from SF to LA in an attempt to figure out why big infrastructure projects keep turning into money-sucking boondoggles. (KALW)

PA Gov. Rendell may "flex" highway funds to bail out mass transit. (Pittsburgh Tribune-Review)

A new shuttle bus service in Kalaeloa, Hawaii, will service the homeless. (KGMB/KHNL)

Back to black: US Airways reports $279 million second quarter profit--breaking string of losses that dates back to 2007. (Arizona Republic)

Stick it or ticket: suburban Illinois towns are using new software to ferret out drivers who haven't purchased village vehicle stickers. (Chicago Tribune)

Chinese are gaga over G.M:  sales rise almost fifty percent over last year.  (New York Times)

Budget cuts in one Idaho school district mean school buses will have to travel 315,000 fewer miles. Bottom line: more kids will be walking. Five miles uphill, each way, in a blizzard. (Idaho Statesman)

In Boulder, where bicycle commuting is 18 times the national average, biking "verges on a religion." (The Denver Post)

Could saving the US auto industry cost less than originally thought? A Detroit Free Press analysis says that taxpayers could recoup $74 billion of the $86 billion the government spent on the bailout.

If the game goes into overtime, turn the dial: listening to sports on the car radio can be dangerous. (Kansas City Star)

The Takeaway wants to know: why do we still drink and drive?

The NYC MTA has to close a $400 million budget gap. One of the proposals on the table: pulling all funding from Long Island Bus, which would gut the system. (Newsday) Meanwhile, west of the border, the controversy over how the Pennsylvania State Transportation Committee should close their $500 million funding gap rages on. (WDUQ)

The New York State DOT warns: close the Sheridan, prepare for more traffic. (New York Daily News) but New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landrieu says a highway teardown there could be a "game-changer" (in a good way).  (Times-Picayune.)

And the New York Times reviews one local museum's exhibition "Cars, Culture, and the City."

President Obama travels to Michigan today for the groundbreaking of a plant that will make batteries for electric cars (NPR). But don't apply for a job there just yet -- it should take about 18 months before it begins hiring. Which is faster than the impact of the stimulus on the new green economy.

For Vancouver residents, it often makes financial sense to go south of the border to catch a flight. Helllooo Bellingham! (Vancouver Sun)

The success of the High Line has other cities thinking about what to do with their abandoned rail lines. (New York Times)

New Jersey Transit's new budget okays the purchase of 100 new multilevel rail cars. (The Record)

Toyota admits that sticking accelerator pedals and interfering floor mats caused some of the sudden acceleration incidents, but the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has reached "no conclusions" in its own examination. (New York Times)

New York's MTA is planning to cut back on its bulk discount metro cards, which is especially bad news for passengers who buy monthly passes  (WNYC).  Meanwhile, above ground, the replacement span for the Willis Avenue Bridge is floating into New York Harbor and will be towed up the East River next month.

Up to 30 people were stranded on an Alaskan highway since it flooded this weekend. (Anchorage Daily News)

A California court judges puts a halt to a suicide barrier on a  Santa Ynez Valley bridge and orders the  state DOT to recirculate a portion of the environmental impact report.  Opponents of the barrier say it will obstruct views -- and won't prevent suicides.  (Santa Barbara Daily Sound)

The Florida DOT says its state safety program helped reduce motorcycle fatalities in that state by almost 25% after a decade of increases.  (Sun Sentinel)

How is the Maryland Transportation Authority compensating passengers stranded on last month's "hell train?"  With free...train passes.   But if you're a monthly pass holder, you can't take full advantage of the offer.  (Baltimore Sun)

Early tests seem to suggest that the Toyotas cited for sudden acceleration may have done so because the drivers hit the gas pedal instead of the brake.  (Wall Street Journal)

Will they unpave paradise and put up a park?  Plans to remove the Bronx's Sheridan Expressway gain momentum.  (New York Times)

American Airlines wants to coordinate its trans-Atlantic flights with two European carriers.   The plan has been approved by U.S. regulators; Europeans are mulling it over.  (Marketplace)

Denied: Naples, Florida, won't officially become a bicycle-friendly city until it meets several recommendations.  (Naples Daily News)

Big changes in Connecticut:  Starting August 1, the state may no longer require motor vehicle registration stickers.  Meanwhile, ice cream trucks -- banned from Stratford's streets for decades--return tomorrow, introducing a new generation of children to "the thrill of music that builds to a crescendo as the truck rolls closer, a sign that the ice cream man is coming and cold brown-and-white chocolate Mickey Mouse ears on a stick will soon be in hand."  (Connecticut Post)

A federally-funded study encourages Chicago to embrace congestion pricing.  (Chicago Tribune)

Worldwide, tunneling projects usually cost more than a third over estimate.  This makes Seattle--which is spending over $1 billion for a highway viaduct tunnel -- nervous.  (Seattle Times)

What a difference a year makes: Ford CEO's success is apparently getting him noticed in DC. (Detroit Free Press)

Yuma County's public transportation gets a financial shot in the arm, but it's still on life support. Legislators cite tension between short-term viability, long-term sustainability. (Yuma Sun)

Chicago, Dallas expected to win big when Ray LaHood announces transit grants winners this morning. UPDATE: They did, as did Cincinnati's streetcar project. Complete list of grantees here.

Local transit agencies are providing more rides to more people -- but that number is outpaced by costs, especially in DC. (Washington Examiner)

Winnipeg says yes to light rail, no to BRT. (Winnipeg Free Press)

Disabled duck boat hits barge in the Delaware River; two passengers are missing. Regulations governing duck boats are characterized as "complex." (Philadelphia Inquirer)

North Charleston mayor gets his way: railroad tracks rerouted, neighborhood preserved...but it all hinges on "several potentially expensive" land acquisitions. (Post & Courier)

Skanska's working for the city.  Who's working for Skanska? (more)

New York Magazine says the city's transportation future is not below the streets, but on it.  All hail BRT!

High-speed rail in Florida: why does Orlando's airport get a station--and Tampa's doesn't?  (Tampa Tribune)

The kindest cut?  Some of the MARTA routes slated for elimination carry fewer than one person on a bus per mile.  (Atlanta Journal-Constitution)

Life in the  (post- Crown) Victorian era:  Ford's plan to cease production has local police departments making test drives.    Iowa City is leaning towards the Tahoe, California's Tulare County is eyeing the Charger, and Conway, South Carolina, has settled on the Chevrolet Malibu.

What building is the "connective piece for everything?"  One scholar says it's the... parking garage.  (Baltimore Sun)

How can libraries stay relevant in the 21st century?  Well, some are offering drive-thru service.  But does it come with two triple cheese, side order of fries? (Marketplace)

The Transport Politic says that even thought BART continues to be suburban-focused, at least it points the way towards serving a city center.

How will you be celebrating the start of the city’s new fiscal year? Perhaps the same way I did—by investigating “Checkbook NYC,” an online database that New York City Comptroller John Liu’s office officially launched today in beta form.

This is not, as you might expect from the name, an ...