Angie Schmitt
Recent Posts
Police Tried to Cut Off Transit Access to Airport Protests
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Thousands of protesters were pouring into American airports Saturday in response to Donald Trump's refugee ban, when suddenly light rail service skipped the Seattle-Tacoma airport. The incident raises serious questions about who controls access to transit.
10 Urban Freeways That Need to Come Down
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There are excellent candidates for freeway removal in many American cities, where roads built 50 or 60 years ago are nearing the end of their useful lives. Cities that take the plunge and get rid of their urban highways don't regret it.
If Trump Wants to “Fix It First,” a Big Spending Spree Isn’t the Way to Go
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It's hard to pin Donald Trump down on policy issues. But let's take one of his recent infrastructure pronouncements literally and see where the implications lead.
Maryland Robbed Transit to Pay for Highways, So U.S. DOT Launched a Civil Rights Probe
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On the last day of the Obama presidency, U.S. DOT announced it will investigate whether Maryland Governor Larry Hogan's unilateral decision to cancel the Baltimore Red Line light rail project violates federal civil rights law. U.S. DOT will also look into whether the state's overall transportation spending discriminates against people of color.
Today Trump Gags the EPA. Tomorrow the GOP Strangles the Census.
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Republicans want to cut off federal data that social science researchers depend on, limiting our ability to understand the effects of transportation and land use policy, especially on the most vulnerable Americans.
Senate Dems Put Out Their Own Trillion Dollar Infrastructure Plan
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Senate Democrats have an infrastructure "blueprint" of their own, one that's weighted toward transit. The trouble is that Democrats have little power to set terms, and getting drawn into negotiations over an unnecessary infrastructure bill may not play out to their advantage.
Kansas City Unveils a Streets Plan That Puts Walking First
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The city's proposed $800 million infrastructure bond would pump money into sidewalks and street safety upgrades.
Trump’s First Budget May Zero Out Federal Transit Funding
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Donald Trump's first budget will reportedly follow a blueprint for extreme spending cuts laid out by the Heritage Foundation. That could spell disaster for cities, since Heritage recommends eliminating federal support for transit.
The Case for a Tax on Parking Lots
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Parking lots make cities less walkable, bikeable, and transit-friendly. They crowd out space for housing. But with a parking lot tax, incentives change and using parking as a placeholder becomes a lot less attractive.
8 Transportation Engineering Euphemisms That Should Be Tossed Out
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To this day, jargon that originated in the mid-20th Century highway era tilts transportation engineering against walking, biking, and transit.
Transportation Agencies Will Finally Measure the Movement of People, Not Just Cars
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Hundreds of billions of dollars have been spent in the quest for free-flowing vehicular traffic. The result is wider highways, more sprawl, and more people stuck in congestion. But this week U.S. DOT took an important step to change course, releasing new standards to guide how transportation agencies measure their performance. Advocates for transit and walkability say the policy is a significant improvement.
3 Highlights From Elaine Chao’s Very Vague Confirmation Hearing
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Chao gave a tight-lipped performance that didn't reveal much about how she would use the regulatory and approval power at her disposal, but here are three instances where you can try to read the tea leaves.