Research update 10/4/07

EPA is petitioned to limit ship emissions
A call for federal regulation to curb heat-trapping emissions from the worldwide fleet of about 90,000 oceangoing ships
Felicity Barringer, New York Times, 10/4/07

Pol: subways need policing against perverts
Roads and Bridge conditions improving but 20 year shortfall
Felicity Barringer, New York Times, 10/4/07

Does forcing density on people improve livability?
Is Portland's land-use planning process reducing sprawl and auto driving? The Congress for the New Urbanism wants to think so, but they ignore the high cost that planning is imposing on Portland-area residents.
The Antiplanner, 10/3/07

More fuel for YOU
One might imagine that cars are more fuel efficient these days however, the answer depends on what is measured
The Economist, 10/3/07

Murtha to taxpayers seeking transparency: "Tough [expletive]"
The Council for Citizens Against Government Waste (CCAGW) slam Rep. John Murtha (D-Pa.) and his colleagues for purposefully putting up roadblocks and barriers to hinder earmark accountability and reform.
Citizens against Government Waste, 10/02/07

Minnesota Legislators face bridge-road choice
A state transportation proposal could force rural lawmakers to choose between supporting a funding plan for the Interstate 35W bridge reconstruction project in Minneapolis and keeping statewide road projects on track
Scott Wente, Grand Forks Herald, 10/2/07

Illinois must match $1 for every $8 from federal government
The Illinois Legislature must stand up to Gov. Rod Blagojevich or risk losing billions of dollars in federal highway funds, U.S. Rep. Dennis Hastert told a Rockford audience
Geri Nikolai, Rockford Register Star, 10/1/07

Delivering the pork
U.S. Sen. Mitch McConnell has tagged more than $391 million in federal funding for myriad local projects, most of them in Kentucky, in 2008 budget bills being worked on in Congress.
Malia Rulon, Cincinnati Enquirer, 10/1/07

More than 400 citizen researchers investigate earmarks
Using EarmarkWatch.org, they've dug into earmarks, answering hundreds of questions, making dozens of comments, and investigating money in Washington politics
Sunlight Foundation, 10/1/07

Dedicate transportation taxes
Taxes derived from transportation sources should be spent only for transportation purposes
Kevin Blanchard, BatonRouge LA, 10/1/07

Parsons on Busways
Transportation Options
2005 presentation to ITE

FHWA administrator says bridge terms could change
Federal authorities are working with states to look at the way bridges are inspected and new ways of defining bridge safety ratings
Emily Fredrix, A.P., 10/1/07

Congress' "Earmarks Reforms" are hoax and mirrors
Citizens Against Government Waste blast he Senate leadership for its recent furtive attempts to roll back and undermine the earmark transparency and accountability provisions of the Honest Leadership and Open Government Act of 2007
CAGW, 9/28/07

Ethanol, schmethanol
Everyone seems to think that ethanol is a good way to make cars greener, everyone is wrong
The Economist, 9/27/07

Pol: subways need policing against perverts
Missouri makes strides in improving road and bridge conditions, but state faces $18 billion transportation funding shortfall over next 20 years
TRIP, 6/28/07