The U.S. Government Accountability Office released a report addressing the recent increase in deaths and injuries among pedestrians and bicycle users. The report outlined the causes, responses from transportation agencies, and remaining challenges to address the disparity in crash trends between car drivers and those using non-motorized transportation. The report also acknowledges historical road design practices as a major contributor to current safety trends.
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Partnering improved highway design and behavior interventions for increased safety
After a spike in traffic deaths in the first half of 2015, USDOT and NHTSA have offered a response that fast tracks the development of safety technologies and strives to improve driver behaviors. However, it is silent on roadway design.
Protecting federal taxpayer interest; training a local workforce—L.A. Crenshaw light rail line
Long-standing FTA and USDOT policy prohibits geographic preferences in hiring for construction projects. With a shift in the percentage of funding coming from federal vs. local sources, state and local governments are asking for greater flexibility and room for policy changes that will improve options for local hiring. The tension between local hiring ordinances and federal geographic preference policy is currently playing out on the Crenshaw line in Los Angeles, which is expected to begin construction in 2014.
Two lawsuits seek to rein in transit data patent troll
After suing dozens of transit agencies and hundreds of private companies, patent troll company ArrivalStar could be hitting the wall. The United States Patent and Trademark Office has drastically narrowed the patent owned by the company after the Electronic Frontier Foundation filed a formal request to reexamine the patent’s legitimacy. The American Public Transit Association also filed a lawsuit in federal court seeking to halt frivolous patent infringement claims against public transit systems throughout the country and claiming that ArrivalStar’s lawsuits are invalid under the 11th Amendment.
Dangerous By Design (Transportation For America, 2011)
Although nearly 12 percent of traffic deaths are pedestrians, little public attention – and even less in public resources – has been committed to reducing pedestrian deaths and injuries in the United States. This report outlines …
Interactive Chart Tracks Obama’s Transportation Policy Changes in 2011
Transportation Nation has created an interactive graph showing how President Obama’s focus on transportation policy shifted in 2011—from expanding and building upon the existing infrastructure to simply maintaining it. The graph shows, month-to-month, how many …