Over a period of six months, the Task Force, appointed by Minnesota Department of Transportation Commissioner Tom Sorel, discussed and evaluated the overall MBUF concept and related issues, determined benefits and concerns, considered potential system …
VMT
Transit funding shrinks despite increasing ridership
A recent New York Times article notes that, since 1995, transit ridership in the U.S. has grown by 31 percent, outstripping both VMT and population. This is true even in cities that lack good transit systems. The …
Neither roads nor public transit will help?
In the October 2011 issue of the American Economic Review, authors Gilles Duranton and Matthew A. Turner review traffic data from the years 1983 to 2003. Their article, “The Fundamental Law of Road Congestion: Evidence …
As gas tax yields less revenue, renewed focus is placed on a mileage tax
Higher fuel efficiency standards and a weak economy have made the motor-fuel tax—the principal fundraiser for road costs in the US for 80 years—increasingly less viable. As better mileage becomes the norm in the American …
As gas tax yields less revenue, renewed focus is placed on a mileage tax
Higher fuel efficiency standards and a weak economy have made the motor-fuel tax—the principal fundraiser for road costs in the US for 80 years—increasingly less viable. As better mileage becomes the norm in the American …
Road pricing: public perceptions and program development
As state and local governments grapple with reduced revenue from traditional sources, deferred maintenance needs, and traffic congestion, many are searching for ways to generate revenue and reduce congestion without making major capital investments. An …
How do you get there from here?
Fuel taxes are no longer a good way of funding the transportation system. With increasing fuel efficiency and new fuels powering transportation, the fuel tax as we know it is not sustainable. Two national commissions …
Higher gear: To fund transportation, congress should tax travel, bot fuel
Paul Sorenson, Liisa Ecola, and Martin Wachs argue for funding highways by using a tax on miles traveled, rather than the current method of a tax on fuel: “Better fuel economy is good for the …
Traffic volume trends: VMT down in 2011
The U.S. Federal Highway Administration has released the latest issue of Traffic Volume Trends, a monthly report based on hourly traffic count data reported by the states. According to the report, travel on all roads …
Is declining car use a long-term trend or just a short-term reaction to the recession?
In ‘Peak Car Use’: Understanding the Demise of Automobile Dependence, published last month in World Transport Policy and Practice, Peter Newman and Jeff Kenworthy, of the Curtin University Sustainability Policy (CUSP) Institute in Australia, summarize …