AASHTO Highlights Safety, Formula Funding at Freight System Hearing
editor@aashto.org December 6, 2019 0 COMMENTSJim Tymon (seen speaking above), executive director of the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials, emphasized the importance of safety and formula funding when it comes to supporting and expanding the nation’s multimodal freight transportation system during a House of Representatives Transportation & Infrastructure Committee hearing on December 5. [Photo courtesy of Committee […]
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FCC’s 5.9 GHz Reallocation Plan Debated at House Hearing
editor@aashto.org December 6, 2019 0 COMMENTSA proposal by the Federal Communications Commission to eliminate the transportation-only status of 5.9 GHz wireless commission spectrum and instead reallocate a portion of it to unlicensed Wi-Fi use sparked concerns about automotive safety during a House of Representatives Committee on Energy & Commerce oversight hearing on December 5. “I have to tell you, one […]
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Lack of Reauthorization Could Imperil Future Transportation Infrastructure Spending
editor@aashto.org December 6, 2019 0 COMMENTSThe U.S. transportation infrastructure market is expected to grow at least 5 percent next year, according to an annual economic forecast released December 4 by the American Road & Transportation Builders Association. However, that growth could evaporate if surface transportation funding legislation is not reauthorized in a timely fashion. [Above photo by the South Carolina […]
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On December 5, the U.S. Department of Transportation released a 98-page final rule codifying reforms to its rulemaking, guidance, and enforcement practices. The rule’s major components include permanently incorporating President Trump’s policy on regulatory budgeting – the “2-for-1” plan, where two rules are repealed for every new one issued – and clarifies that the USDOT […]
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The Federal Transit Administration awarded $423 million in transit infrastructure grants on November 25 to 94 projects in 42 states and the District of Columbia via the agency’s Grants for Buses and Bus Facilities Program. [Above photo by the FTA awarding fund to the Colorado DOT.] The FTA said this funding supports projects to replace, […]
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The Federal Highway Administration issued $500,000 in “quick release” Emergency Relief or ER funds to the Vermont Agency of Transportation (VTrans) on November 20 to help cover the cost of repairing roads damaged by heavy rains, high winds and flooding from a storm that lasted from October 31 through November 1. [Above photo by VTrans.] […]
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A report issued by New York-based international credit rating agency Fitch Ratings indicates that the construction and use of managed traffic lanes – such as high occupancy vehicle (HOV) and high occupancy toll (HOT) lanes – is growing and that most managed lane or ML projects have “out-performed” the firm’s base and rating case projections […]
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The Federal Aviation Administration said on November 22 it is awarding $485 million in airport improvement program or AIP infrastructure grants to 108 airports in 48 states and the U.S. Territories of Guam and Virgin Islands. [Above photo of Salt Lake City airport via Wikimedia Commons.] The agency added in a statement that it is “working hard to streamline the […]
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Report: More State DOTs Deploying Bicycle Safety Plans
editor@aashto.org December 6, 2019 0 COMMENTSAn annual report issued by the League of American Bicyclists highlighted “positive trends” occurring where bicycle safety planning is concerned among state departments of transportation. [Above photo by the North Carolina Department of Transportation.] According to the group’s 2019 Bicycle Friendly State report, every state has now taken at least one of its five Bicycle […]
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A Federal Register notice issued by the U.S. Department of Transportation on November 26 seeks input from “industry stakeholders and the general public” to help guide the initial direction of the agency’s Non-Traditional and Emerging Transportation Technology or NETT Council formed back in March. [Above photo by USDOT shows the first meeting of the NETT […]
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