Kate Hinds

A Metro-North station in the Bronx (photo by dpriddy via flickr)

More Bronx residents are commuting to northern suburbs for work -- and the health care industry is what's drawing them.

William Wheeler, the director of special project development and planning at the New York MTA, said 235 trains serve the Bronx's 13 Metro-North stations each weekday -- and more are needed.

"Approximately 8.1 million rides were taken to and from Bronx stations last year," said Wheeler. "That’s a threefold increase since 1985."  About two-thirds of these riders start their rides in the Bronx and travel to points north: places like White Plains, Stamford, and Greenwich.

"This is the largest reverse commute market that we know of in the United States," he said, "and it’s grown 150% since 1990."

Wheeler made the comments Tuesday morning at a New York City Council hearing on transportation in the outer boroughs. (A video of the hearing is available here.)

"One of the major factors that generates a lot of that travel is health care employment," he said. "And I'm not just talking about hospital complexes and medical facilities, but elder care and other services that are directly related to health care."

The MTA is studying adding four Metro-North stations in the Bronx, at Co-op City, Morris Park, Parkchester and Hunts Point. But capacity for that service likely won't be possible until East Side Access is completed, bringing some Long Island Rail Road trains to Grand Central -- theoretically freeing up space at Penn Station for Bronx-bound trains.

Top stories on TN:
Bicyclist Faces Six-Year Sentence in SF Pedestrian Death (link)
Photo Essay: Montana & ND Oil Boom Leads to Acute Housing Shortage (link)
Survey: Capital Bike Share Saved 5 Million Driving Miles (link)

The Tappan Zee Bridge (photo by Joseph A. via Flickr)

Congressional leaders need to make a decision by about Wednesday on whether to continue to try to pass a comprehensive transportation bill, or whether seek another temporary extension.  (AP via Washington Post)

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo struck a deal with unions on the construction of the Tappan Zee Bridge that guarantees no strikes and allows for a four-day workweek and 10-hour days; Cuomo says it will save $452 million in construction costs. (Bloomberg)

The administration of Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell has suddenly decided to revamp the way it handles transportation funding, sending Northern Virginia cities and counties into a last-minute and potentially expensive scramble. (GGW)

Random political fact of the day, courtesy of @azipaybarah: New York State Senator Adriano Espaillat "refuses to get an EZ Pass." (New York Times)

Orange County (CA) commuters are getting more space to park their cars so they can hop on trains or buses -- hopefully reducing the county's freeway congestion. (KPCC)

Metro plans to rely on its existing rail fleet when the planned Silver Line opens because of delays with the production of new rail cars and a new facility designed to test them. (Examiner)

More quiet cars are coming to Long Island Rail Road trains. (NY1)

Every single one of the cycling deaths in Ontario between 2006 and 2010 was preventable, according to a report from the office of the chief coroner. Another finding: only 27% of the killed cyclists were wearing helmets. (CBC)

A Washington State town rescinded its helmet laws because its police force was diverted by combating a crime wave. "And an inability to enforce a law on the books... posed a liability risk that could bankrupt the community with one swipe from a punitive-minded jury." (New York Times)

A new Houston-Istanbul direct flight is expected to lower travel times -- and boost Houston’s trade and investment ties with Turkey. (KUHF)

The Port Authority turned down the Staten Island Advance's Freedom of Information request for a copy of a study which examines the impact of toll increases on the New York Container Terminal. Local congressman "Michael Grimm this month declared "all-out war" on the P.A., demanding immediate release of the study and threatening to block a federal effort to raise the Bayonne Bridge by 2014."

A professional cricketer was killed in the London Underground after being struck by a train. (BBC)

The San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency unveiled its new logo, a four-color design of curved parallel lines that is supposed to help rebrand the agency as it moves into its second century. The tag line: “Moving Forward Together.” (San Francisco Chronicle; h/t Transit Wire)

New SFMTA logo

 

Top stories on TN:
Apple Keeps Mum on Dropping Transit Directions from Maps (link)
Council on Foreign Relations Also Doesn’t Like US Infrastructure (link)
Report: SF Bicyclist Charged in Pedestrian Death (link)
More Texans Are Traveling This Summer — But They’re Staying Close To Home (link)
When Bike Parking Goes Wrong (link)

Reading "Cosmos" on the subway (photo by Underground NY Public Library)

Ah, summer travel in the U.S.: high plane fares, a stalled highway bill, and slow trains. (NPR)

Since we mentioned it: highway bill talks are stalled, leaving observers to wonder if a deal is possible before the 6/30 deadline. (The Hill)

The New York State DOT is terminating its decade-long study of the Sheridan Expressway. "Due to budget issues, the DOT will now focus on repairs to the Bruckner Expressway rather than modifications to the Sheridan." The news follows on the heels of NYC's announcement that it would no longer consider removing the expressway. (New York Daily News)

A newly released mobile application, Seetra.in, shows the location of NYC subway cars in real time. (Fast Company)

Seventy percent of Capital Bikeshare users ride without a helmet, versus 30 percent of commuters who ride their own bikes. (Washington Post)

A 14-year old in Michigan built her own Pontiac Fiero. (NPR)

New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg built the revenue from his new taxi street hail plan into his budget -- but a judge's ruling blocking the plan's implementation has put that $1 billion into jeopardy. (New York Times)

While the battle over how the region would spend $6.14 billion to fix metro Atlanta’s transportation quagmire is in full roar, the $1.08 billion in tax revenue that would go directly to local government, as part of the $7.2 billion expected from the proposed 1 percent sales tax, is not getting a lot of notice. (Atlanta Journal Constitution)

Underground New York Public Library: whatcha reading on the NYC subway? One photographer wanted to know -- and turned it into a "visual library featuring the Reading-Riders of the NYC subways." (link; h/t Gothamist)

India is building the highest railway bridge in the world -- 1,180 feet tall (35 metres taller than Eiffel Tower) -- and expects to open it in 2015. (Times of India)

New Jersey legislators are considering tougher penalties for talking or texting while driving. (AP via NJ.com)

DC 's Metro is rolling out a new rush-hour schedule today, and the transit agency hopes "Rush Plus" will lead to less crowding and quicker commutes. (WAMU)

Please turn off your eyeglasses as we prepare for takeoff: new gadgets are upsetting FAA rules on devices. (New York Times)

VIDEO: watch Chicago rail cars being built at the Bombardier plant in Plattsburgh, New York. Bonus: explanation of the defective steel parts that brought production to a halt last year. (Chicago Tribune)

PHOTOS: Car poolers in Mexico, by Alejandro Cartagena.

Bike traffic jam (photo by Collin Campbell/WNYC)

Car alarm going off? Someone park too close to you? Putting notes on car windshields is a time-honored New York City way of conveying annoyance. Now that's expanding to another form of transportation.

Friend to TN (heck, he's TN spawn) Collin Campbell sent us this picture, describing it as "a (loud, argumentative) traffic jam on a bike rack." It was taken right around the corner from WNYC near the intersection of Varick and Charlton Streets -- a place where bike parking is indeed at a premium. But that's no excuse to lock your bike to another one. If you're the owner of a brown Upland Beach Cruiser, please report to the corner.

 

Top stories on TN:
Let it Zip: NYC’s Summer Streets Gets Airborne (link)
NY MTA Chief Says Railroads Need To Work Together To Overcome Maxed-Out Hudson River Crossings (link)

Work at Newark-Liberty Airport (photo by iceage366 via flickr)

A number of the U.S.'s biggest airports are in the midst of major renovations or expansions that, taken together, amount to some of the largest infrastructure projects in the country. (New York Times)

A fire on BART tracks knocked out service for 12 hours-- and ignited a Bay Area traffic nightmare. (Mercury News)

Bike share could come to Miami. (Miami Herald)

The World Health Organization announced this week that diesel fumes definitely cause lung cancer, and labeled diesel as a "known carcinogen." (Marketplace)

Twenty NY MTA workers took home six-figure overtime payouts last year. (New York Post)

Congestion pricing is coming to Budapest next summer. (Caboodle)

South African president Jacob Zuma: our subpar commuter rail service is hampering economic development. (Cape Times)

New Jersey Democrats want oversight of Governor Christie's transportation spending plan. (NJ.com Statehouse Bureau)

Following two pedestrian deaths in one month, the NYC DOT will make improvements to Harlem's Adam Clayton Powell Boulevard. (New York Daily News)

If the federal government doesn't approve funding for San Francisco's new Central Subway by September, the delay could cost the transit agency $4 million a month. (Bay Citizen)

U.S. and Canadian officials are expected to roll out today a new plan to build a second bridge between Detroit and Windsor, Ontario. (Wall Street Journal)

Real-time transit information is coming to Milwaukee bus riders in the form of a still-under-construction smartphone app. (Journal Sentinel)

Snakes on a bus! Six poisonous snakes escaped from a bag and slithered across the floor of a bus in Vietnam, sparking screams and a hurried evacuation. (AP via Washington Post)

 

Top stories on TN:
Apple Draws Protest For Dropping Transit Directions in New Software (link)
As in the 1800s, Bikes and Trains Could Boom Together in Florida (link)
NY Mayor: Removing Sheridan Expressway Would Cause Too Much Traffic (link)
Virginia County Still on the Fence about Funding Silver Line to Dulles (link)
Montana Locality: No Studies That Will Slow Coal Train (link)
Expert: LA Public Transit Will Surpass NY (link)

Chicago L (photo by clarkmaxwell via flickr)

Chicago's transit authority and Groupon have struck a deal: the discount deal-maker bought 250,000 3-day CTA passes for about $2 million, and will offer them to online members for $9 instead of standard $14. (Chicago Tribune)

The conciliatory tone has disappeared from Democrat Senator Barbara Boxer's statements about the ongoing transportation bill negotiations. (Washington Post). Meanwhile, there are recriminations aplenty about why talks aren't proceeding smoothly (The Hill).

A 21-year-old texting driver who killed a delivery man in Brooklyn will face only five years probation, 100 hours of community service, and a year-long driver's license suspension. (Find Law via Reuters)

Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo’s administration is pursuing a plan to limit fracking to portions of several struggling New York counties along the border with Pennsylvania -- and to permit it only in communities that express support for the technology. (New York Times)

The Massachusetts House approved a bailout bill for the cash-strapped MBTA; a key provision would transfer $49 million to the T from a state fund made up of automobile inspection fees paid by motorists. (AP via Boston Herald)

Meanwhile: a new report warns that by the end of the decade, Boston’s subways could grow so packed that trains would roll past waiting commuters, unable to accommodate more riders. (Boston Globe)

New Jersey Democrats are balking at Gov. Chris Christie’s plan to borrow an additional $260 million for transportation projects in the upcoming fiscal year. (NJ.com Statehouse Bureau)

As airlines debate about whether to introduce ultra-long-distance, non-stop flights -- London to Auckland, anyone? -- the decision will be based on airline economics and what passengers can bear. Want to sit in economy class for 20 hours straight? Didn't think so. (Global Mail)

Washington's popular U Street NW corridor is about to become a construction zone as the city begins improvements to the streetscape. (WAMU)

New York's City Council passed a law that would fine and revoke the licenses of taxi and livery car drivers if they are convicted of committing a sex trafficking crime. (WNYC)

Vancouver is moving forward with a bike share plan, but some local bike store owners aren't happy. (CTV)

When the spiraling 1,070-foot skyscraper and surrounding Transbay Transit Center rise above San Francisco's South of Market neighborhood, there is another thing expected to ascend as well — the property values of surrounding commercial and residential buildings. (San Francisco Examiner)

Plans for a new trans-Hudson tunnel share many characteristics with ARC -- including the same concerns over funding. (Star Ledger)

Does this video show a NYC subway conductor sleeping on the job? The MTA is investigating. (NBC)

Myanmar's Nobel Peace Prize winner Aung San Suu Kyi warned foreign investors off of Myanmar's oil and gas alliance with China because she says the deal lacks transparency. (Reuters)

Arizona's Department of Transportation crowdsources haiku to warn drivers of summer dust storm dangers. Sample: You're not a Jedi / This is not Tatooine, Luke / Pull over now, man. (New York Daily News)

Sheridan Expressway (photo: Dougtone via flickr)

Bronx Congressman Jose Serrano is fuming over the city’s decision last month not to tear down the aging Sheridan Expressway and replace it with mixed-use development.

Serrano, a Democrat, helped get a $1.5 million federal grant for a years-long study that examined replacing the aging Bronx highway with housing and parks. The congressman said the city made a decision about the road that runs through the South Bronx before the study was completed.

"It destroys their dreams," he said, referring to members of the community who worked for more than a decade on the project. "It destroys the study. It destroys any semblance of doing it right by immediately taking this option off the table."

A spokesperson for the city says the two remaining scenarios — to retain and to modify the Expressway — "will continue to undergo further analysis. The study will be completed in early 2013." The city has said removing the highway would divert too much truck traffic to local streets.

Serrano says he'll work with members of the community to try to convince the city to change its mind.

"Why would you quickly say removing it is not an option?" he said. "Well then, why even keep studying it? That wasn't the agreement we had. We were going to look at everything."

Activists shared Serrano's outrage.

"The first thing that we need to do is for the city to look at all the economic development options that are possible," said Elena Conte, an organizer at the Pratt Center for Community Development, which is part of the Southern Bronx River Watershed Alliance. "And to make a decision that actually benefits all the stakeholders in the community. And that involves giving (the Sheridan's removal) the hard look that it deserves."

 Top stories on TN:
‘Lost Subways’ Goes Live At New York Public Library (link)
Ray Kelly: We Investigate Accidents In Case of Serious Injury or Death (link)
On Congestion Charging: Carrot or Stick?… Mixed Responses (link)
President Obama Calls Commerce Secretary After Crash (link)
As in the 1800s, Bikes and Trains Could Boom Together in Florida (link)

(photo by chapstickaddict via flickr)

A major financial rating agency downgraded the New York State Thruway to a negative financial outlook, warned travelers of higher tolls ahead, and raised concern about the cost of Gov. Andrew Cuomo's plan to replace the Tappan Zee Bridge. (AP via Wall Street Journal)

A lawsuit filed by opponents of California's bullet train says the state can't document that the train's speed complies with the legal requirement of 140 mph. (Bay Citizen)

Bankrupt carmaker Saab has been sold to a Chinese-Swedish investment group which aims to turn the company into a maker of electric vehicles. (BBC)

As the highway bill's June 30th expiration date draws ever nearer, Democrats are taking to Twitter to pressure House Republicans to reach an agreement. (The Hill)

Can financial incentives for drivers curb traffic congestion? A Stanford University program says yes. (The Takeaway)

The excavation of nearly an entire block in San Francisco's South of Market neighborhood is beginning in preparation for the tunneling of the city's Central Subway. (San Francisco Chronicle, San Francisco Appeal)

Santa Monica has adapted a system that resets the time on each parking meter to zero the moment a car pulls out of a space -- wiping out extra time for the next parking car. (New York Times)

An upcoming version of Apple's iOS 6 Maps application lacks support to generate routes using public transit, bicycling, or walking. "While car drivers get an amazing new Maps application that negates many of the reasons to buy GPS devices, as soon as that person gets out of their car to walk around they're thrown back to the stone ages of paper bus schedules." (Examiner)

...and Apple said instead it will allow developers to built their own transit apps that will be featured, integrated, and promoted from within Maps. (Ars Technica)

BP has started production at a key new oil operation under more than a mile of water in the Gulf of Mexico, where it expects production to peak at 60,000 barrels a day of oil. (Houston Chronicle)

Ad-hoc carpooling groups have sprung up near Manhattan's George Washington Bridge -- and cops are cracking down on them. (Wall Street Journal)

Jersey City's city council is mulling over a requirement for most new residential and retail structures to include space for bicycle parking. (Jersey Journal)

Strip malls and big box stores are linked to increased traffic deaths among people older than 75, a new study says. (Atlantic Cities)

Thousands of London bus workers have voted to go on strike ahead of the 2012 Olympics, saying they want a premium for working during game time. (CBS)

Michigan, scrambling to come up with enough money to fund roads, passed a bill dedicating to roads the 4-cent sales tax charged on gas. (Detroit News)

South Africa is pumping $35.6 billion into expanding and improving its railways, ports and fuel pipelines -- a huge investment aimed at unlocking that country's massive mineral deposits. (BusinessWeek)

Bronx Congressman Jose Serrano is fuming over the city’s decision last month not to tear down the aging Sheridan Expressway and replace it with mixed-use development.

NYPD commissioner Ray Kelly (photo by Timothy A. Clary/AFP/Getty Images)

Police commissioner Ray Kelly Tuesday affirmed the NYPD's policy about how -- and under what circumstances -- the police department bike and pedestrian crashes.  Transportation Nation first reported  on this back in April.

Kelly was at One Police Plaza Tuesday for the department's annual Medal Day ceremony. In the Q&A afterwards, he was asked by a reporter about this issue. The question came a day after a lawsuit was filed accusing the department of failing to thoroughly investigate when pedestrians and cyclists are struck by cars.

You can read the exchange, or listen to the audio below.

Q: Do you want to respond to transportation advocates who are questioning whether the department investigates deaths (and) injuries of bicyclists who are not likely to die?

Kelly: What is the question? I'm not..what is the question? 

Q:  The transportation advocates are saying the department doesn't investigate deaths...(Kelly: deaths?) involving bicyclists unless the bicyclists are likely to die. Is that something that you -

Kelly: We have a policy for accidents. We don’t have a different policy for bike accidents or accidents involving bicycles. We have -- if people are seriously injured, our accident investigation squad does an investigation.

Q: So they would investigate all accidents involving bicyclists?

Kelly:  Involving serious injury or death.

Q: Serious injury or death?

Kelly: Yes.

 

Top stories on TN:
MAP: Most Abandoned Bikes in NYC Won’t Be Removed (link)
NY MTA Upping Service On L Train To Reduce “Sardine Crush” Of Riders (link)
Will Walker’s Wisconsin Win Mean No Milwaukee Streetcar? (link)
London’s Mayor: Bike Share Will Civilize New York (link)
Lawsuit: NYPD Fails to Fully Investigate Cases in Traffic Deaths (PDF) (link)
Report: U.S. Commerce Secretary Unconscious After Double Hit & Run (link)

(photo by Neilfein via flickr)

NJ Transit will now allow bikes on trains at all stations -- but the new policy creates new weekend restrictions. (Star Ledger)

And: NJ Transit is holding public hearings about its plans to cut bus service. (Star Ledger)

Culture clash at General Motors: although the company is in better financial shape, its famously slow bureaucracy lives on -- and is slowing down GM's recovery. (Wall Street Journal)

NYC's DOT issued a request for applications to companies interested in competing for the right to take over the city’s nearly 90,000 parking spaces and 40,000 parking meters. (DNA Info)

The Transportation Security Administration has approved private airport security screeners for Orlando's airport. (The Hill)

The US Commerce Secretary will take a medical leave of absence after suffering a seizure in connection with a succession of traffic accidents in the Los Angeles area. (Washington Post)

Reports of a "yacht explosion" off the coast of NJ were likely a hoax. (Asbury Park Press)

Ground has been broken on Florida's first SunRail station. (WFTV)

MARTA board members say they won't raise fares this fiscal year -- but make no promises for next. (Atlanta Journal-Constitution)

A proposal requiring commercial truckers to install electronic on-board recorders — a cruder version of the "black boxes" found on commercial jets — is pitting the nation's two major trucking organizations against each other. (USA Today)

Canadian companies increasingly want to be near transit -- and buildings that meet that requirement are seeing their vacancy rates shrink and lease rates rise. (Globe and Mail)

The road to ending distracted driving apparently goes through smartphone apps. (AP via BusinessWeek)

It's hard to be a food truck in New Orleans. (Atlantic Cities)

Apple is bring Siri to cars so drivers can use it "eyes free."  (Jalopnik)

India could be the second country in the world to roll out Boeing's newest jet -- but a dispute between pilots at the state-owned airline will likely mute any Dreamliner celebrations.  (New York Times)

The proposed high-speed train from Las Vegas to Victorville, Calif., has been rechristened XpressWest. (Las Vegas Review-Journal)

Oil and gas companies are hiring talent from Texas state regulatory agencies. (State Impact)

The 2012 version of NYC's Summer Streets program involves zip lines. (Twitter; photo)

 

Top stories on TN:
Manhattan On Track To Get Its First Slow Zone (link)
PIC: Korean Subway Ad Makes Train Look Like Beach (link)
New York City Rejects Highway Teardown (link)
CHART: Top Ten Biggest Subway Systems (link)
NPR’s Car Talk Guys Retire – Reruns Continue (link)

Utah TRAX station (photo by Photo Dean via flickr)

The construction process for California's bullet train could create more emissions in an area that already has dirty air and high asthma rates -- and resolving the issues could delay the project and boost costs. (Los Angeles Times)

One study found that when states like Florida repealed helmet laws, there was not only an increase in motorcycle fatalities, but also more organ donations. (South Florida Sun-Sentinel)

A lawsuit could shed light on how the NYPD investigates pedestrian and bike crashes. (New York Times)

New York's MTA is poised to boost bus-lane enforcement on East Side express bus lanes — but only if the city agrees to share the income with the transit agency. (New York Daily News)

New York City's bike share program will skip one ultra-Orthodox Brooklyn neighborhood, leading to a "Hasidic hole on the bike-share map." (Wall Street Journal)

NJ Transit's board will vote today on whether to allow bikes on all trains and at all stations — with some limitations. (NJ Transit, The Record)

Utah's transit authority spends more on lobbying in Washington, D.C. than any transit agency in the country -- and it has successfully raked in so much federal funding that state auditors say it could be unable to maintain its expanding light-rail and bus network on ordinary revenue. (AP via Daily Herald)

The downside of found money: the Texas Department of Transportation found an extra $2 billion -- reigniting some lawmakers' old frustration over accounting at TxDOT. (New York Times)

A project labor agreement for New York's new Tappan Zee Bridge is creating a rift with organized labor that threatens to throw the $6 billion project into turmoil. (Crain's New York Business)

New York Senator Charles Schumer: some of my favorite bike rides take place in Queens. (DNA Info)

Battery-powered buses are entering the US transit mainstream. (Scientific American)

Top stories on TN:
Report: Transit Fares High and Rising? Blame Bailed-Out Banks (link)
LaHood: Cellphone Use While Driving A “National Epidemic” (link)
Plans Move Ahead For Houston’s New Commuter Rail Line (link)
Broken Permitting System Forces NYC Food Trucks Into Black Market (link)

New York's High Line (by Gryffindor via Wikimedia Commons)

Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) suggested Republicans are trying to delay transportation funding so it won't stimulate the economy before the November election -- a charge Eric Cantor's office called "ridiculous and patently false.” (The Hill)

Meanwhile, House Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) floated the idea of a six-month extension. (Reuters)

New York City’s High Line celebrates its three-year anniversary today -- and Jersey City may be getting an elevated park of its own. (WNYC/NJPR)

North Dakota’s oil boom brings environmental damage along with economic prosperity. (ProPublica)

NYC's Department of Transportation will boot low-cost carrier Megabus from its choice location outside the Port Authority Bus Terminal in midtown, ending a controversial experiment. (Crain's New York Business)

London's Underground has begun rolling out free Wi-Fi internet access. (Guardian)

Car tire thefts are on the rise nationally. (New York Times)

The U.S. metropolitan area at greatest risk from hurricane damage -- both in the number of properties affected and the potential value of damage -- is New York City. (Reuters)

Georgetown University and its neighbors have reached agreement on a "groundbreaking campus plan that envisions a more residential campus." (GGW)

Ilya Marritz talks about his investigation into New York City's arcane food truck permitting system on the Brian Lehrer Show. (WNYC)

New York's MTA says the air quality around the Second Avenue Subway construction site is not toxic. (New York Post)

You have to appreciate the New York Post's spin on a video of a Metro-North engineer paying more attention to the paper than to driving the train. "Post is a rail good read – but not here!" (New York Post)

Want to map your own neighborhood? Do-it-yourself Streetview kits have hit the market. (CNET)

Los Angeles Times column: Beverly Hills residents need to get over their subway fear and drop opposition to the new rail line.

Austin's transit system will be adding a hydrogen hybrid bus to its fleet for a year-long test. (Transit Wire)

Video animation: a day in the life of Nice Bikes, the bike sharing system in Minneapolis St.-Paul. (MinnPost)

 

Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood (US DOT Photo)

US Department of Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood has stepped up federal efforts to combat distracted driving, which he says are responsible for ten percent of all traffic fatalities.

The Blueprint for Ending Distracted Driving, released Thursday, builds on efforts first piloted in Syracuse and Hartford. It calls for more public awareness, police enforcement, and driver education about the dangers of texting while driving. It also encourages the 11 remaining states that lack anti-texting laws to pass them.

While a recent government survey found that teen seatbelt use is up and drunk driving is down, over half of all high school seniors admitted to texting or emailing while driving.

On his blog, LaHood wrote that deaths from distracted driving are entirely preventable.  "In 2010, at least 3,092 people were killed on our nation's roads in distraction-affected crashes. That's approximately one in every ten fatalities, and we can put an end to it."

The DOT is also funding a $2.4 million pilot program in California and Delaware that will examine whether increased police enforcement coupled with advertising and news coverage can significantly reduce distracted driving.

The blueprint can be downloaded here (pdf).

Top stories on TN:
Political Pressure Kills Labor Provision in Rail-to-Dulles Silver Line (link)
SF Bay Area Transportation Round-Up (link)
A Latina Journalist, a Former Clinton Official, and a Big Political Donor Join Port Authority Board (link)
New York State to Add Hundreds of EV Charging Stations (link)
Airport Authority Vote Clears Way for Dulles Rail Project to Move Forward (link)
The Enterprise, Boldly Going Up the Hudson (link)
NYC’s Livery Plan, And Billions in Budget Funding, Remain in Limbo (link)

The Honda Fit at the 2012 Rose Parade (image courtesy of Honda Fit's Facebook page)

US DOT head Ray LaHood told a Senate panel "we can't tell airlines what fees they can charge." (USA Today)

At 118 miles per gallon, the Honda Fit electric vehicle is the most fuel-efficient in the United States. But getting that mileage isn't cheap - and it isn't always good for the environment. (AP)

The Port Authority will pay former Homeland Security chief Michael Chertoff's consulting firm over $1.2 million to advise the agency on security. (AP via NJ.com)

The House passed a motion that instructs House conferees to the highway to accept language guaranteeing that each state receives more guaranteed highway money from the federal government. (The Hill)

New Balance will fund a new commuter rail stop at the site of the shoe company's proposed new headquarters outside of Boston. (Boston Globe)

Four in ten passengers on British trains are so confused by the ticket purchasing system that they overpay. (Telegraph)

In a move it says will reduce overtime costs, San Francisco's deficit-plagued Muni has quietly hired 88 part-time drivers to work full-time for the transit agency. (Bay Citizen)

The developers of the $4.9 billion Atlantic Yards project in Brooklyn have delayed construction on a new Long Island Rail Road storage yard -- but both the MTA and Forest City Ratner say the company will meet its 2016 deadline. (Wall Street Journal)

DC's red light cameras reaped a record $55.1 million in 2011, and the city is likely to generate even more fees this year. (Washington Post)

Drivers want voice recognition commands, built-in navigation systems and automated crash notification. What they don't want: to tweet and use Facebook through vehicle operating systems. (Detroit Free Press)

New York Daily News editorial: rising pension and health care costs will entirely consume the MTA's scheduled fare hike.

Already two years behind schedule, the Korean company contracted to build the Boston’s new commuter rail cars promised Wednesday to tell the T within a month when the cars will finally be delivered. (WBUR)

Amsterdam -- in desperate need of more bike parking spaces -- looks to rooftops. (Wired)

Improv Everywhere staged a "car alarm symphony" in a giant parking lot on Staten Island. (YouTube video).

Chevy Volt (Photo: GM)

New York will more than double its electric vehicle charging capacity, installing 325  new stations across the state in high-traffic locations like supermarket parking lots, hotels, train and bus stations, apartment buildings, hospitals, and parking garages. The state has awarded $4.4 million to ten companies and municipalities to install the stations.

Currently the state has approximately 200 EV sites in that offer 400 electrified parking spaces.

In a press release, NY Governor Andrew Cuomo said the effort would encourage New Yorkers to make the switch from gas-powered cars -- and provide an economic boost to the state.

Preliminary locations in New York City include an MTA facility in Battery Park, the Port Authority Bus Terminal, and dozens of parking garages citywide. Each station will have approximately two to six chargers.

The press release also noted that "transportation makes up about three-fourths of the state’s oil consumption, and nearly 40 percent of the state’s greenhouse gas emissions."

According to the administration, the charging stations must be installed by April 2013 -- although many will be in place by the end of this year.

The list of projects can be found below.

Access Technology Integration Inc. – Plans to install charging stations with innovative reservation and payment systems at seven locations around the Albany area, including St. Peter’s Hospital, Albany-Rensselaer Train Station, Times Union Center, universities, supermarkets, and other locations. NYSERDA funding: $244,000.

Beam Charging LLC – Company will install a total of 28 charging stations, each one in a separate public parking garage around Manhattan, for the purpose of gathering data to determine how well such charging stations are used. $400,000.

Car Charging Group Inc. – Plans to install charging stations at up to 15 high-traffic locations in New York City, directed toward apartment dwellers who do not have parking at home. Sites would go in parking garages that are used primarily for monthly parking. NYSERDA funding: $200,000.

City of Rochester – Plans to install 24 charging stations at seven highly-visible and busy locations around the city, including municipal parking garages, City Hall, the Port of Rochester and the Rochester Public Market. NYSERDA funding: $228,000.

Coulomb Technologies Inc. – Partnering with National Grid, Coulomb will deploy 81 dual charging stations with Coulomb’s ChargePoint software. The technology will demonstrate a web-based demand response program, a new low-cost installation method and a customized reservation system. NYSERDA funding: $1 million.

EV Connect Inc. – Plans to install EV charging stations at five Marriott hotels around New York State that make use of a unique reservation and payment system. Project would make it possible for overnight visitors to charge their vehicles while staying at a hotel. NYSERDA funding: $250,000.

Golub Corp. (Price Chopper Supermarkets) - Plans to install 12 charging stations at four locations, each equipped with a weather canopy and lighting to make them visible. This is the first phase of an intended statewide rollout. NYSERDA funding: $325,000.

New York Port Authority – Plans to install seven experimental charging stations for fleet vehicles and public use that practice demand-response (aligning charging times with times of low power demands, reducing charging cost and impact during peak demand to the grid). NYSERDA funding: $720,000.

New York Power Authority – Plans to install 124 charging stations at train and bus stations, airports and municipal parking lots. Three sites would be powered in part through on-site solar power. NYSERDA funding: $989,000.

Plugin Stations Online – Plans to install charging stations at three apartment complexes in Albany, Rochester and Buffalo, as well as one at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Troy. NYSERDA funding: $64,000.

(photo by Kate Hinds)

The space shuttle Enterprise floated by WNYC Wednesday morning en route to its new home at the Intrepid Sea, Air and Space Museum. Despite a construction elevator moving maddeningly to almost obscure the view, we were able to catch a glimpse.

The museum's Enterprise exhibit is scheduled to open to the public this summer.

Can't get enough of the shuttle? Check out photos of its arrival in New York in April here. To see WNYC listener-submitted photos of the shuttle's flyover, go here.

 

Top stories on TN:
Buoyed by Auto Industry, Swing State Employment Relatively Bright (link)
Senate Moves to Shake up Transportation Conference Amid Hill Sniping (link)
NYC Mayor: Bike Helmets Are Nice, But Separated Bike Lanes Are More Important (link)
News to Us: New York’s MTA #7 Extension to Open Six Months Later Than Originally Planned (link)
Dulles Rail Supporters, Opponents Plead With Loudoun Board (link)
Federal Investigators: Almost Everything Went Wrong in Bronx Bus Crash That Killed 15 (link)

DART rail in Dallas (image courtesy of DART)

The Massachusetts port authority is giving passengers free rides from Logan Airport as part of a 90-day pilot program to reduce vehicle traffic at the airport. (Boston Globe)

Unemployment is falling in auto industry swing states -- and TN's Andrea Bernstein talks about what this could mean for President Obama's reelection efforts on The Takeaway.

NYC is doubling its high-tech program to reduce traffic congestion in Midtown Manhattan. (New York Times)

Parking reform coming to Brooklyn: New York's Department of City Planning has proposed long-awaited zoning changes that will reduce the number of parking spots developers have to build for residential buildings that they are constructing in downtown Brooklyn. (Crain's New York Business, Streetsblog)

Transit recall: voters in the Wisconsin town of Weston overwhelmingly approved a ballot measure that will require the village to provide public transportation at least five days per week beginning Jan. 1. (Wausau Daily Herald)

Want to buy a car in Singapore? Prepare to pony up about $67,000 -- and that's just for the permit. (Marketplace, Bloomberg)

The clock is ticking for the Port Authority to turn documents over to the New Jersey Assembly Transportation Committee. (Asbury Park Press)

High rider: a Cuban man rides through the streets of Havana on a 13-foot bicycle. "Up there I see the scenery better. I feel relaxed. There's more of a breeze, I breathe it and I feel freer," he says. (AP via Houston Chronicle)

The Dallas Area Rapid Transit clocked its 250 millionth customer. (Mass Transit)

Major car makers in India are fighting a government proposal to raise taxes on vehicles that run on heavily subsidised diesel. (Reuters)

The Volt comes out in a Chevy Ad.   (Buzzfeed)

Bicycle collisions are on the rise in Indiana. (WANE)

A motorcycle-car hybrid wants to be urban transit's next big thing. (Good)

NYC Mayor Michael Bloomberg (third from left) at Montefiore Medical Center (photo by Kathleen Horan/WNYC)

Last week, a spokesman for New York City Mayor Mike Bloomberg shot down one politician's call for a mandatory bike helmet law. On Tuesday the mayor did it himself.

Bloomberg was at Montefiore Medical Center in the Bronx to talk about the dangers of obesity -- and plug his supersize soda ban. In the Q&A afterwards, one reporter asked him whether the city's opposition to a mandatory helmet law is based on studies that show those laws can discourage cycling.

You can read his response, or listen to his comments, below.

Bloomberg: "Well, look, keep in mind that my foundation works on traffic safety and getting helmets to people that ride motorcycles and motor scooters more than bicycles, is something that we're working on and spent a lot of money on around the world. It would be better if everybody wore a helmet. I think in a practical sense a lot of people won't, and they're better off taking a bike than driving or walking in the streets and getting pedestrian accidents (sic). The most important thing we can do is separate bicycles lanes from traffic, and that's one of the things we're really trying to do."

(He was then asked a follow-up question by a different reporter, who referenced the city's upcoming bike share program and asked: "how concerned are you about safety in terms of pedestrians and vehicles? You're going to be adding 10,000 bikes to the street.")

Bloomberg: "It's New York. Ten thousand is a trivial number. Anything is better than what we have now. Keep in mind that traffic deaths are at an all-time low. And we started keeping records -- I think it was back in 1916, rings a bell, something like that -- when the city was much smaller. The bottom line is that since we've had more bicycle lanes and more bicycles -- there's always accidents, and I'm not making light of it -- but total accidents and deaths continues to go down. And bicycles are one of those things that does tend to slow down traffic and separates bicycles...what you shouldn't do is take your bicycle on the sidewalk. What you shouldn't do is go blasting through red lights. What you shouldn't do is ride where you're not supposed to. What you shouldn't do is not pay attention. I saw somebody going by the other day texting on their bicycle. And lots of people I see in the car texting while they're driving. That doesn't take away the need to be intelligent and to do things that make sense and not do those that are dangerous."

 

 

The #7 extension construction site as of 5/12 (photo courtesy of MTAPhotos via flickr)

TN read with interest today's New York Post story stating that the the #7 subway extension to Manhattan's far west side won't be open until June 2014 -- six months later than originally planned.

"It's on schedule to begin revenue service in June 2014 and on budget at $2.4 billion," MTA chair Joe Lhota told the New York State Senate Transportation Committee today.

Um. TN, like the Post, was under the impression that service to 11th Avenue and 34th Street was scheduled to open in December 2013 -- but the MTA says the new date is old news.

MTA spokesperson Adam Lisberg noted that the MTA had already publicly released the new opening date at a board meeting in February. Which it did; turn to page 242 of the transit committee meeting report book to see the June '14 date reflected in the official documents.

Lisberg attributed the late opening to "general construction delays and easement issues."

But the MTA's website has conflicting information on the project. While one page has the most recent opening date, it doesn't have the latest project cost -- now $2.4 billion, not $2.1 billion -- although that number can be found on yet another section of the site.

(Note: still other undated information says "customers will be able to take advantage of the new service in December 2013 as scheduled.")

The project's cost increase falls under the "systems and finishes" category. According to Lisberg, the MTA hired one company to dig the tunnel and another company to do the switches, and he says "we were overly optimistic in coordinating how well those companies would work together."

The original opening target for the #7 extension was actually right about now -- it was conceived as the train to the proposed Olympic stadium when New York was bidding for the summer 2012 Olympics.