Kate Hinds

Top stories on TN:
BREAKING: House GOP Floats 18-Month Transpo Bill (Link)
Transit, Jobs, Construction Noise: Rockland Residents Air Worries About Swiftly Approaching Tappan Zee Bridge Project (Link)
New York State Goes on Offensive Against Transit Over Tappan Zee Bridge (Link)
Photo: Straphangers, You Look MAHVELOUS (Link)
The Lorax Speaks for an SUV, And Mazda Says That’s OK (Link)
Airline Employment Up for 13th Month (Link)

Renting a Hubway bike in Boston

Boston's bike share program is booming, and will expand the program and add more bike lanes this year. (Boston Globe)

Chicago transit supporters are floating legislation that would raise the gas tax in the area -- and use the funds for transit. (Chicago Tribune)

Light rail alleviates traffic congestion -- at least in Denver. (Atlantic Cities)

The possibility of $5-a-gallon gas in the U.S. is looming. (New York Times)

Hundreds of people turned out to protest transit cuts in Pittsburgh. (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)

DC's Metro is replacing its older diesel buses with hybrid electric ones. (GGW)

Fret not about range anxiety: this infographic should put to rest fears about electric cars. (FastCoExist)

California's high speed rail program won't start construction until next year. (Fresno Bee)

Ray LaHood's son Sam is being allowed to leave Egypt. (The Hill)

The Tappan Zee Bridge, which connects Rockland and Westchester Counties (photo by Patsy Wooters via Flickr)

If Rockland and Westchester Counties want mass transit over the new Tappan Zee Bridge, they can pay for it.

That seems to be the message behind a strongly-worded email just sent out by the  New York State Thruway Authority. The email comes a day after a packed public hearing in Nyack in which dozens of members of the public voiced their support for transit over the new Tappan Zee Bridge.

The email, which is copied below, is called "Myths vs. Facts about Mass Transit on the New Tappan Zee Bridge." It also came with a PDF attached, graphically illustrating what it says is a $4.5 to $5.3 billion estimate to build a bus rapid transit corridor stretching from Rockland County's western border eastward to Westchester County. The state didn't include an explanation for the basis of these costs.

When asked, a Thruway Authority spokesman did not provide any further documentation of cost estimates.

The Institute for Transportation and Development Policy generally estimates that BRT costs $20 million per mile. Los Angeles's BRT system, which it built in 2005, came in at $25 million per mile.

Walter Hook, the CEO of the ITDP, who has advised on BRT systems around the world, said: "We doubt they have done a systematic analysis  of the projected causes of bottlenecks in a proposed new BRT service."  Hook added that further analysis could "bring the price down very significantly."

There's another hearing about the Tappan Zee Bridge project in Westchester County on Thursday.

The email is below.

Myths vs. Facts about Mass Transit on the New Tappan Zee Bridge

MYTH: Mass transit is not part of the new Tappan Zee Bridge.

FACT: The new bridge will support mass transit including bus rapid transit and commuter rail -- even before Rockland and Westchester Counties begin plans for a full mass transit system that could connect with the bridge.

MYTH: Mass transit options are far in the future.

FACT: The new bridge will have immediate, dedicated express bus service.

MYTH: Mass transit will never be part of the Tappan Zee Bridge.

FACT: The opposite is true. There can be no mass transit system without first building a new Tappan Zee bridge. The new bridge is being built to support bus and rail transit so that Rockland and Westchester can build a mass transit system to connect to the bridge.

MYTH: Mass transit can be built now.

FACT: A mass transit system in Rockland and Westchester requires 64 miles of construction in those counties at a cost of billions of dollars. There is no plan and no funding available to build a new mass transit system in the counties. However, if that changes, the new bridge will be able to accommodate it.

MYTH: We can afford to build mass transit now.

FACT: Building this separate mass transit system through Rockland and Westchester Counties would cost up to $5.3 billion and once the system was built it could cost $80 million to operate it. This means it could cost more to build and operate a separate mass transit system then to build the new Tappan Zee Bridge.

MYTH: We can afford to build mass transit now.

FACT: The $5.3 billion pricetag for a mass transit system means that the County Executives that want to build the system now will have to pay for it leading to the biggest tax and toll hike in Westchester and Rockland County history.

MYTH: A full mass transit system is a fundamental part of building a new Tappan Zee Bridge.

FACT: A full mass transit system would extend 64 miles from the bridge into Rockland and Westchester respectively. Currently the Counties have no plans in place to construct these 64 miles of mass transit. The entire bridge is only three miles and will support mass transit, if and when the Counties build it.

MYTH: There is no mass transit on the bridge now.

FACT: New York State already spends $2 million a year to provide Express Bus service across the Bridge, currently serving 499,000 riders per year and approximately 2,000 riders a day. The State will expand these services as market demand grows. However, numbers developed by New York's Planning body currently show that only 5,900 additional riders would cross the bridge on future Bus Rapid Transit, and that could only happen if the systems are in place on either side.

MYTH: The new Tappan Zee Bridge being built for drivers only

FACT: The new Tappan Zee Bridge will include a pedestrian walkway and bike lanes, in addition to the dedicated express bus service.

Mazda is defending its marketing campaign in which it uses the beloved -- and ferociously eco-conscious -- children's book character the Lorax to sell its new SUV.

Mazda says its SUV is fuel-efficient for an SUV, getting 35 mph on the highway.   "It's part of our sustainable zoom-zoom long-term vision," Mazda spokesman Eric Booth told TN.

It's a tie-in that dovetails with the upcoming film adaptation of "The Lorax," which premieres in theaters this Friday. The book, which was written by Theodor Geisel (aka Dr. Seuss) in 1971, chronicles the environmental degradation caused by the Once-ler, whose pursuit of profits via a Thneed-producing factory kills Truffula trees and chokes wildlife into non-existence.

Mazda is running a commercial in which its new CX-5  dreamily drives through a technicolor forest of Truffula trees, endorsed by a variety of characters from the book.  The automaker says the CX-5 has received the "Certified Truffula Tree Seal of Approval."

Mazda's Eric Booth tells TN "Dr. Seuss himself -- and this is a direct quote -- has said 'The Lorax doesn't say lumbering is immoral...I live in a house made of wood and write books printed on paper. It's a book about going easy on what we've got.'"

But Booth didn't finish Geisel's quote, which continues: "It's antipollution and antigreed."

The comments on Mazda's YouTube page range from the unprintable to "Almost anything BUT a car would have been less appalling. It may as well be sponsored by Thneeds R Us!"

The Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood has launched a "Save the Lorax" campaign, calling for a boycott of companies using the Lorax for advertising. Josh Golin is the CCFC's associate director.  "It’s egregious to use the Lorax, who for more than 40 years has been a symbol of conservation, to sell kids on consumption and buying as many Lorax products as they can," he said. "And the most ridiculous and disturbing is to sell kids on the new Mazda SUV."  He said cars have been devastating to the environment. "It's laughable to say that the Lorax would encourage children to nag their parents to buy a certain car."

Booth says Mazda is "trying to improve and make improvements to make cars less polluting and more efficient. It's in the same vein of the POV that the Lorax is trying to get across.”

The CCFC boycott has gotten 2,200 signatures on its website since it went live on Tuesday.

According to federal government estimates, vehicles release over 1.7 billion metric tons of greenhouse gases (GHGs) into the atmosphere each year--making cars responsible for just over 51% of a typical household's CO2 emissions.

But Mazda says it's developing more fuel-efficient technology -- and at a lower price point. The sticker price of the 2013 CX-5 starts at $20,695, and it gets 35 mpg highway/26 mpg city.

The Obama administration wants cars to have an average 55 mpg rating by the middle of the next decade.

"With this technology," said Eric Booth, who works on the Mazda account at the PR firm Hill+ Knowlton, "we're getting more out of internal combustion engines. We're delivering gasoline engines with diesel fuel economy, and diesel engines with hybrid fuel economy."

Note: The CX-5 comes in seven different colors. But none of the choices are green -- or, for that matter, Lorax orange.

(photo by Kate Hinds)

Seen on the West 4th Street platform this morning. There's nothing like a little positive reinforcement graffiti to brighten up your morning commute.

Top stories on TN:
Transit, Jobs, Construction Noise: Rockland Residents Air Worries About Swiftly Approaching Tappan Zee Bridge Project (Link)
Transit Museum Forum on Back of the Bus is TONIGHT (Link)
NY City Council Bill Would Up Electric Bike Fine (Link)
Study: Only 28 Percent of Neighborhoods Affordable (Link)
As GOP Struggles in Michigan, Obama Chortles — Says Fuel Efficient Cars Will Save $8000 (Link)
New Prospect Park Drive: Defined Lanes, Less Room for Cars (Link)

A Detroit bus stop. (By Flickr user JSmith Photo)

House Transportation and Infrastructure Chairman John Mica thinks that critics who believe Congress can pass a better transportation bill next year are “smoking the funny weed.” (Politico)

Detroit transit riders are outraged over huge bus cuts -- and the mayor's hiring of a private contractor to manage the city's troubled transportation department -- and plan to seek federal help in reversing the mayor's decisions. (Detroit Free Press)

New York Times editorial: the proposed Tappan Zee greenway "could be a splendid public attraction." (Link)

NYC cabs will have to start removing their taxi-top 'off-duty' signs to make way for the new system: available if the medallion number is lit, or unavailable if it’s dark. (New York Daily News)

Rules requiring rear-view video cameras in cars have been delayed again. (AP via Yahoo Finance)

Megabus' weighty double-decker coaches, currently being investigated by New York's Department of Transportation, have run afoul of authorities from Canada to Maryland. (DNA Info)

Worried Democrats want Obama to tap the Strategic Petroleum Reserve to lower gas prices. (The Hill)

The mayor of London said some lines on the Underground would have driverless trains in two years. (Telegraph)

Commercial truck traffic on the NJ Turnpike has declined by 7.5%; high fuel prices and last month's toll hike are cited as possible reasons why. (Star-Ledger)

Nearly five months after a $50 million HOT lane project opened in metro Atlanta, drivers remain dubious, the impact on traffic is unclear, and many questions remain unanswered. (Atlanta Journal-Constitution)

830 miles of new bikeways have been approved for Los Angeles County. (LAist)

New York state needs to slow the Tappan Zee Bridge process down, add transit and make sure there are strong design standards in place, according to Rockland County residents at the first public hearing on the bridge project Tuesday night.

New York State needs to slow the Tappan Zee Bridge process down, transit it up, and make sure there are strong design standards in place.

That was the feeling in a packed community room in Nyack, where Rockland County residents turned out in droves for the first public hearing on the bridge project since New York State released its massive environmental impact statement last month.

It was standing room only at the hearing in Nyack's Palisades Center Mall (photo by Kate Hinds)

Catherine McCue, a resident of South Nyack, said that the accelerated pace of the bridge's approval process worried her. She said she felt like she didn't have enough time to digest the state's massive draft environmental impact statement (DEIS), which was released late last month, has 23 chapters, and over a thousand pages.

The Draft Environmental Impact Statement, or DEIS (photo by Kate Hinds)

"We are really struggling to understand what this is, and to have good knowledge about what is being proposed here," she said. She wants the public comment period -- currently scheduled to end on March 15 -- extended.

"It's like a fast-moving train that's on a collision course," said McCue, "because we don't have the information that we need to feel that this is in scale with the community which has to live with this project."

But while residents try to understand how the construction process of a $5.2 billion twin-spanned bridge would impact their lives, the state continued to hammer the message home that the bridge needs to be replaced -- now.

Like the previous hearing in October, Michael Anderson, the New York State Department of Transportation project director, kicked off the presentation by once again making the case for the rebuild. "There are inherent vulnerabilities in the design of the (current) bridge," he said, and quoted estimates that it would cost $1.3 billion over the next decade just to maintain it.  “(There are) several significant issues in the main span, which has to do with substandard foundations which need to be replaced," he said, as well as "a significant number of structural members that need to be replaced or retrofitted."

(photo by Kate Hinds)

He went through the DEIS, which found no major stumbling blocks to replacing the bridge. Anderson did supply the packed room with a moment of much-needed levity: at one point while ticking off federal regulations, he stumbled over a word. “Section 4F is the applicable federal regulation regarding ... wildlife refugees – excuse me, refuge -- wildlife refuges." The crowd laughed, and Anderson decided to drop some Latin on them: "Refugi, I guess.”

Then came the public comment session, which was top-heavy with elected officials -- relegating members of the public who signed up to speak until the end, in front of an ever-dwindling crowd and amidst increasingly noisy room chatter.  Like October's hearing, many expressed dismay with the lack of transit on the new bridge. C. Scott Vanderhoef, the Rockland County executive, said he was delighted that the governor was expediting the bridge. "But it also needs to be looked at in terms of the broader issue of what it means to Rockland County, Westchester County and our region. And that means you simply can’t at the last minute think of some sort of mass transportation issue. Transit has to be a part of a consideration of this bridge – it cannot be an afterthought."

Jen White, the mayor of Nyack, said: “We need to know that there’s a future transit option being detailed – not just talked about.” She added: "We need an accountable construction process that can mitigate noise and air pollution and harm to our river. And I believe we need a bit more time and a bit more access to information to work these things out."

The state has said it will design the bridge so as to not preclude transit -- but that it can't afford to put transit on it right now.

Exactly what the new bridge will look like is not clear. The state said it's considering two separate options: an arch design and a cable-stayed design. The state is using a design-build process, which it says will save money and time. But what that also means is that the company awarded the contract will have a certain amount of leeway with details -- and that worries some residents.

(photo by Kate Hinds)

Harriet Cornell, chairwoman of the Rockland County legislature, said: "As the symbol of the lower Hudson Valley, there is no reason this bridge should not be the most beautiful structure in the New York metropolitan region." But, she added: "unfortunately what comes across in the DEIS is a very utilitarian approach to bridge design...there is no mention of building a bridge that is worthy of the majestic Hudson and the lower Hudson Valley, nor does it indicate aesthetic goals."

what an arch-design Tappan Zee could look like (photo by Kate Hinds)

One person advocated for a design competition on par with the one that had awarded Lorenzo Brunelleschi the commission to build the Duomo in Florence in 1418. Another wanted a 'Citizens Design Review Committee.'

Also packing the room: construction workers who don't want to see the process slowed down.  Ross Pepe is president of the Construction Industry Council of Westchester and Hudson Valley -- although he said he was speaking on behalf of replacethetzbridgenow.org. "Right now New Yorkers need two things: jobs and a new bridge," he said. "The decision is easy...the decisive moment has arrived:  build the new Hudson River crossing now."

Side note: there was no mention of how the bridge will be financed (New York has requested a $2 billion loan from the federal government, but no other details are available). And although advocates at the hearing spoke on behalf of turning the current Tappan Zee Bridge into a greenway, no one from the state addressed it.

Top stories on TN:
NY MTA Board Member: Overnight Shutdowns Too Broad--And More are On the Way (Link)
Will High Gas Prices Hurt Obama’s Reelection Chances? (Link)
Residents Look at Ways to Bring Walkability Back to Old Houston Neighborhood (Link)

(photo courtesy of San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency)

It's all systems go for San Francisco's newest subway. (San Francisco Chronicle)

DC's population is up, but car registrations are flat lining. (Or as WTOP puts it, "New DC residents: I couldn't 'car' less.")

Airline co-pilots would have to meet the same experience threshold required of captains—the first boost in four decades—under regulations proposed Monday by the Federal Aviation Administration. (AP via Mercury News)

Ray LaHood is bearish on Congress' chances of passing a transportation bill before the March 31st deadline. “I’m going to use past as prologue. We’ve gone 3½ years beyond the last bill...I don’t see Congress passing a bill before this one runs out, before this extension runs out." (Politico)

Meanwhile, state and local transportation officials are anxiously watching Washington for news about the transpo bill. (Politico)

Auto sales are growing so fast American auto makers can barely keep up -- which could lead to shortages that drive up prices. (NPR)

Lawyers for NYC are heading to court today seeking an appeal of a judge's order that the Taxi and Limousine Commission must submit a long term-plan for wheelchair accessibility. (WNYC)

Following safety concerns, NYC will unveil proposed changes to the Prospect Park loop in Brooklyn that would reduce cars to one lane -- and create two separate lanes for bicyclists and pedestrians.  (New York Times)

Future roads will have new technology to ease congestion -- and more congestion because of the new technology. (Marketplace)

TransCanada says it will start building the Oklahoma-to-Texas portion of the Keystone XL pipeline. (NPR)

A bill calling for more transparency at the Port Authority was approved by a New Jersey state senate committee. (Star-Ledger)

New York Times' Room for Debate: how to make cities safer for cyclists and pedestrians? The answers: better street design -- and better enforcement. (Link)

One DC bus rider wrote a song about the errant #42 bus: "One bus, two bus, three bus, four/Can't seem to find those open doors/At this rate how am I gonna get anywhere." (Washington Post)

Top stories on TN:
New Fears Over Revamped Transportation Bill (link)
Mitt and Ann Romney Drive Four Cars (Link)
NY Ports Chief Calls Docks Bastions of Discrimination, Vows Action (Link)
Federal Government Gets Child-Sized Crash Dummies (Link)
Florida Transportation Officials Plug Safety as Train Traffic Increases (Link)
NYC Officials Arrest More for Using Fake Parking Permits (Link)

From "Paradise Parking," a series of photographs of antique cars slowly decaying in nature. (Photo by Peter Lippmann)

The next round of public hearings for the Tappan Zee Bridge rebuild will happen this week in New York's Rockland and Westchester counties. (Poughkeepsie Journal)

Egypt delayed trial proceedings against a group of nonprofit workers --including Sam LaHood, son of transportation secretary Ray LaHood -- until April. (New York Times)

More New Yorkers are charging their cab rides. (Wall Street Journal)

Will gas prices continue to rise if the Keystone XL pipeline isn't built?  (NPR)

Meanwhile: expect sales of fuel-efficient cars to increase if gas prices don't start dropping soon. (Marketplace)

Three pedestrians have been killed in three days along a dangerous stretch of road in Cobb County, Georgia. (Atlanta Journal-Constitution, SouthCobbPatch)

One reason New York's MTA has an 82% fine collection rate: New York State will take the money out the tax refunds of scofflaws. (New York Daily News)

Los Angeles wants to kill a bus line in favor of light rail service, but advocates say the changes will negatively affect poor and minority communities. (Los Angeles Times)

Sex crimes are underreported on most transit systems, including San Francisco's BART -- where just 95 were documented last year. (Bay Citizen)

New York Times: U.S. should get on board with Europe's cap-and-trade plan for airline's carbon emissions. (Link)

Ray LaHood continues to rail against the GOP's transportation bill, tells crowd at AASHTO event that the Republican plan would "emasculate" transit programs. (Tweet from Ashley Halsey III)

Mitt Romney: "I have some great friends that are NASCAR team owners." (The Hill)

London is putting its new Routemaster II buses into service -- to the delight of the Guardian's design columnist. (Link)

Paradise Parking: a series of photographs by Peter Lippmann of antique cars decaying in nature. Check out more gorgeous pictures at Laughing Squid.

Top stories on TN:
In the tech sector, bikes are the new cars. (Link)
Reports: House GOP considers reversal on transit funding. (Link)
A Brooklyn, New York subway station house that was shuttered some four decades ago is open again. (Link)
About a quarter of employees who work in New York area airports make wages that are below the poverty line. (Link)
Seemingly enjoying the fact that neither Rick Santorum nor Mitt Romney supported the bailout of the auto industry, the Obama campaign is out with an ad rubbing it in. (Link)

KLM's "Meet and Seat" program (image courtesy of KLM)

The House will revamp its transportation bill -- and is killing its controversial transit funding provision. (Politico)

...and Democrats are crowing. (The Hill)

The Twin Cities transit system will now be known as "Metro," and the light rail system is being color-coded. Bonus: new logo! (Minnesota Public Radio)

President Obama on high gas prices: “Anybody who tells you we can drill our way out of this problem doesn’t know what they’re talking about, or just isn’t telling you the truth." (New York Times)

Meanwhile, in France, gas has hit $8 a gallon, and prices could go higher. (NPR)

The projected budget deficits for the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency operations are shrinking. (San Francisco Chronicle)

Denver's rapid transit to the northwest suburbs might actually come in the form of a bus system rather than a rail line as initially promised to voters nearly eight years ago. (Denver Post)

Social seating: Dutch airline KLM is testing a program it calls Meet and Seat, allowing ticket-holders to upload details from their Facebook or LinkedIn profiles and use the data to choose seatmates. (New York Times)

Los Angeles's Metro is locking gates in an effort to curb fare evasion. (Los Angeles Times)

Driverless trains will come to Australia's mining industry by 2014. Next up: driverless trucks. (PSFK)

In Toronto, light rail plans are full speed ahead, regardless of politics. (The Star)

Top stories on TN:
Adele Has It All: 6 Grammys…And a Great Bike (link)
Study: Teen Driving Deaths Up After 8 Years of Decline (link)
House Transpo Bill Stalled In a Frenzy of Fingerpointing (link)
Houston Loop Project Moves to Next Phase (link)
Feds Pitch First-Ever Distracted Driving Guidelines For Automakers (link)
Boehner: ‘Fundamental Change’ Means This Bill Stays in GOP Territory (link)

San Francisco bus (photo by jonathanpercy via flickr)

U.S. DOT head Ray LaHood talked about the deadlocked transportation bill on The Takeaway.

Enforcer buses: by early next year San Francisco's entire fleet of 819 buses will be equipped with forward-facing cameras that take pictures of cars traveling or parked in the bus and transit-only lanes. (Atlantic Cities)

Opinion: the transpo bill is a backlash against the Obama Administration's "cluelessness about the difference between national transportation policy and urban transport policy." (Politico)

The unintended consequences of "Made in America:" Boeing -- a U.S. airplane manufacturer -- is selling its planes to foreign airlines, which are then taking over routes previously pioneered by U.S. carriers. (Washington Post)

Nevada --where Google test-drives its robotic cars -- is becoming the first state to create a licensing system for self-driving cars. (NPR)

Any consumer savings from the payroll tax cut will probably be erased by higher gas prices. (Marketplace)

A routine repair project on a California highway went awry -- and has turned into a full-fledged scandal. (Los Angeles Times)

High-speed taxiways  -- designed to get jets off runways faster -- are coming to Newark airport. (Asbury Park Press)

Bike share is coming to Austin's SXSW. (Bike World News)

Want one of the wooden benches NYC is phasing out of the subway system? It can be yours for a mere $650. (New York Daily News)

She does have it all.

From Adele's website last January: "this is me on my new bike i got today, you can tell by my face i REALLY like it! the bell sounds like a door bell…like ding dong not prbprbpbrpbrpbr."

Now that Adele's won six Grammys, the captioning contest is on. (We found the this captioned version on Metapicture.)

This version is popping up on facebook.

How would you caption the picture? Comment below!

Ford dashboard (image from http://www.ford.com/technology/)

Automakers should disable potentially distracting technology unless the car is turned off -- or in "park."

That's the message from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, which unveiled the first-ever federally proposed guidelines to encourage manufacturers to keep dashboard distractions to a minimum.

The guidelines -- which are voluntary --  would apply to "communications, entertainment, information gathering and navigation devices or functions that are not required to safely operate the vehicle."

The public can comment on the guidelines for the next 60 days. Read the full release below.

________________________________________________

U.S. Department of Transportation Proposes ‘Distraction’ Guidelines for Automakers 

Proposed recommendations would encourage manufacturers to develop
“less distracting” in-vehicle electronic devices  

WASHINGTON – U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood today announced the first-ever federally proposed guidelines to encourage automobile manufacturers to limit the distraction risk for in-vehicle electronic devices.  The proposed voluntary guidelines would apply to communications, entertainment, information gathering and navigation devices or functions that are not required to safely operate the vehicle.

Issued by the Department’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), the guidelines would establish specific recommended criteria for electronic devices installed in vehicles at the time they are manufactured that require visual or manual operation by drivers. The announcement of the guidelines comes just days after President Obama’s FY 2013 budget request, which includes $330 million over six years for distracted driving programs that increase awareness of the issue and encourage stakeholders to take action.

“Distracted driving is a dangerous and deadly habit on America’s roadways – that’s why I’ve made it a priority to encourage people to stay focused behind the wheel,” said Secretary LaHood. “These guidelines are a major step forward in identifying real solutions to tackle the issue of distracted driving for drivers of all ages.”

Geared toward light vehicles (cars, SUVs, pickup trucks, minivans, and other vehicles rated at not more than 10,000 pounds gross vehicle weight), the guidelines proposed today are the first in a series of guidance documents NHTSA plans to issue to address sources of distraction that require use of the hands and/or diversion of the eyes from the primary task of driving.

In particular, the Phase I proposed guidelines released today recommend criteria that manufacturers can use to ensure the systems or devices they provide in their vehicles are less likely to distract the driver with tasks not directly relevant to safely operating the vehicle, or cause undue distraction by engaging the driver’s eyes or hands for more than a very limited duration while driving. Electronic warning system functions such as forward-collision or lane departure alerts would not be subject to the proposed guidelines, since they are intended to warn a driver of a potential crash and are not considered distracting devices.

“We recognize that vehicle manufacturers want to build vehicles that include the tools and conveniences expected by today’s American drivers,” said NHTSA Administrator David Strickland. “The guidelines we’re proposing would offer real-world guidance to automakers to help them develop electronic devices that provide features consumers want—without disrupting a driver’s attention or sacrificing safety.”

The proposed Phase I distraction guidelines include recommendations to:

• ·         Reduce complexity and task length required by the device;
• ·         Limit device operation to one hand only (leaving the other hand to remain on the steering wheel to control the vehicle);
• ·         Limit individual off-road glances required for device operation to no more than two seconds in duration;
• ·         Limit unnecessary visual information in the driver’s field of view;
• ·         Limit the amount of manual inputs required for device operation.

The proposed guidelines would also recommend the disabling of the following operations by in-vehicle electronic devices while driving, unless the devices are intended for use by passengers and cannot reasonably be accessed or seen by the driver, or unless the vehicle is stopped and the transmission shift lever is in park.

• ·         Visual-manual text messaging;
• ·         Visual-manual internet browsing;
• ·         Visual-manual social media browsing;
• ·         Visual-manual navigation system destination entry by address;
• ·         Visual-manual 10-digit phone dialing;
• ·         Displaying to the driver more than 30 characters of text unrelated to the driving task.

NHTSA is also considering future, Phase II proposed guidelines that might address devices or systems that are not built into the vehicle but are brought into the vehicle and used while driving, including aftermarket and portable personal electronic devices such as navigation systems, smart phones, electronic tablets and pads, and other mobile communications devices. A third set of proposed guidelines (Phase III) may address voice-activated controls to further minimize distraction in factory-installed, aftermarket, and portable devices.

The Phase I guidelines were published in today’s Federal Register and members of the public will have the opportunity to comment on the proposal for 60 days. Final guidelines will be issued after the agency reviews and analyzes and responds to public input.

NHTSA will also hold public hearings on the proposed guidelines to solicit public comment.  The hearings will take place in March and will be held in Los Angeles, Chicago, and Washington D.C

To view today’s proposed electronic equipment guidelines, click here.

Top stories on TN:
NYPD Defends Role in Investigating Traffic Deaths (Link)
NYPD Issued Almost 50,000 Bicycle Tickets in 2011 (Link)
Transit Tax Deduction Amendment Doesn’t Make Payroll Deal (Link)
Final Irene-Damaged Road in New York is Fixed (Link)
SF Ferries Prepare for Crunch From Bridge Closure (Link)
New York Wants $2 Billion From Feds for Tappan Zee Bridge (Link)
Report: Boehner is Delaying Transpo Vote (Link)

Boston T sign in Cambridge (photo by Kate Hinds)

Why is transportation legislation stalled in both the House and the Senate? TN's Todd Zwillich explains on The Takeaway.

Ray LaHood says President Obama's transportation spending plan is necessary, because "America is one big pothole right now." (Los Angeles Times)

BP's oil slick is spilling into a New Orleans courtroom: testimony in a lawsuit over the Deepwater Horizon catastrophe is scheduled to begin at the end of the month. (NPR)

Boston's transit advisory board is proposing a 25 percent, across-the-board fare hike as an alternative to steep service cuts. (Boston Globe)

Detroit's mayor will propose ending bus service between 1 and 4 a.m. citywide and reducing service times and lengthen waits between buses on dozens of routes. (Detroit Free Press)

DC's Metro and three equipment makers have admitted liability in the deadliest train crash in the transit authority’s history, according to court filings. (Washington Post)

Toyota has revved up its sales to U.S. rental car agencies. (Marketplace)

West Virginia's House is mulling Complete Streets legislation. (AP via West Virginia Gazette)

If the global climate continues its warming trend, Manhattan could see a drastic uptick of so-called 100-year floods, or those with storm surges around 6.5 feet, according to a new MIT study. (Atlantic Cities)

How dreamy is Boeing's new Dreamliner? One passenger: "It's half-and-half. I half like it, and I'm half disappointed." (Wall Street Journal)

A FedEx driver -- and statistics hobbyist -- predicted the rise of Jeremy Lin two years ago. (Wall Street Journal)

NYPD officials at a City Council oversight hearing (photo by Kate Hinds)

In two and a half hours of sometimes heated testimony, NYPD brass defended the department's record investigating bike and pedestrian deaths before the New York City Council.

"We have utilized the resources at our disposal...to drive accidents down in the city," said John Cassidy, chief of the NYPD's transportation department.

"There doesn't seem to be any discussion of that at the Council hearing at all," he said. "It seems the fact that accidents are down, injury accidents are down, injuries are down -- those are done by utilizing the patrol force that we have. So it's not that we are not doing anything out there -- I think it's quite the contrary. We are doing a lot with a lot less."

A number of recent deaths -- like Brooklyn cyclist Mathieu LeFevre, who was hit by a truck last October in Brooklyn, and 12-year old Dashane Santana, who was struck by a minivan on the Lower East Side in January -- have caused the council to question how vigorously the NYPD enforces laws in these kinds of cases.

Teresa Pedroza, Santana's grandmother, said: "My granddaughter's gone because it's just that easy for dangerous drivers to end a life on our streets."

Added Erika LeFevre, mother of Mathieu LeFevre: "The only person the NYPD showed courtesy, professionalism and respect towards was the driver who ran over my son," she said, referencing the slogan painted on the side of patrol cars.

"What actually happens when a pedestrian is struck and killed by a car?" City Council member Jimmy Vacca -- who chairs the transportation committee  -- asked at the opening of the oversight hearing. "Anecdotal evidence suggests that unless the driver is drunk or distracted, in the overwhelming majority of cases involving fatalities or serious injury, there are no charges filed at all."

Cassidy said in 2011, the NYPD issued over a million summonses to drivers for moving violations, as well as 10,415 criminal court summonses to truck operators. He added that last year the department issued 13,743 moving violations to bicyclists and 34,813 criminal court summonses to bicyclists.

But this didn't satisfy the council members.  Council member Peter Vallone asked the police brass:  "Are any of you aware, personally, of any reckless endangerment charges brought as a result of one of these traffic injuries?"  After a pause, Cassidy responded: "No, sir."

Recent legislation (known colloquially as Hayley and Diego’s Law) amended section 1146 of the New York State Vehicle and Traffic Law to establish careless driving as a more serious offense. But according to Susan Petito, an attorney for the NYPD, the only officers who write 1146 violations are members of the NYPD's Accident Investigation Squad. The AIS is only called out to investigate if the victim is either dead or has suffered a life-threatening injury.

The AIS, which covers the entire city,  has 19 detectives, one lieutenant, and three sergeants.

"Even with those (1146) summonses that are written," Petito said, "they are invariably dismissed by traffic court, because traffic court judges believe that it's inadequate because it wasn't personally observed."

"It's really unacceptable," said Council Member Brad Lander, who wanted to know why more patrol officers couldn't be authorized to write 1146 violations.

The council wasn't the only frustrated party in the room. "You know, we're well aware of the catastrophic nature of what we are discussing. We realize these are not just numbers on a piece of paper," said Cassidy at one point.

Other city council members complained about what they perceived to be a the NYPD's lack of transparency. At one point Vacca wanted to know how many drivers were charged for criminally bad driving. "Unfortunately, reckless endangerment is not segregated for record keeping purposes in our arrest database," said Petito. "So we can't give you a specific number of reckless endangerment charges connected with speeding ... connected with a vehicle. Unfortunately that data's not available."

"Why is it so hard to get information from the police department?" asked council member Jessica Lappin, who has worked to try to get the NYPD to make more data available to the public. "Why did Mathieu LeFevre's family have to file a FOIL request about their son's death? That's literally adding insult to injury."

Lappin called the NYPD's approach to releasing data "irritating" and "infuriating." "While putting up a PDF may comply with the law, it doesn't comply with our goal. It's information we're entitled to."

After the hearing, Peter Vallone said the council is committed to giving the NYPD the tools they need to go after bad drivers. "They are not paying enough attention to reckless drivers, and I think that's clear from the testimony of all the victims who were here today."

NYPD brass defended the department’s record investigating bike and pedestrian deaths in 2-1/2 hours of often heated testimony before the New York City Council on Wednesday.

Top stories on TN:
NY City Council Summons Police on Traffic Crime Investigations (Link)
Transpo Bills Set Off on A Long, Bumpy Road (Link)
NY MTA Chief Apologizes for Rat Comments (Link)
DOT Head Ray LaHood Takes Another Whack At House Transpo Bill: It “Takes Us Back to the Horse and Buggy Era” (Link)
Brooklyn Bike Lane Lawsuit Rolls into 2012 (Link)
New York Senate Votes to Restore a Tax Break for Transit Riders (Link)
USDOT: On Time Airline Arrival Highest in 17 Years (Link)
Regulators Soon To Release Reports On Yellowstone River Pipeline Break And Oil Spill (Link)

An aerial view of the George Washington Bridge (photo courtesy of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey)

New York has asked the federal government for a $2 billion loan to help finance the $5.2 billion Tappan Zee Bridge replacement. (Bloomberg)

The White House is threatening to veto the House transportation bill. (Politico, The Hill)

And now transportation sits firmly atop the political agenda. (AP via Bloomberg BusinessWeek)

The Port Authority will spend half a billion dollars to renovate the George Washington Bridge. (nj.com)

Nine New York city cyclist deaths that raise questions. (MetroFocus)

A New York law cracking down on distracted driving has generated nearly 119,000 tickets statewide to motorists using their cell phones or texting while driving since July. (New York Daily News)

The green paint used in Los Angeles' bike lanes is not digitally erasable -- causing some film crews to have to relocate to bike lane-free streets. (Los Angeles Times)

Chicago's transit agency wants customers to know that its survey about "hypothetical fare scenarios" doesn't mean that it's hiking fares. (Chicago Tribune)

A group of bus companies is suing New York after the city's Department of Transportation gave Megabus a free spot outside the Port Authority Bus Terminal. (DNA Info)

Australia pours money into its car industry while slapping huge tariffs on used cars...but some are arguing for the New Zealand model, where second-hand cars are much cheaper.  (The Global Mail)

DC's Capital Bikeshare has hit 1.5 million trips -- in less than a year and a half of operation. (TBD)

New York is phasing in new benches in its subway system. Goodbye, wood; hello stainless! (New York Daily News)

Ray LaHood, speaking earlier this year (photo by thisisbossi via Flickr)

US Department of Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood, who has called the House transportation bill “the most partisan ever” and the “worst bill in decades," continues to pile on.  Yesterday, he called the bill "lousy" and said "it takes us back to the dark ages."

In a conference call today about rail and bus rapid transit projects, LaHood spoke passionately about the virtues of our nation's transit systems. They "are more than the way we get from point A to point B," he said. "They're the lifelines of our regional and national economies, they're they ways we lead our lives and pursue our dreams."

Federal Transit Administrator Peter Rogoff was asked on the call about federal funding for transportation projects, and he spoke in measured terms about the current debate raging in the capitol. "Some of the proposals that have been considered in the House pose a great threat to transit funding," he said.

"I'm going to put this more directly," interjected LaHood. "The House bill takes us back to the horse and buggy era. That's why over 300 amendments have been offered -- many of them by Republicans, to a Republican bill. This bill in the House was written by one person, one person only, it's not bipartisan."

He then broke it down further. "In the House there's a rules committee, they're going to decide this afternoon which one of these or many of these 300 amendments are going to be allowed to be debated on the House floor...many of these amendments would restore transit funding, and restore this program to a program that reflects the values of what people in America want. They want more transit. So we'll see how it all plays out."

Later, in the call, LaHood, a former GOP Congressman from Illinois,  became more optimistic when talking about the Senate's bill. "I anticipate that we're in a very good position in the Senate to have a bipartisan bill," he said, "and then we'll see what happens with the House bill."

Brooklyn's Prospect Park West bike lane (photo by Kate Hinds)

Opponents of a bike lane in Brooklyn's Park Slope neighborhood are formally appealing a judge's decision to dismiss the group's lawsuit.

Neighbors for Better Bike Lanes/Seniors for Safety had sought removal of the mile-long protected bike lane, claiming the city had pitched it as temporary. But their argument was dismissed by a judge, who ruled in August 2011 that the group had “presented no evidence that D.O.T. viewed the bikeway as a pilot or temporary project.”

NBBL said in September it would appeal. And on February 10th, it filed a brief with the appellate division of the Kings County Supreme Court. (You can read the formal appeal document here.)

"We still want to have a full hearing on all the issues raised by the DOT’s failure to conduct a proper safety study and collusion with pro-lane advocates,” said Georgia Winston, an attorney for Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher, the firm representing NBBL.

Mark Muschenheim, the attorney who has argued the case for the New York City Law Department, said in an emailed statement: "We are confident that the trial court's decision in our favor will be upheld on appeal. The popular bike path continues to enhance the safety of all who use Prospect Park West."

The city has 30 days to respond by submitting its own brief, after which point the court may schedule an oral argument.

(This story originally appeared on June 9, 2011 -- TN is republishing it in honor of Valentine's Day) One of our colleagues, WNYC producer Amy Pearl, commutes over the Brooklyn Bridge most mornings. The bridge is undergoing a massive rehabilitation, and so workers are usually on the job.

Today they were repainting the line on the bridge that separates the bike lane from the pedestrian walkway.

The frequent Brooklyn Bridge crosser is probably familiar with the phenomenon known as "love locks." Amy Pearl explained the practice in a 2009 web article: "Couples write their names on a lock - often the kind you'd use to keep your street clothes safe at the gym - and throw the key into the East River...Similar locks can be found on bridges all over Europe, as in Florence, Poland, Germany, and Latvia."

The locks can be found all over the place, despite the posted rule that forbids the attachment of objects to the bridge.

This morning, Amy told TN that workers were removing the locks. "Our boss told us to cut them," one said. DOT spokesman Montgomery Dean said that crews regularly remove these locks while performing all other ongoing maintenance work.

They got quite a collection.

For more photos of the locks, go here.

(All photographs by Amy Pearl/WNYC)