Barring that, he has some eight proposals for the transportation reauthorization bill, including eliminating long-range transportation planning and clean air mandates.
O'Toole writes, "Urban mass transit is the most disappointing performer and least-productive part of the nation's transportation system. Since 1964, when Congress first passed the Urban Mass Transportation Act, transit costs have risen far faster than either revenues or ridership. This signals a tremendous decline in productivity.
"It's uncommon to find such a rapid productivity decline in any industry," wrote University of California economist Charles Lave in 1994. "If transit productivity had merely remained constant since 1964," Lave wrote, "total operating costs would be more than 40 percent lower" in 1985, the last year for which he had data. By 2006, after adjusting for inflation, operating costs per trip were 2.3 times as much as they were in 1964, while average fares had fallen by 24 percent from 1964.43 All of this additional cost came out of taxpayers' pockets."
FULL STORY: Getting What You Paid For -- Paying For What You Get: Proposals for the Next Transportation Reauthorization
Restoring Solvency to the Highway Trust Fund
The Highway Trust Fund, the nation's source of road and bridge funding, went bankrupt in 2008 and has since relied on transfers from the General Fund to supplement fuel taxes. Republican Senators have proposed a new funding source: an EV fee.
O'Toole, Cato Institute Part Ways
Randal O'Toole, who resisted contemporary progressive planning trends by supporting the unfettered expansion of automobile infrastructure and single-family residential development, is no longer employed by the conservative-leaning Cato Institute.
Five-Year Transportation Bill Has a Ways to Go
House and Senate versions of the five-year surface transportation reauthorization bill are on different tracks, headed in different directions.
Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.
Maui's Vacation Rental Debate Turns Ugly
Verbal attacks, misinformation campaigns and fistfights plague a high-stakes debate to convert thousands of vacation rentals into long-term housing.
San Francisco Suspends Traffic Calming Amidst Record Deaths
Citing “a challenging fiscal landscape,” the city will cease the program on the heels of 42 traffic deaths, including 24 pedestrians.
Defunct Pittsburgh Power Plant to Become Residential Tower
A decommissioned steam heat plant will be redeveloped into almost 100 affordable housing units.
Trump Prompts Restructuring of Transportation Research Board in “Unprecedented Overreach”
The TRB has eliminated more than half of its committees including those focused on climate, equity, and cities.
Amtrak Rolls Out New Orleans to Alabama “Mardi Gras” Train
The new service will operate morning and evening departures between Mobile and New Orleans.
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Planning for Universal Design
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