Transportation headlines, Monday, Jan. 9

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Here is a look at some of the transportation headlines gathered by us and the Metro Library. The full list of headlines is posted on the library’s blog.

Hit the brakes on high-speed rail (L.A. Times)

Columnist George Skelton criticizes Gov. Jerry Brown for proposing to cut services while putting aside some money to continue with the state’s bullet train project — he thinks a time-out is needed to reassess the project. Skelton also notes that Brown’s office is still analyzing the latest business plan from the California High-Speed Rail Authority before deciding whether to sell $2.7 billion in bonds to help fund the building 130 miles of track in the San Joaquin Valley.

Subversive bicycle photos from Los Angeles (Cophenhagenize)

Nice gallery of historic photos showing that bikes played a prominent role in the L.A. transportation scene in the city’s early days.

Public support for climate and energy policies (Yale)

Interesting poll by Yale on American’s attitudes toward climate change and doing something about it. Bottom line: 70 percent of Americans believe global warming should be a “high” or “medium” concern for the President and Congress. There appears to be support for clean energy policy from both major political parties. Yet, Andrew Revkin notes in the New York Times’ Dot Earth blog that denying global warming appears to now be a litmus test in the Republican party.

Why is Twitter so popular with transportation communicators (Talking Transit)

Facebook has more users, but a recent survey found that Twitter is preferred by transportation agencies trying to reach the public. Why? The blog guesses that Twitter is popular with cell phones who like to tweet and read tweets when out and about and moving around — making them naturally interested in transportation.

Categories: Transportation Headlines

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2 replies ›

  1. The Los Angeles Times wrote the opinion on January 7, 2012 “Keep California’s bullet train on track” in direct opposition to Columnist George Skelton.

    “The point is, you can take the long view or the short view toward the bullet train. The expert panels are taking a short view; we prefer the long. In the end, if Californians have the patience and the political will to stick with it, they’ll have a project with extraordinary environmental, economic and transportation benefits. If they don’t, they’ll have worsening congestion, rising pollution and soaring transit expenses as gasoline prices continue their inevitable rise. We like the first vision of the future better.”

    Despite recent negative reviews by experts, in the long term the rail project still makes sense.