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.
Gingrich and Romney on climate change (Grist)
A brief and almost-funny look at the two candidates’ changing views on climate change and what, if anything, should be done about it — if it’s happening that is. Gingrich story and Romney story. Let’s just say both candidates have, um, refined their views in recent times.
Two more weather disasters top $1 billion in damages (New York Times)
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration added two more weather disasters to its tally of weather events that caused $1 billion or more in damage in 2011. That list is now 14 — the most ever. Tropical Storm Lee and a wind and hail storm in Colorado and Wyoming are the latest additions.
The Athabasca oil sands field in Canada. Photo by NASA Earth Observatory, via Wikipedia Commons.
Blocking Keystone pipeline won’t stop oil sands production (NPR)
Smart story. Many conservationists want to stop the proposed Keystone pipeline from Canada to Texas to discourage the production of oil from tar sands in Canada — a particularly dirty way to recover oil from the Earth. Yet, even if Keystone is stopped, the oil will likely flow south in an existing pipeline to Vancouver, where it is shipped south to the U.S.
Main Street bike lane extended into Venice (Daily Breeze)
For years, the bike lane on Main Street in Santa Monica came to an abrupt end at the city of Los Angeles border. The city is now in the process of removing a car lane in each direction on Main Street and extending the bike lane about .9 miles south to Windward Circle in Venice. Good news for this popular bike riding area.
New federal courthouse for downtown L.A. (L.A. Times)
The embarrassing hole in the ground between 1st, 2nd, Broadway and Hill in downtown Los Angeles will finally get the federal courthouse planned for the site. Funding from Congress has been a problem. That means more jobs at a major transit hub. Many bus lanes stop in the area, as well as the Red and Purple line subway — and there will also be a Regional Connector station at 2nd and Broadway. Of course, there remains the embarrassing field of parking lots just up the hill from the site, as well as the embarrassing empty lot on 1st Street across from both City Hall and the Times building. Sigh. This building will replace an old courthouse a few blocks away — what will happen with that site is to be determined.
Categories: Transportation Headlines
Interesting Article from NPR. But they forgot to mention that the proposed Keystone XL Pipeline would travel through Nebraska’s Sand Hills (a large wetland ecosystem) and the Ogallala Aquifer (which provides drinking water and irrigation for a huge swath of middle America).
There’s also evidence that the imported oil would likely just be refined in the U.S. with the gas still being sold abroad. Additionally, the number of jobs created could be much less significant than suggested by the Republicans (~5k by independent reviews vs. the inflated 20k/50k/100k estimates of the Koch Bros. and Fox News).
IMO, President Obama was smart to block it given the Republicans effort to fast-track the approval in lieu of a thorough environmental review.