The Real Reason We Keep Getting Distracted by Transit Boondoggles

When it comes to transit mega project delays and overruns, there are typically two reactions: to trash the project mercilessly or unconditionally back it to the end. But there is a third option.

Infrastructure, Marohn, Transportation, Top StoryCharles MarohnFebruary 14, 2022Infrastructure, infrastructure, megaprojects, Megaprojects, transit, commuting, transportation spending, infrastructure spending, Minnesota, transportation

Alaska and New Infrastructure Funds: We Promise Not to Waste It!

As of November 15, Alaska is flush with federal infrastructure money. How should it be spent?

The Bell Tolls for Thee, Maine...

Many local jurisdictions put off paying the bills for big capital projects. But this month, the bell tolls for Maine.

#DotheMath, #InfrastructureCrisis, Infrastructure, Stange, Transportation, Top StoryJay StangeJanuary 11, 2022highways, highway spending, toll roads, Infrastructure, infrastructure, transportation spending, transportation, #DoTheMath

ODOT Needs to Stop the I-5 Bridge Con

Next month, the Portland Metro government is being asked to approve $36 million in additional funds for further planning of a massive freeway project. It should say no.

City Observatory, Environment, Infrastructure, Transportation, #NoNewRoads, Top StoryJoe CortrightNovember 12, 2021DOT, Portland OR, Oregon, transportation, transportation spending, highways, highway spending, freeways, freeway widening, City Observatory, Infrastructure

More Highways, More Driving, More Emissions

Fact: New roads always produce new driving. Say hello to “induced demand.”

CDOT's Proposal for Transit-Induced Pollution

CDOT drafts a rule that intends to address both greenhouse gas emissions and Colorado’s spreading development pattern. But can this kind of top-down solution work?

Transit Agencies Venture Into Real Estate—But Why Weren't They Already?

Budget shortfalls are pressuring transit agencies to do what they should’ve been doing all along: put to productive use the land they own around their stations.

Public Transit, Herriges, Top StoryDaniel HerrigesMarch 24, 2021transit, BART, real estate, public transit, public transportation, transportation spending

The Trillion Dollar Question Facing Every Major American City

The “growth machine” is too big to fail. What if it fails anyway?

Transportation, Marohn, Growth Ponzi SchemeCharles MarohnAugust 31, 2020Ponzi Scheme, Growth Ponzi Scheme, Bay Area, California, fieldsteadca, transportation spending

In Transportation Costs, "It's the System, Stupid"

Often lost in debates about whether or not to “subsidize” transit: the total cost of a system in which everyone drives is much higher than the total cost of a system in which other forms of transportation are attractive alternatives.

Public Transit, Transportation, Top StoryDaniel HerrigesAugust 17, 2020public transit, auto-oriented, transportation spending, transportation

Can a High-Speed Rail Network Electrify the U.S. Economy?

A Massachusetts lawmaker wants to jumpstart the economy with high-speed rail. Could it work—or is this proposal going nowhere fast?

Upzoned, Top Story, Podcast, TransportationStrong TownsJune 4, 2020Podcast, high-speed rail, transportation spending

Best of 2019: #NoNewRoads Gains Traction in D.C.

Until America gets its infrastructure priorities straight, the last thing we need is to pump more spending into a broken system. 2019 felt like a breakthrough year for our call for #NoNewRoads, one in which we had more influential allies and receptive ears on this point than ever before.

Best of Blog, #InfrastructureCrisis, #NoNewRoads, The Infrastructure Cult, Transportation, Top StoryStrong TownsDecember 17, 2019Best of 2019, transportation spending, Infrastructure, infrastructure cult, Transportation For America, Smart Growth America, #NoNewRoads

Listen Up, Washington: No New Roads

The advocacy group Transportation for America makes a bold move on transportation funding. We applaud them for it.

#NoNewRoads, Marohn, Transportation, Top StoryCharles MarohnOctober 7, 2019Transportation For America, Washington DC, Strong Towns Book, transportation spending

What the Left Gets Wrong About Public Transportation

Hint: the Right isn’t any better.

WIlson, Upzoned, MarohnStrong TownsAugust 30, 2019public transportation, incremental development, highway spending, transportation, federal funding, transportation spending

The Folly of Go-Big-or-Go-Home Transit

Don't be seduced by the "signature project" that takes 20 years to complete, when there's huge basket of small projects you could hit the ground running on. That's a wildly different approach than anything our transit agencies or federal transportation funding mechanisms are set up for. But it's a more promising one.

Herriges, Transportation, Top StoryDaniel HerrigesMarch 21, 2019#OrderlyButDumb, North Carolina, Light Rail, transportation spending

The Inertia of Lines on Paper

Decades ago, we decided where roads will go. Whether it makes sense or not today, that is where they must go.

Marohn, Top StoryCharles MarohnOctober 8, 2018STROADS, transportation spending, #OrderlyButDumb

E-Scooters and Paying for Roads

Charging electric scooter companies for their use of public space is sensible, but why stop there? What if car drivers were actually asked to pay the full costs they impose as well?

Transportation, Finance, Top StoryJoe CortrightAugust 2, 2018e-bikes, bike share, congestion, transportation spending

Transportation equity: Why peak period road pricing is fair

Peak hour car commuters have incomes almost double those who travel by transit, bike and foot.

Member Post, Top Story, TransportationJoe CortrightOctober 3, 2017transportation spending, congestion

Begging for Crumbs...and Getting Them

Small, locally-based investments can make a big difference to help people walking and biking feel safe. Big investments from outside sources tend to have the opposite effect.

Top Story, Walkability, Transportation, Urban Design, BikeabilityJohnny SanphillippoOctober 2, 2017California, transportation spending

False Choices in American Transportation

A survey issued by the Missouri Dept. of Transportation shows just how messed up our transportation funding system is and why the binary choices we're presented with aren't the whole picture.

#NoNewRoads, Transportation, WIlsonKea WilsonSeptember 21, 2017transportation spending