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The Intersection of Urban Form and Mileage Fees: Findings from the Oregon Road User Fee Pilot Program

Friday, March 11th, 2011

MINETA TRANSPORTATION INSTITUTE
In 2006 and 2007 the state of Oregon conducted a groundbreaking mileage fee pilot program. The program responded to a national concern that fuel taxes will stop serving as a reliable revenue source as a large proportion of the vehicle fleet transitions to running on little or no petroleum-based fuel. To prepare Oregon for this future threat to its transportation revenues, the state legislature authorized a pilot program to test mileage fees as a replacement for the state fuel tax.

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Tags: Mineta Transportation Institute, MTI, OR, Oregon, Portland
Posted in Uncategorized

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AASHTO Conference Report

Thursday, February 3rd, 2011

The American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) has released the report on the Forum on Funding and Financing Solutions for Surface Transportation in the Coming Decade Conference. “In recognition of the need to discuss a broad range of tools to address the transportation “funding gap,” the AASHTO Center for Excellence in Project [...]

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Department of Homeland Security’s Infrastructre Reports

Thursday, February 3rd, 2011

The Department of Homeland Security provides daily reports on infrastructure, offering information on “critical infrastructure issues”. Each report is “divided by the critical infrastructure sectors and key assets defined in the National Infrastructure Protection Plan“. The DHS archives the reports for the last ten days, and makes each report available in PDF format. February 3rd, [...]

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Digg this test

Tuesday, January 25th, 2011

HEY THIS IS A TEST.

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Guest on The Infra Blog: Petra Todorovich, Director of America 2050 at Regional Plan Association, Discusses New High-Speed Rail Report

Monday, January 17th, 2011

Petra Todorovich is Director of America 2050, a national urban planning initiative to develop an infrastructure and growth strategy for the United States. Since its launch in 2005, America 2050 has convened some of the brightest thinkers in the fields of transportation, land use planning, social equity, and urban development to create a compelling vision for America’s future growth.

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Tags: America 2050, High Speed Rail, HSR, Petra Todorovich, Regional Plan Association, RPA, Urban Planning
Posted in Guests on The Infra Blog, High Speed Rail, National, Public Transportation, Rail, The Infra Blog, Uncategorized

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Bridging the Gap: Restoring and Rebuilding the Nation’s Bridges

Wednesday, August 11th, 2010

AMERICAN ASSOCIATION OF STATE HIGHWAY AND TRANSPORTATION OFFICIALS

Almost a year ago, we as a nation were stunned and saddened by the tragic bridge collapse in Minneapolis that took 13 lives, injured 144 others, and disrupted the life of a great city.

In the intervening year we have watched with pride the way in which federal, state, and city transportation agencies, contractors, and construction teams have worked night and day to bring to life a new bridge, unsurpassed in technology and design.

Also in the past year we in the transportation industry have looked even more closely at the safety and sustainability of America’s 590,000 bridges for today and into the future.
This report was developed by the men and women of the state departments of transportation to share that inside look with you.

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Tags: AASHTO, American Association of State Highway and Transit Officials, Bridges, Minneapolis, Minnesota
Posted in Accountability, Aging Infrastructure, Bridges, Funding, Highway, Local, National, Policy, Roads, Smart Growth, Transit, Uncategorized, Urban Planning

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More Americans prefer transportation tolls than taxes, other funding options

Wednesday, August 4th, 2010

HNTB CORPORATION
Despite a growing awareness that America’s aging network of highways, bridges and tunnels is in failing health, huge roadblocks are preventing Congressional action on a new national transportation bill: the lack of adequate funding sources and consensus on a vision that helps plan, prioritize and pay for U.S. infrastructure. A new America THINKS survey from HNTB Corporation suggests the answer may lie in a modern version of a solution that financed this country’s roads and bridges prior to the advent of a national gas tax more than 50 years ago: tolling.

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Tags: America THINKS, HNTB Corporation, Kansas City, Missouri, MO, Tax, Tolls
Posted in Aging Infrastructure, Bridges, Carbon Tax, Highway, Infra Views, Local, National, Policy, Public Opinion, Roads, Tax, Transit, Uncategorized

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What does the FREIGHT Act really mean for our freights and ports?

Tuesday, August 3rd, 2010

TRANSPORTATION FOR AMERICA
By Stephen Lee Davis
So if a port is congested or wants to expand, there’s little available federal money to spend directly on rail or any other mode. Your choices are highways or highways. When a state or port does spend to improve operations, there is no accountability to make sure they’re actually reducing port/freight congestion, moving freight faster, or reducing air pollution in surrounding communities — a significant issue of environmental justice.

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Tags: Cantwell, Freight Act, Lautenberg, Murray, PORT, T4America, Transportation for America
Posted in Aging Infrastructure, Infra Views, Inland Waterways, National, Policy, Seaports, Uncategorized

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Solar and Nuclear Costs — The Historic Crossover: Solar Energy is Now the Better Buy

Thursday, July 29th, 2010

NC WARN: WASTE AWARENESS & REDUCTION NETWORK

Solar photovoltaic system costs have fallen steadily for decades. They are projected to fall even farther over the next 10 years. Meanwhile, projected costs for construction of new nuclear plants have risen steadily over the last decade, and they continue to rise. In the past year, the lines have crossed in North Carolina. Electricity from new solar installations is now cheaper than electricity from proposed new nuclear plants.

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Tags: cost comparison, Duke, Duke University, John O. Blackburn, NC, NC WARN, North Carolina, nuclear, Sam Cunningham, Solar, Waste Awareness & Reduction Network
Posted in Energy, Funding, Infra Views, Local, National, Policy, Sustainability, Uncategorized

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RENEWABLE ENERGY – MEETING THE GOAL: A PROGRESS REPORT

Wednesday, July 7th, 2010

25 x ’25
The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 – also called the stimulus package – included $37.5 billion for renewable energy and energy efficiency programs. However, the expiration of a critical production tax credit has depressed the production of biodiesel from soybeans and other farm products, and Congress has not yet adopted comprehensive energy and climate legislation that will establish a long-term national energy plan to guide America’s transition to a cleaner and more secure energy future.

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Tags: 25x'25, America's Energy Future, American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, ARRA, Clean Energy, Energy, Energy Independence and Security Act
Posted in Clean Air, Climate Change, Congestion, Economic Stimulus, Energy, Environment, Green, Infra Views, Jobs, Policy, Pollution, Sustainability, Uncategorized

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