Infrastructure in the News: February 16, 2010

According to Pantagraph the Congress is unlikely to raise gas taxes for road improvements and Climatewire reported that grants for high-speed rail can be seen as an attemt to entice lawmakers spend more on massive public works projects. Find out more about these and other issues in Infrastructure in the News.

National News

Climatewire: High-Speed Rail Cash Lays Congressional Track for Billions More to Follow
...According to an E&E analysis, the passenger rail lines that received stimulus cash go through more than 40 percent of all congressional districts, including those represented by a number of powerful lawmakers that will play a key role in finding the tens of billions of additional dollars thought to be needed to complete the work.  When looked at as a whole, the grants can be seen as an attempt to entice lawmakers to continue to spend on a massive public works project that is still very much in its infancy, even at a time when Washington has one eye firmly focused on the growing national deficit.

National Journal: What Do You Think Of Obama's Transportation Budget Request?
What do you think of the president's fiscal 2011 budget request for DOT? Is the department getting enough money overall? Which transportation funding priorities do you agree with and which ones would you change?

Pantagraph: LaHood: Congress unlikely to raise gas taxes for road improvements
Congress isn't likely to approve raising gas taxes to pay for road improvements, U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood said Friday.  "It's very hard on elected officials to go back to their districts and tell people -- under these economic conditions -- that they are going to raise a gas tax," LaHood said.

State News

Post Gazette: RAND report suggests scrapping gas taxes in favor of per-mile levy
Congress should get rid of fuel taxes and move toward a system that charges road users for the miles they travel, a leading national research organization said Wednesday.

Tennessean: Mayor's big idea for mass transit faces a tough sell
You can't accuse Mayor Karl Dean of being a small thinker.  On the heels of getting approval for a new downtown convention center, pushing changes in public schools and orchestrating a water bill hike to fix Nashville's deteriorating storm water system, the mayor is talking mass transit.  Not just new bus routes or another toe-dipped-in-the-water light rail pilot project. But a serious, long-term, multi-county system that could cost as much as $6.5 billion.

AR Times:  A dream of light rail for Northwest Arkansas
From Spokane to Orlando cities throughout the country are developing passenger light rail. There are at least 30 existing systems and another 40 or so on the boards.  A recent study led by the University of Arkansas Center for Community Development found that Northwest Arkansas is a strong candidate for light rail. The study, which included work by University of Arkansas and Washington University at St. Louis architecture students and design professionals from Minnesota and California, has won two major national design awards.