BAF IN THE NEWS:
Travel Agent Central: Is Travel Industry Grinding to a Halt: U.S. Travel Explores Issue
Due to chronic underinvestment in high-performing transportation modes, policy barriers to connectivity and declining federal revenue, travel in America is slowly grinding to a halt, argues the U.S. Travel Association, who announced it will host travel and transportation leaders November 20 at the Newseum in Washington, D.C. for its inaugural Connecting America Through Travel (CATT) conference…Featured speakers include Joe Scarborough, host of MSNBC's "Morning Joe;" the Hon. Edward G. Rendell, former governor of Pennsylvania and co-chair of Building America's Future; Jonathan M. Tisch, chairman of Loews Hotels and chairman emeritus of U.S. Travel; and Rossi Ralenkotter, president and CEO of the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority. The conference will be emceed by Katty Kay, lead anchor for BBC World News America.
NATIONAL NEWS:
The Washington Post: How the federal government shutdown affects travelers
The government shutdown was supposed to be a non-event for travelers, but it didn’t quite turn out that way.
Forbes: 4 Big Reasons Why People Are Giving Up Cars
http://www.forbes.com/sites/michelinemaynard/2013/10/08/4-big-reasons-why-people-are-giving-up-cars/
Ever since the end of World War II, Americans shared a similar aspiration: to own an automobile. But shifts in demographics and lifestyles mean that for the first time in 50 years, the number of families without a car has gone up.
DC Streets Blog: U.S. DOT Still Has Time to Get MAP-21 Performance Measures Right
Many transportation reform advocates were disappointed in the performance measures included in MAP-21, which was signed into law in July 2012. They weren’t tied to funding, they gave states and localities too much leeway to set their own performance targets, and they measured the wrong things. But there’s still a chance for them to get much stronger.
PR Newswire: Press Release: Amtrak Sets Ridership Record And Moves The Nation's Economy Forward
WASHINGTON, Oct. 14, 2013 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Amtrak carried a record 31.6 million passengers in Fiscal Year 2013, delivering nationwide benefits, providing vital transportation services, advancing America's economy and demonstrating the value and convenience of the national passenger rail network. It is the tenth ridership record in 11 years.
STATE NEWS:
San Francisco Chronicle: Shutdown threatens California transportation future
California is once again facing a transportation funding crisis. Gas tax revenues are declining, and, with the looming sunset of the Proposition 1B bond program, money for transportation in this state will diminish drastically.
The New York Times: Bay Area Transit System Strike Is Postponed a Day
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/10/15/us/bay-area-transit-system-strike.html
SAN FRANCISCO — A strike deadline for employees of the Bay Area’s main commuter railroad was postponed another day on Sunday night after labor, which had brought the two sides close to a deal, apparently reached an impasse.
Associated Press: Experts: more I-94 lanes not best congestion fix
http://www.seattlepi.com/news/article/Experts-more-I-94-lanes-not-best-congestion-fix-4892686.php
ST. CLOUD, Minn. (AP) — Solving chronic traffic congestion on Interstate 94 between the Twin Cities and St. Cloud is not likely to be as simple as adding additional lanes.
The Philadelphia Inquirer: Moment of truth for transportation funding
HARRISBURG - The coming week could determine the fate of billions of dollars in new funding for roads, bridges, and mass transit in Pennsylvania. Republicans who control the House of Representatives have been working behind the scenes with Democratic colleagues and the Corbett administration to negotiate a transportation funding plan with enough support to finally pass the chamber.
http://www.newsobserver.com/2013/10/13/3279505/nc-dot-will-air-multi-color-options.html
RALEIGH — Residents in southern and eastern Wake County will gather around around big wall maps at three public meetings this week to see how close their houses are to a multi-color variety of possible routes for extending the 540 Outer Loop from Holly Springs to Garner and Knightdale.
Los Angeles Times: Mass transit, meet LAX. Maybe.
http://www.latimes.com/opinion/editorials/la-ed-airport-20131012,0,4904939.story
What do travelers arriving at Los Angeles International Airport want to see on their way to baggage claim? Mayoral candidate Eric Garcetti said he knew: Disney characters. Mickey and Minnie, Donald and Goofy, maybe even Chip and Dale. Because they were created here. They are Los Angeles. They'd tell you that you had arrived.
ABC 7: NJ Transit resumes full service for first time since Sandy
http://abclocal.go.com/wabc/story?section=news/local/new_jersey&id=9285070
NEWARK (WABC) -- New Jersey Transit is resuming regular service for the first time since Superstorm Sandy.
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette: Bus-free Downtown Pittsburgh core on hold
A project to reroute buses in Downtown Pittsburgh, moving them away from the center of town, goes back to March 2012, when the Port Authority quietly amended a contract to include a study of how that might be done.
The Washington Post: Paying to build, operate and maintain a light-rail Purple Line
Maryland transportation officials say the financial plan for building a $2.2 billion Purple Line between Bethesda and New Carrollton is still fluid. However, these are some potential sources of construction money:
Wall Street Journal: A Slowdown on the Road to Recovery
Decaying Bridges, Highways Raise Costs for Truckers, Manufacturers
By BOB TITA
Oct. 13, 2013
A span on the Leo Frigo Memorial Bridge in Green Bay, Wis., buckled in September. Associated Press
America's road to recovery may face a costly detour due to a fraying transportation network.
One in nine of the country's 607,380 bridges are structurally deficient and 42% of the country's major urban highways are congested, according to an American Society of Civil Engineers estimate, the result of years of inadequate funding and deferred maintenance.
Trucks ship the bulk of the country's goods. But trucking companies and their customers complain those shipments are being rerouted—sometimes by hundreds of miles—or traveling at lower speeds over deteriorating or traffic-clogged highways. That causes higher costs for fuel, maintenance and other expenses, including drivers.
In some cases, the higher transportation costs end up on consumers. "We try to price our products to what our costs are," said Donald Maier , senior vice president of global operations for Lancaster, Pa.-based Armstrong World Industries Inc., AWI -1.84% which makes floor and ceiling tiles.
He said fully loaded truck trailers traveling to or from its Marietta, Pa., ceiling tile plant will have to use a 25-mile detour, mostly to avoid a two-lane state highway bridge over a tributary of the Susquehanna River that will no longer be rated to accommodate fully loaded heavy-duty trucks.
Armstrong projects the additional miles will add about $200,000 to $300,000 a year to the Marietta plant's transportation costs.
"These costs will get passed on to our distributors and it's a cost that will get passed on to the consumers too," Mr. Maier said.
The burden is greatest in industries and regions where heavy loads are the norm, such as steel, energy, construction and automotive. But the impact percolates through the broader economy as well. Inadequate surface transportation is projected to cost U.S. businesses $430 billion more in operating expenses by 2020 and cause $1.7 trillion in lost sales opportunities, according to the ASCE.
"Having a transportation system that becomes less efficient hurts our ability to compete," said David Ellis. , a research scientist for the Texas A&M University's Transportation Institute. The institute's primary funding comes from contracts with state agencies and private companies.
Federal funding for highways and bridges isn't affected by the federal government's shutdown. But additional repair monies after next year aren't assured: Supporters of an increase in the federal motor fuel tax face opponents who view higher fuel taxes as an unnecessary burden.
The U.S. hasn't raised the federal fuel tax for 20 years and many states also have been reluctant to raise taxes on fuel or vehicle registration fees, prompting drastic tactics to manage stretched funds.
"One thing we don't factor in our investments is a decline in state-owned transportation infrastructure, but it could become a huge issue," said Dave Strobel , senior vice president of global operations for Carpenter Technology Corp., a Wyomissing, Pa., maker of alloys and metals for aerospace, energy and medical industries.
The company has six plants spread across Pennsylvania, where one in four bridges is structurally deficient—the highest in the nation. The state Department of Transportation recently lowered weight limits on more than 1,000 bridges dotting the state to reduce wear and extend their service. As a result those bridges could be off-limits to big trucks and trailers.
Mr. Strobel is concerned the restrictions will result in circuitous routes and make it more difficult and expensive to directly transport ingots from a plant in Reading and another recently acquired near Latrobe, Pa., to a new mill in Alabama.
Bob Wilson , the owner of Bob Wilson Trucking, 20-truck fleet based in Smithton, Pa., figures the restricted bridges will add 100 miles to a 600-mile trip from Pittsburgh to Boston, increasing the cost of that trip by 10% to $1,100 from $1,000. About 80 cents of each extra dollar is for fuel with the remainder going for tolls, the driver and truck maintenance. Mr. Wilson anticipates he will be able to recover some, but not all, of the additional cost from his customers.
Not every company can pass on the costs. Safety-Kleen Inc. has a motor oil recycling plant in an industrial corridor in East Chicago, Ind., that includes a refinery for oil company BP BP.LN +0.49% PLC and a mill for steelmaker ArcelorMittal SA MT +2.35% . Last year, the state demolished a 1.25-mile long bridge that twisted through the corridor, saying it was too expensive to replace and too deteriorated to remain open.
Safety-Kleen said since the bridge's removal traffic has flooded onto surface streets, creating bottlenecks that add 15 minutes to each tank truck coming to or leaving the East Chicago plant.
Safety-Kleen estimates the extra time is costing the company $250,000 a year.
"These are costs that we can't pass along in our finished product prices. It just means lower margins," said Mike Ebert, vice president of re-refining operations, noting that Safety-Kleen's prices are derived from the price of crude oil and can't easily be raised to cover higher transportation expenses. Local officials want a private company to build, own and operate a new bridge that would be a toll road.
http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424127887324807704579087332770323224
Wall Street Journal: For Truckers, It's Time to Step On the Gas
By SPENCER JAKAB
October 13, 2013
The "Truckers Ride for the Constitution" that threatened to gum up traffic in the capital was a dud as of Friday afternoon. Police in the Washington, D.C., area estimated that perhaps 30 big rigs took part, not the thousands predicted. It is a far cry from the fictitious, mile-long challenge to authority in the 1978 film "Convoy."
Perhaps everyone is just too busy: Capacity utilization in the U.S. trucking industry is about 95% these days. This has translated into a healthy, if unspectacular, increase in volume, which is buoying the profitability of large trucking lines. J.B. Hunt JBHT +2.51% Transportation Services Inc. reports third-quarter earnings Monday, and analysts predict an increase in earnings per share to 78 cents versus 65 cents a year earlier. Revenue is seen rising 11.5%.
But truckers could be doing even better. For now, customers are able to find the trucks they need and negotiate good prices, says Rosalyn Wilson, a senior analyst covering the logistics industry for Delcan Corp. "It's amazing to me that truck rates haven't risen more," she says.
Perhaps they soon will. The Cass Freight Index, which tracks U.S. freight-shipping activity, points to a strengthening business environment. Expenditures on shipping were up 5.2% in September from a year earlier, and volumes rose 0.1%. The modest volume increase was the first increase during the peak shipping season since the recession.
A particular bright spot may be intermodal—from which J.B. Hunt gets about three-quarters of its operating income. The intermodal business involves container units that are shifted between different forms of transport such as ships, trains and trucks.
In the second quarter, J.B. Hunt's operating income from intermodal services rose 19% and there are signs the segment was strong in the third quarter, too. The Association of American Railroads reported that intermodal traffic for the week through Oct. 5 was up 6.2% year on year, the 14th consecutive weekly climb. Year-to-date volumes are up by 3.7%.
Unless the government shutdown halted the trend, demand for trucking will have to spur more supply or higher prices soon—likely both. It is a good situation for trucking firms, if only they could be a bit more assertive.
Where's Kris Kristofferson when you need him?
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702304500404579129842511074848.html
Politico Morning Transportation
By Adam Snider | 10/14/13
Featuring Kevin Robillard and Kathryn A. Wolfe
NEW AMTRAK RIDERSHIP RECORD: The passenger railroad announces a new all-time ridership high today, the tenth record in 11 years. Today’s figure will top the 31.2 million passengers that rode Amtrak in the last fiscal year. Amtrak President and CEO Joe Boardman goes on C-SPAN’s “Washington Journal” at 9:15 a.m. to talk about it — stay tuned to http://bit.ly/15Ap0kZ for the official figures that are out this morning.
HERE WE GO AGAIN: The more things change, the more they stay the same. Infrastructure advocates are once again looking at high-level budget talks as a way to direct some extra money to transportation infrastructure. Despite a hearty backing from the Simpson-Bowles report a few years back, a gas tax hike or other infrastructure fees haven’t found their way into law yet. But now Sen. Lindsey Graham is talking about a plan to boost infrastructure coffers with a repatriation tax — Rand Paul had a similar idea and offered an amendment to the THUD bill — and infrastructure could definitely be a part of a broad budget deal if lawmakers actually get that far. MT checked in with a few T&I Democrats on the issue.
T&I ranking member Nick Rahall: The West Virginian said infrastructure in a budget package is “possible” and “doable”: “The only way we’re really going to get a good, robust funding for infrastructure is part of some grander bargain in which infrastructure doesn’t have a red flag on its back so it can get through here. Certainly it’s a need — it’s the biggest need our country has.” Rahall also relayed a tale of progress that shows why politics makes infrastructure funding so tricky: “I’m not advocating a gas tax. But the fact is when I said two years ago that all options ought to be on the table, I got hit over the head by the speaker, who sent out a press release accusing me of being a tax and spend liberal Democrat. And now Chairman Bill Shuster is saying the same thing and the speaker’s not opening his mouth. That’s progress in this town. That’s a good thing.”
Rep. John Garamendi: The former California lieutenant governor wants a free and open discussion of all the ways to boost infrastructure funding. “I think it needs to be considered. In fact, I think we ought to be conducting a series of hearings about the options. There are four or five different options that are out there on financing transportation — put them out there. Let us and let the public understand what these options are,” he told MT. But when it comes to options off the table, Garamendi echoed something that MT hears fairly often: “It’s going to be awfully hard to rely on the general fund for infrastructure.”
SHUTDOWN DAY 14. Thanks for reading POLITICO’s Morning Transportation, your daily tipsheet on trains, planes, automobiles and ports. It was 66 years ago today that Air Force pilot Chuck Yeager became the first person to break the sound barrier, flying an experimental X-1 plane that was dropped from the bomb doors of a B-29 in Southern California before getting up to 662 mph. Six years later, Yeager flew at 1,650 mph; the current record was set in 1967 — an astonishing 4,520 mph (Mach 6.7). Hit me up with a good sonic boom: asnider@politico.com. And follow on Twitter: @AdamKSnider and @Morning_Transpo.
“Counting sheep and a couple regrets as cars drive by …” http://bit.ly/GOz0yg
BELTWAY BUST: A few truckers might have ridden for the Constitution on the Beltway this past weekend, but they sure didn’t shut down America, much less cause significant havoc on the D.C. area’s well-traveled ring road. The closest we got to a traffic standstill was at 8:50 a.m. on Friday, when four trucks began driving side-by-side on the northbound lanes of the Beltway’s inner loop and slowed traffic to 15 mph. Police officers stopped the trucks and warned them not to impede traffic. They did not issue a ticket. One picture making the rounds on Twitter wasn’t even from the event (http://wapo.st/190UIIA). Kevin rounds it all up in his story: http://politi.co/17oeHhx
**A message from POWERJobs: New jobs on our radar this week: System Design & Integration Specialist at Boeing, Integrated Network Engineer at METRO and Account Manager, Research at DCI Group. Interested? Apply to these jobs and more at www.POWERJobs.com; finally, a career site made for YOU!**
SHUT DOWN THE SHUTDOWN: NTSB Chair Deborah Hersman outlined just how badly her agency has been crippled by the shutdown at Friday’s Senate Commerce hearing. Though the vast majority of NTSB's employees are furloughed, she assured senators that the agency is ready to respond in the event of a “major transportation accident.” But even then, the agency isn’t at full strength. “Our furloughed employees are prepared to resume their roles as transportation safety investigators to collect perishable evidence and issue urgent safety recommendations only,” she said. “However, you should know that the investigations would be just that: very limited.” NTSB has had to skip a number of investigations so far, including the Tesla Model S fire, the Tennessee bus crash that killed six people and several fatal air crashes. Kathryn’s story has more on Hersman’s testimony (http://politico.pro/1fvubIC) or you can read her remarks in full (http://politico.pro/15zP8MS).
Supporting data: As MT promised on Friday, the committee also put out a report on how the shutdown has affected the agencies under its wide jurisdiction: http://1.usa.gov/1akeFYY. And if you’re still thirsting for more, check out Chairman Jay Rockefeller’s statement (http://1.usa.gov/169WJ22) and Aerospace Industries Association President/CEO (and former FAA administrator) Marion Blakey (http://politico.pro/17B0QDO).
SHUTDOWN MAILBAG — Rahall: The top T&I Democrat wrote Speaker John Boehner on Friday to say the shutdown is “having a debilitating effect” on transportation programs, “particularly the safety of our Nation’s transportation and infrastructure systems.” Rahall goes on to request a “simple up-or-down vote” on a clean CR that would reopen the government. If only it were that simple, congressman. Read his letter: http://1.usa.gov/15zQmYF
Aircraft registry: A coalition of aviation groups and business like AIA, Boeing, Rolls Royce and several banks are urging Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx to reopen the FAA’s branch that handles aircraft registrations, saying he already has the authority to bring the employees back to work despite the shutdown. “The operations of the U.S. Registry are vital to protection of human life and property, and represent proper exceptions under the Anti-deficiency Act,” the letter says. Read it: http://politico.pro/190L7l5
Travel industry impact: The U.S. Travel Association has written congressional leadership and the White House about the $152 million in economic activity lost every day thanks to the shutdown. See the congressional letter: http://bit.ly/GTIbgU
Bonus study: It’s not a letter, but the Global Business Travel Association is also sounding the shutdown siren, releasing a survey that found 66 percent of its members say a longer shutdown would hurt business. 59 percent think the same of a government default if the debt ceiling isn’t increased soon. http://bit.ly/GYtcBF
THE AUTOBAHN (SPEED READ)
- US Airways pilot: “Why US Airways-American merger should fly.” Op-ed in USA Today: http://usat.ly/15zYNDo
- California High-Speed Rail Authority argues in court in can begin construction with federal funds first. L.A. Times: http://lat.ms/1ek0Eyu
- Used a Citi Bike in or after a wedding? Tell them! NYT: http://nyti.ms/1gCUwDx (h/t Bob King)
- Maryland AG and gubernatorial candidate Douglas Gansler was a pretty crazy passenger when police drove him around, the Washington Post says... http://wapo.st/1ajZ5MP
- ...but Gansler vocally disputes the allegations in a statement and offers up testimony from officers. NBC Washington: http://bit.ly/17odt5T
- Pilot sets five electric plane records in four weeks. Wired: http://bit.ly/1fvFbG5
THE DAY AHEAD: Noon — The board of directors for the California HSR Authority holds a meeting, including time for public comment. Los Angeles.
THE COUNTDOWN: Surface transportation policy is up in 352 days and FAA policy in 717 days. The mid-term elections are in 386 days. DOT appropriations have been expired for 14 days.
CABOOSE — Star Alliance? The world of codeshare agreements and business alliances can be confusing to those not immersed in the aviation world. This hilarious Onion “news” short has bewildered travelers wondering about the Star Alliance. “What are they, some sort of galactic fighter force? Have we been recruited as footsoldiers for an impending interplanetary war?” one flier asked. http://onion.com/1aChPbI
**A message from POWERJobs: Tap into the power of POWERJOBS for the newest job opportunities in the Washington area from the area’s top employers, including The Boeing Company, TASC, METRO and AARP. Powered by names you trust — POLITICO, WTOP, WJLA/ABC-TV, NewsChannel 8 and Federal News Radio- POWERJOBS is the ultimate career site with more than 2 million job searches and nearly 17,000 applications submitted this year so far. Connect through Facebook or LinkedIn, search jobs by industry and set up job-specific email alerts using www.POWERJobs.com, the site for Washington’s top talent.**
Stories from POLITICO Pro
Hersman: Shutdown hampering NTSB probes
Hersman: Shutdown hampering NTSB probes
By Kathryn A. Wolfe | 10/11/13 1:18 PM EDT
In a rare Friday hearing by the Senate Commerce Committee, the head of the NTSB is expected to call for an end to the shutdown and paint a picture of how it’s hobbled her agency’s safety efforts, including forcing delays to major ongoing investigations.
According to her prepared testimony, NTSB Chairwoman Debbie Hersman will tell senators that her agency has been unable to send investigators to the scene of 13 accidents so far, including one involving a Tesla Model S fire and a horrific church bus crash that killed six and injured 13 others.
In addition, the NTSB has had to suspend activities for 1,300 active investigations, including several high-profile probes.
These include work related to a battery fire on board a Japan Airlines 787 Dreamliner, a UPS plane that crashed and killed both of its pilots, a Southwest Airlines jet whose nose gear collapsed on landing, the collapse of the bridge that carries Interstate 5 over Washington’s Skagit River, and a Metro-North commuter train derailment that injured dozens.
According to her testimony, the ongoing investigation into the Asiana Airlines crash at San Francisco International Airport is not on the list of delayed ongoing investigations, however.
“I urge you to take action to permit the NTSB to resume its critical safety mission,” the text says.
In addition to investigations that have been skipped or halted, NTSB also has had to refuse help to other countries.
According to Hersman’s testimony, during the shutdown NTSB has declined two requests for assistance from foreign governments and one from the State Department. Additionally, it’s been notified about 20 incidents overseas involving U.S.-manufactured aircraft or component parts, which the agency has been unable to send an investigator to assist in.
“During the shutdown, the NTSB has not been able to fully represent U.S. interests in aviation accidents around the world,” she will say.
The shutdown has already forced the postponement of two investigative hearings related to major investigations — including one originally set for Nov. 6 to 7 on the Asiana crash and a hearing on two Metro-North accidents originally set for Oct. 22 to 23.
BAF IN THE NEWS:
Travel Agent Central: Is Travel Industry Grinding to a Halt: U.S. Travel Explores Issue
Due to chronic underinvestment in high-performing transportation modes, policy barriers to connectivity and declining federal revenue, travel in America is slowly grinding to a halt, argues the U.S. Travel Association, who announced it will host travel and transportation leaders November 20 at the Newseum in Washington, D.C. for its inaugural Connecting America Through Travel (CATT) conference…Featured speakers include Joe Scarborough, host of MSNBC's "Morning Joe;" the Hon. Edward G. Rendell, former governor of Pennsylvania and co-chair of Building America's Future; Jonathan M. Tisch, chairman of Loews Hotels and chairman emeritus of U.S. Travel; and Rossi Ralenkotter, president and CEO of the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority. The conference will be emceed by Katty Kay, lead anchor for BBC World News America.