Posted February 3, 2012 by Rob Perks in Living Sustainably, Moving Beyond Oil
The House transportation bill that emerged from various committees this week is getting hammered from all sides. And the media coverage is a testament to the political firestorm that has erupted. Here's a sample of some of this week's headlines: Politico – LaHood:...continued→
Posted February 2, 2012 by Rob Perks in Living Sustainably, Moving Beyond Oil
Sometimes a party can get out of hand. Case in point: The Republican Party in the House of Representatives showed too little self-control by loading up a transportation bill with extreme proposals. The bill would gut environmental safeguards and raid transit...continued→
Posted February 1, 2012 by Rob Perks in Living Sustainably, Moving Beyond Oil
"These bridges and roads are not like trees. They don't grow stronger with age." -- Maryland Gov. Martin O'Malley That's the very apt analogy made by the governor during a recent radio interview, explaining why he wants to raise the state's gas tax, which has...continued→
Posted January 31, 2012 by Rob Perks in Living Sustainably, Moving Beyond Oil
The Republican leadership has the temerity to call this horrible package a jobs bill, but it’s actually a measure that will make it impossible to pass a transportation bill – the one true jobs bill Congress could pass this...continued→
Posted January 29, 2012 by Rob Perks in Living Sustainably, Moving Beyond Oil
On February 2, the ground hog will poke his head out of his hole and see the same old thing: Republicans in Congress pushing their “drill, baby, drill” agenda. That’s right -- only this time, the dirty energy-lovers will attempt...continued→
Posted January 27, 2012 by Rob Perks in Living Sustainably, Moving Beyond Oil
The local headlines have been blunt and brutal. "Miles short on transportation," read one a few days ago. "Empty promises" was today's title. Both of these blistering editorials by the Washington Post point out how little Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell's transportation agenda would accomplish because...continued→
Posted January 24, 2012 by Rob Perks in Living Sustainably, Moving Beyond Oil
When I was born, about four decades ago, roughly half of U.S. oil consumption was attributable to the transportation sector – sucking up 8 million barrels of oil per day. Today, transportation consumes 70% of our oil – guzzling more...continued→
Posted January 17, 2012 by Rob Perks in Living Sustainably, Moving Beyond Oil
A quick update on the state of gas taxes in certain states. I blogged previously about how legislators in Virginia, Maryland and Iowa are trying to confront the challenge of funding their transportation infrastructure needs in the face of fewer federal dollars. [UPDATE: My blog...continued→
Posted January 6, 2012 by Rob Perks in Living Sustainably, Moving Beyond Oil
“Look, people get it. People understand that we have to invest in infrastructure if we want to remain economically competitive...You’ve got to send Congress a permission slip that it’s OK to raise money for infrastructure.” That's what former Gov. Ed...continued→
Posted December 15, 2011 by Rob Perks in Living Sustainably, Moving Beyond Oil
So I'm flipping through the new Rolling Stone issue when I come across this random quote from actor/comedian Joel McHale, who stars in NBC's "Community" and also hosts "The Soup" on E! Network: "It's so crazy that we can't fix our roads and...continued→
Posted December 13, 2011 by Rob Perks in Living Sustainably, Moving Beyond Oil, Solving Global Warming, U.S. Law and Policy
"If transit suddenly ceased operating in any large American city, commuting would become almost impossible. Rush-hour traffic is already horrendous, to the point where in places like Los Angeles and Washington...the rush hour itself has become rush many-hours, even "permanent...continued→
Posted December 9, 2011 by Rob Perks in Living Sustainably, Moving Beyond Oil, U.S. Law and Policy
I've taken pains to poke holes in the reckless and frankly ridiculous House Republican legislative proposal to tie federal transportation funding to expanded oil and gas drilling. Here is my new fact sheet on the issue. But as I've pointed out...continued→
Posted December 9, 2011 by Rob Perks in Living Sustainably, Moving Beyond Oil
Gridlock continues in Congress when it comes to reauthorizing a federal transportation law that fully funds the country's daunting infrastructure needs. At the earliest, nothing will happen on Capitol Hill to move transportation funding forward until the current bill expires...continued→
Posted December 8, 2011 by Rob Perks in Living Sustainably, Moving Beyond Oil
Some of the nation's leading experts and big thinkers on transportation recently gathered in Washington, D.C. to discuss the crisis presented by our nation's deteriorated infrastructure and the challenge of funding needed repairs and improvements. Everyone agreed that the situation is dire. Roughly one-third...continued→
Posted December 2, 2011 by Rob Perks in Living Sustainably, Moving Beyond Oil, U.S. Law and Policy
The North Carolina legislature just narrowly derailed a bill that would have prevented any possible increase in the state's gasoline tax. That's a good thing. By that I mean it's good that the state Senate declined to act on the bill after it...continued→
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