Friday, August 8, 2008

Transportation Daily News August 8

Transit and infrastructure:

 

*Bill fine-tuning rail bonds sent to Assembly -- Legislation designed to give the $10 billion high-speed rail bond measure a better chance of winning voter approval in November easily passed the state Senate Thursday, and is expected to be approved by the Assembly and land on Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's desk next week. SF Chronicle 8/8/08

 

*Bullet train bill backed by governor could derail his veto vow -- High-speed rail legislation – which beefs up oversight and makes rail funding more flexible – must be signed by the end of the day Monday to make the Nov. 4 ballot, according to a deadline given by Secretary of State Debra Bowen. But to sign it, he will have to break his recent pledge to veto all bills until lawmakers agree on a state budget, now 39 days late. Sacramento Bee 8/8/08

 

AB 3034 Passes the Senate -- The Senate amended the bill yesterday to provide more oversight, including a "peer review" committee (see the bill text for details) and mandating that a revised business plan be produced by September 1 - not October 1 as previously suggested. CA High-speed Rail Blog 8/8/08

 

Air travel:

 

Virgin America Celebrates a Successful Virgin Year -- Virgin America, the California-based airline that is making flying good again, today is marking its first year of flying with birthday celebrations for guests and teammates at its home base of San Francisco International Airport (SFO) and across all of its destination city airports. Market Watch 8/8/08

 

Water and ports:

 

*Bill would charge fees at ports for cleaner air -- Cargo shipping companies that send goods through ports in Oakland, Long Beach and Los Angeles would be charged new fees to fund efforts to reduce pollution under a bill approved Tuesday by the state Senate and sent to the governor. SF Chronicle 8/8/08

 

*California Led Nation in Boating Accidents in 2007 -- Accidents happen -- and California’s 964,881 recreational vessels competing for space on the state’s crowded waterways managed to rack up 804 accidents in 2007. That earned the state the dubious honor of ranking first among all the states in the total number of reported accidents for the year. The Log 8/8/08

 

New Underwater Anti-Terrorism Technology to Patrol San Francisco Bay -- Coda Octopus Group, Inc. (OTCBB: CDOC) said today the Company’s Underwater Inspection System™ (UIS), developed in cooperation with the US Coast Guard, has been purchased by the Sheriff’s Office of Contra Costa County, CA. Contra Costa County will be the first on the West Coast to permanently deploy the UIS, developed after the 9/11 attacks to address the need for a new generation of port security technology to respond to underwater threats. IStockAnalyst 8/8/08

 

Bush Signs Clean Boating Act -- In a significant victory for the nation’s 13 million registered recreational boat owners, President George W. Bush on July 29 signed into law the Clean Boating Act of 2008, which permanently restores the long-standing exemption for recreational boats from permitting requirements under the federal Clean Water Act. The Log 8/7/08

 

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