Transit and infrastructure:
*No one rides for free -- Today will be another Spare the Air Day, but no one will be getting a free ride. Just one day after offering the last free-ride day on public transit in a program running out of money, air pollution regulators called a Spare the Air advisory for today, urging Bay Area residents to minimize driving because of forecasts of unhealthy smog. SJ Mercury 6/20/08
Free rides bring elbow-to-elbow crowds to Caltrain, BART, VTA -- On Bay Area ferries, the counts were staggering: up more than 100 percent on the Golden Gate ferries, from 2,168 daily riders to 4,552 on Thursday. SJ Mercury 6/20/08
BART mug suggestion may whet commuter support -- Intent on overturning BART's ban on drinking in stations and on trains, BART board Director Lynette Sweet put on a demonstration Thursday to show off a travel coffee mug outfitted with a "dead man's trigger" engineered to keep the beverage from spilling even if the person holding it keels over and dies. Moments later she was in search of paper towels and a mop. SF Chronicle 6/20/08
If you can't drive 55, it will cost you -- The best way to save gas is by driving 55 mph, but this is easier said than done. Driving 55 instead of 65 can add 10 miles per gallon to your mileage, according to AAA. Right out of the gate (or, rather, the garage), the main problem in driving 55 mph is the maddening sense of slowness compared to the 65 mph (or faster) many are accustomed to. Contra Costa Times 6/20/08
Support for gas tax hike drops with higher fuel prices -- Rising gas prices have soured support for the idea of imposing a 10-cents-per-gallon gasoline tax in the Bay Area to fight global warming by paying to expand public transit or reduce traffic congestion, according to a new poll by the region's transportation commission. Only 37 percent of the 3,602 people polled in May said they would support or likely support the dime tax if it were placed before them on the ballot, according the Metropolitan Transportation Commission, a nine-county agency. SJ Mercury 6/19/08
Air travel:
*Airport launches giant expansion project -- After eight years of planning, Sacramento officials on Thursday ceremoniously launched what they say may be the county's biggest project ever – a $1.27 billion expansion of Sacramento International Airport. The project will be paid for by airport revenues, including airline fees and rents, parking fees, concession rents and passenger ticket surcharges. Airlines have criticized the project as too large and expensive, and complain the timing is bad. Sacramento Bee 6/20/08
Emissions:
Local agencies get look at new emissions rules -- California's cities, counties and public agencies got an early preview Thursday of the ways they'll be asked to analyze greenhouse gases in new construction projects under the state's first-in-the-nation emission rules. Although actual regulations won't be adopted until 2010, the governor's Office of Planning and Research put out the technical advisory to warn local officials and the development community that the new rules are coming and that they better be ready. SF Chronicle 6/20/08
Shipping:
Bigger Is Better Says Port Of Oakland -- The largest container ship ever to dock in the Port of Oakland set sail Thursday evening. The NYK Vesta is among a new generation of mega-ships and port officials said the Bay area can expect more of them on a weekly basis. Marilyn Sandifur of the Port of Oakland said: "It is a symbol of the benefit of deepening our harbor." KTVu 6/20/08
Rail:
*Bill could create rail department -- High-speed rail and Amtrak would be coordinated by a new state department if legislation proposed Thursday becomes law. Sen. Denise Ducheny, D-San Diego, who chairs the Senate Budget Committee, amended a bill to create a state Department of Railroads to consolidate many of the state's train programs into one agency. Visalia Delta Times 6/20/08
No comments:
Post a Comment