Air travel:
*Landing soon in the Bay Area -- Three foreign carriers plan to launch new service to San Francisco International Airport. Air India, a state-run airline based in Mumbai, plans to launch a San Francisco-Frankfurt-Bangalore flight, possibly in late 2008 or early 2009. Emirates: Based in Dubai, United Arab Emirates; plans daily flight to Dubai, beginning Nov. 20. Kingfisher Airlines: Based in Mumbai; plans a San Francisco-Bangalore flight in the fall. SJ Mercury 6/27/08
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*Foreign airlines lure Bay Area clientele with full frills -- Flying on domestic airlines these days is no frills and often no fun. But for those who fly foreign airlines, it's champagne and tandoori. A new golden era of air travel is being ushered in as foreign airlines arrive in the United States with fresh-off-the-assembly-line airplanes staffed by young crews determined to deliver ritzy service at 35,000 feet. Foreign carriers are legally prohibited from flying domestic routes. But for overseas flights, they are tapping into the Bay Area's large Asian population and the large number of valley tech workers who jet around the world. Weekly flights from San Francisco International Airport to the Asia Pacific region have jumped 40 percent since early 2000, from 255 to 358 in June. SJ Mercury 6/27/08
Airfare comparison sites work to offer 'true pricing' -- Airlines' new fees - from $5 for some aisle seats to $15 for the first piece of checked luggage - are upending the appeal of using Web sites to find the cheapest fares. No longer can travelers unearth the best deals with a few clacks on the keyboard. Now they have to remember which airlines assess which fees and calculate whether the one offering the lowest fare is truly the cheapest. Many airfare comparison sites say they, too, are frustrated by the mishmash of fees that airlines are charging to offset the costs of rising jet fuel. Kayak.com, the country's most-visited travel meta-search engine, is rewriting its airfare-calculating algorithm to give travelers the option of including fees, from checked bags to in-flight food. The Norwalk, Conn., company plans to debut the new menu in mid-July. SJ Mercury 6/27/08
Emissions:
*Board outlines plans to whip greenhouse gases -- California's air board unveiled the nation's most ambitious plan Thursday to require cleaner cars and fuels, energy-efficient buildings and more electricity from the sun and wind to cut greenhouse gases in the state. The 77-page draft plan, the first major step in implementing landmark legislation that requires the state to cut carbon dioxide emissions by 30 percent by 2020, was embraced in varying degrees by environmentalists and industry officials at a hearing in Sacramento. SF Chronicle 6/27/08 CARB Draft
Dan Walters: State risks its economy on global warming fight -- We should be somewhat skeptical of California's latest foray into high-concept politics, Schwarzenegger's crusade to sharply reduce the state's dependence on fossil fuels that will both curb global warming and spark an economic renaissance, the governor promises us with his customary, if often misplaced, sanguinity. Not coincidentally, as the draft plan was released in Sacramento, the governor was in Florida (having flown there on his private, oil-consuming jet) to complain that the United States is "so addicted to oil it will take years to wean ourselves from it" and urge adoption of more aggressive national energy policies. Sacramento Bee 6/27/08
Discouraging driving crucial in warming battle -- A sweeping plan to carry out California's landmark law to fight global warming, made public Thursday by the state's air board, addresses a problem that planning groups say has been overlooked in most federal legislation: suburban sprawl. The idea is to discourage driving by concentrating development in urban areas near transit, jobs and retail or by laying out suburbs more efficiently. For decades, Northern California's growth hasn't followed this dense, urban model. Most development has occurred outside the nine-county Bay Area, according to a report by the San Francisco Planning and Urban Research Association. SF Chronicle 6/27/08
Transit and infrastructure:
*House approves more funds for thriving public transit -- As commuters increasingly turn to bus and rail lines because of soaring gasoline prices, public transit, long the poor relation of American travel, is finally getting respect -- and money. In an effort to make riding bus and rail lines even more appealing, the House on Thursday moved to provide $1.7 billion to help transit agencies pay higher fuel costs, limit fare hikes and expand service. California would receive about $266 million. LA Times 6/27/08
Calif. group says stimulus checks went for gas -- A California consumer group has called for more federal funding for public transportation, saying that most families have already spent their economic stimulus checks on pricey gasoline. The California Public Interest Research Group calculated that an average household has spent more than $1,300 on gasoline since mid-February, when President Bush signed the tax rebate law. Business Week 6/27/08
California's first hydrogen station opened -- The first public hydrogen station in California with integrated hydrogen and gasoline refueling opened Thursday in Los Angeles, as part of the U.S. government's program to test and promote vehicles using alternative energies. The west Los Angeles station, operated by Shell Hydrogen, is the company's third vehicle refueling stations in the United States, after one located in Washington, D.C. and another in New York. Xinhuanet 6/27/08
High-speed rail:
*High-speed rail bond hits detour -- State officers are expected to extend this week's deadline for bullet train legislation until the second week of July, Assemblywoman Cathleen Galgiani said Thursday. Her Assembly Bill 3034 would finalize ballot language for a $10 billion high-speed rail bond going before California voters in November. Modesto Bee 6/27/08
Coast Guard:
Coast Guard Sued to Protect Whales From Ships -- A conservation group has sued the U.S. Coast Guard to protect endangered whales from being hit by ships off California. The Center for Biological Diversity wants the Coast Guard to adhere to Endangered Species Act rules and consult with the National Marine Fisheries Service on how best to protect whales. The Log 6/26/08
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