Rail  C⁺

On June 5th, the Phoenix City Council awarded a contract to CycleHop, LLC, to manage the city’s new bike share program that is expected to be rolled out by December 2013. This announcement comes shortly after New York City implemented its own bike sharing program, known as Citi Bike. New York has spread 6,000 bikes [...]

The House Science Committee was quick to take notice of the tragedy that took place in Oklahoma and responded by calling a hearing on less than a week’s notice to review federal efforts to reduce the impacts of windstorms. In addition to the tornado outbreak, the hearing focused on a small government program, the National [...]

In a Monday briefing, representatives from the Association of State Floodplain Managers, National Association of Flood and Stormwater Management Agencies, and the Nature Conservancy gathered to discuss the opportunities in the proposed WRDA bill to reduce flood risks and the potential damages from flood disasters. The nation’s dam and levee system is characterized by low [...]

Today, North Carolina’s civil engineers released a new Infrastructure Report Card. After spending a year diving into the details of the state’s infrastructure – from bridges to beaches to dams – they determined that North Carolina’s infrastructure only deserved a mediocre C grade. Like many areas of the country, North Carolina has some work to [...]

  Members of the Transportation Construction Coalition hit Capitol Hill this morning as a part of the organization’s annual Fly In. With over 500 construction, engineering, and equipment experts coming into Washington DC, the plan it to make Members of Congress understand the dire impact on their states, districts and the National economy if Congress [...]

Today marks the 124th anniversary of the Johnstown Flood, the  the result of the catastrophic failure of the South Fork Dam, which was situated 14 miles upstream of the town of Johnstown, Pennsylvania. The dam failed after a period of heavy rainfall, however it was not properly maintained for years and in fact modified in ways that [...]

As cash-strapped cities and states look for ways to maintain and modernize their infrastructure, a new study suggests that smart growth development can help the bottom line. Recently Smart Growth experts compiled results from 17 studies, showing the revenue potential of “smart growth” development strategies. The new report, Building Better Budgets: A National Examination of [...]

The House Subcommittee on Railroads, Pipelines, and Hazardous Materials heard testimony on Tuesday from witnesses regarding federal subsidies for passenger rail service provided by Amtrak. Over the past few years, Amtrak’s ridership has increased dramatically, increasing the revenue stream, and reducing reliance on federal subsidies. Despite these improvements coming from the Passenger Rail Investment and [...]

Congressman John Delaney today introduced the bipartisan Partnership to Build America Act. The legislation would finance the rebuilding of our country’s transportation, energy, communications, water, and education infrastructure through the creation of the American Infrastructure Fund (AIF) by using repatriated corporate earnings as well as through utilizing public-private partnerships. The AIF would provide loans or [...]

According to civil engineers in Kansas and Missouri, the states have an imperative to improve their inadequate infrastructure systems if they hope to boost their economies. Today marks the release of both the 2013 Report Card for Missouri’s Infrastructure and the 2013 Report Card for Kansas’s Infrastructure. Engineers in each state spent the last year [...]