More pain for the poor and sick as #autosprawl dream crumbles

State funding backlog hits public transportation systems: ""Public transportation is the biggest component to keeping our community well-rounded and mobile, and if steps are not taken, it could be detrimental to folks that rely on it, and that is a very scary thing," she said.

Whether they use the service to take them to dialysis treatment three times a week or commute to work or school, cutting services or shutting down would have an immensely adverse impact to passengers, she said."

StarTran offering free bus rides through November

dailynebraskan.com: "Because the bus services are already free for UNL students with bus passes, the free rides don’t affect students as much as non-students. Prauner said he hopes the free rides can help encourage more non-students to ride buses.

Students who were aware of the free bus rides noticed an increase in passengers."

Sprawled-out America finding transportation to be a problem

omaha.com: "“There is general support for public transportation,” she said. “People want it to be accessible, they want it to meet the needs of employers, they want connectivity to major activity areas, they want it affordable and they want it convenient.”

Donahue made her observations while presenting a progress report on a $125,000 study that is being financed by the Nebraska Department of Roads, Sarpy County and all five of the county’s cities.

The study is being conducted by Olsson Associates in partnership with the Metropolitan Area Planning Agency."

Freeport Mayor's View: Pretzel City Area Transit expanding its reach

Freeport Mayor's View: Pretzel City Area Transit expanding its reach: "Recently, Pretzel City has taken on a new dimension – providing transportation to and from work on a contract basis. For three months now, United Way has had a service contract with the city and senior center to provide transportation to and from Berner Food & Beverage through a partnership known as the E.A.R.N Initiative, or Employment Access Ridership Network. This partnership rose out of Berner’s need for a reliable transportation alternative for employees in order to help reduce absenteeism and lost productivity at the Alfokey plant. This issue was of special importance given Berner’s $70 million expansion, which would add up to another 200 workers. We tend to think that everyone has an automobile in Freeport, but the truth is otherwise. A growing number of residents either walk, bicycle or use public transportation to get where needed. E.A.R.N. provides a reliable means to get to work and back."

The importance of public transportation

Indiana Daily Student: "Even so, buses signify a move toward reducing the effects of individual vehicles zooming around and creating traffic jams. For both environmental and cultural considerations, the U.S. as a whole needs to shift towards improving its public transportation infrastructure.

Sprawling public transportation systems are not always practical for small, dispersed cities, but even some larger metropolises have minimal infrastructure.

Indianapolis is one of a few major cities that lack a central system of public transport.

It might not hurt to put a bug in your representative’s ear, so to speak, about investing in public transit."

No "silver bullet" to fix #publictransit? Only if you continue subsidizing autos

KSMU Radio: "The Task Force created two goal categories, Legislative Priorities and Transportation Champion, noting there’s no “silver bullet” to fix all the transportation problems in the region."

Like Wisconsin, oil trolls have conquered Minnesota

Is this any way to build a transportation system? | NewsCut | Minnesota Public Radio News: "The Legislature, still dominated in the House by non-metro lawmakers, hates light rail, so it stymied attempts to fund Southwest light rail. Negotiations between Republicans and the governor collapsed, requiring the end-around in which counties fund the projects."

CTA president wants more money for all public transportation

qconline.com: "Mr. Carter said parts of Chicago's transit system date back to the 1800s when Grover Cleveland was president. It's the nation's second largest system, providing more than a half billion rides annually in Chicago and 35 suburbs."

"only so many dollars for transportation" - true, so why waste so much on cars?

CJOnline.com: "“There are only so many dollars that can be spent on transportation within this region between now and 2040 and we need to make sure that we’re selecting the right projects so that we can meet the needs of the region,” he said."

This is what is wrong with the framing of transportation funding. Cars are assumed to be paid for. Public transit is an "expense." Actually the opposite is true. Cars are bleeding government budgets dry with all their costs. Public transit actually reduces car miles and thus car costs -- it actually pays for itself.

#Freetransit for Rapid City students "low-hanging fruit"

blackhillsfox : "Allender has proposed amending the RapidRide Transit rates to be free for students in Rapid City.
He says the city has a low graduation rate and low attendance rate and believes this proposal would either provide students better access to school or eliminate one more excuse for why students aren't making it to their seats.

Allender says, "This public transportation change is one thing that I consider to be low hanging fruit, an easy, relatively inexpensive change to an existing system, which will give better access to people who need it.""