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Seattle City Council divided over future streetcar lines

A majority of the council's transportation committee said Tuesday they support a sprawling, interconnected network of streetcar lines that would serve Ballard, the University District, Capitol Hill, the Chinatown International District and the downtown waterfront. The idea began to take shape earlier this year, just months after the debut of the new South Lake Union streetcar.

A Costly City Tries Pricing Its Parking by Popularity - NYTimes.com

One strategy for dealing with urban congestion and transportation...

Seattle never 'misses a chance to miss a chance' on light rail

At least two big rail transit measures are on the ballot around the country this November, maybe more. In Seattle, voters will be asked to approve light-rail expansion. And in California, there's a truly transformative measure to build a high-speed rail network. Both will probably fail, both due to the financial crisis but, sadly, also to the pervasive myths and muddled thinking that keep America frozen with an increasingly unworkable 1965 transportation network.

Buses that work!

I was recently in Chicago and found something delightful about riding that city's buses - something I haven't found here in King County riding Metro Transit. Buses there clearly and consistently let you know where you're going. What a concept.

Bike-sharing services roll into the U.S.

Clear Channel Outdoor, an outdoor advertising company, will launch the country's first bike-share service in Washington, D.C., in mid-May in partnership with the district's Department of Transportation. SmartBike DC will initially offer annual subscribers access to 100 bikes at 10 stations in the city's central business district. Other cities, including San Francisco and Chicago, are eager to follow suit.

Sound Transit ridership rose 12.5% in 2007

Sound Transit saw ridership increase 12.5 percent in 2007, compared with a national increase of about 2 percent, according to the American Public Transportation Association, an international organization representing the transit industry.

globeandmail.com: Major part of Canada Line completed

The Canada Line rapid transit project that will run mostly underground between the Vancouver waterfront and the airport reached a major milestone Sunday when a tunnel boring machine broke through the ground into the future site of the Waterfront Station. The breakthrough by the massive, 440-tonne tunnel boring machine was marked by a ceremony attended by Premier Gordon Campbell, several Canada Line officials and the workers who have been on the project.

In Portland, Cultivating a Culture of Two Wheels

Cyclists have long revered Portland for its bicycle-friendly culture and infrastructure, including the network of bike lanes that the city began planning in the early 1970s. Now, riders are helping the city build a cycling economy.

The Road to Clarity

A fascinating, long article about the quest for a more readable font for highway signs.

Travelers Face Frustrations With Passport Rule Changes

The State Department has acknowledged long delays from unprecedented demand after new rules requiring passports for travelers returning from Mexico, Canada and the Caribbean. It expects to announce new measures soon to ease the nationwide crush.

Paying for 'Free' Transit

In British Columbia's Lower Mainland, one of the most expensive places to live in North America, a family travelled from Coquitlam to Vancouver by public transit during spring break. It cost the mother and her three sons $26 in day passes. Even with the higher cost of fuel today, taking the bus and SkyTrain is more expensive than driving for most families. In fact, Vancouver fares for kids and students are the highest in Canada and slated to go up.

Next Door to BC, the Bus Is Free

Have you ever imagined a world where riders of public transit pay no fares, the atmosphere on board every bus is calm and friendly, and all buses not only have bike racks and are wheelchair accessible, but are completely free of advertisements?

Viaduct section settles another quarter inch

The five inches of settlement is still short of the six-inch amount at which the state had determined that repairs were needed, and "if it continues to follow the settlement trends in the past we should be well ahead of the 6-inch limit" by the time repairs start this fall, Coffman said. The state imposed a 10-ton vehicle weight limit on the structure and has restricted heavy trucks to the right-hand lanes in each direction to reduce stress on its cross-beams

Why won't America build high speed rail?

I want one of these...The experimental V150 train, which had two locomotives and extra-large wheels, reached 574.8kph on a specially prepared section of track east of Paris, the French capital.

Mass transit may end up as biggest winner after Seattle's viaduct vote

Amen!