The vote totals were 359-65 in the House and 83-16 in the Senate. President Obama was expected to sign the legislation today as Passenger Transport went to press. [More]

Blumenauer Addresses APTA High-Speed Rail Policy Forum

Rep. Earl Blumenauer (D-OR), a longtime supporter of high-speed rail and other public transit and sustainability initiatives, addressed a Dec. 2 APTA High-Speed Rail Policy Forum, “Getting to the Tipping Point for High-Speed Rail in the U.S.: The Role of Federal Government in High-Speed and Intercity Rail Development,” at APTA’s offices in Washington, DC. [More]

Welcome to APTA's New Home!

APTA welcomed the public transit community and guests to its new Washington, DC, offices at a gala open house Dec. 2. [More]

Collaboration Task Force Meets

The APTA Task Force on Member Collaboration, created by APTA Chair Valarie J. McCall at the October Annual Meeting when she began her term, met for the first time in early December to prepare its agenda, explore new opportunities and plan specific activities to strengthen collaboration throughout APTA. [More]

Metra Launches Express to Tinley Park

Tinley Park Mayor David Seaman and Metra Executive Director/Chief Executive Officer Don Orseno celebrated the kickoff of Metra’s new evening rush hour express on the Rock Island Line to the Tinley Park/80th Avenue Station on Nov. 30. [More]

Anderson, Acting CEO, Valley Metro

Valley Metro in Phoenix has named Eric Anderson, transportation director with the Maricopa Association of Governments, its acting chief executive officer following the departure of Steve Banta. [More]

Santa Monica's Big Blue Bus To Be Applauded in Paris; Agency Cited for Eco-Friendly Efforts

As Passenger Transport went to press, Santa Monica, CA, Mayor Kevin ­McKeown was preparing for a Dec. 4 presentation at the Paris climate summit highlighting the Big Blue Bus’s efforts to move away from fossil fuel use. [More]

Walk Score: New York Best U.S. Public Transit City in 2016

New York City is the best U.S. city for public transit, according to the 2016 Transit Score ranking released by Walk Score, a subsidiary of the real estate brokerage firm Redfin. [More]

JTA's First Coast Flyer Arrives Dec. 7

As Passenger Transport went to press, the Jacksonville (FL) Transportation Authority was preparing for the Dec. 7 launch of its first BRT service, the First Coast Flyer “Green Line.” [More]

L.A. County 'On Tap': Farecard Provides Seamless Connections

Los Angeles County’s TAP fare collection network is now the largest seamless transportation system in the nation, with all 26 of the county’s public ­transit agencies accepting TAP as a universal fare medium and allowing transfers among all providers. [More]

APTA NEWS

APTA Chair Valarie J. McCall at CUTA Conference, Board Meeting; Says Collaboration Is Key to Success

APTA Chair Valarie J. McCall represented the association and its members at the recent Canadian Urban Transit Association 2015 Fall Conference and Trans-Expo in Montréal, where she stressed the value of collaboration to public transportation. [More]

APTA Wins National Award

APTA and two of its partners, Frank. Strategic ­Marketing and National Trade Productions, have been selected ­winners in the 2015 “Art of the Show” competition conducted by the International Association of Exhibitions and Events (IAEE). [More]

365 Days of Public Transportation

APTA has released its 2016 calendar featuring photos of member public transportation agencies that portray passengers, large-scale events, maintenance operations and stations in various scenarios and settings and illustrating diverse modes. [More]

AROUND THE INDUSTRY

Denver RTD Integrates PTC in Commuter Rail Line to Airport

Denver’s Regional Transportation District (RTD) has begun testing PTC technology on its University of Colorado A Line, which will provide commuter rail service between Denver Union Station and Denver International Airport when it opens in April.  [More]

DOE Report Focuses on VelociRFTA's CNG Use

The U.S. Department of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) recently released a report focusing on the implementation of a compressed natural gas-powered bus fleet as part of operating the Roaring Fork Transportation Authority’s VelociRFTA BRT service in Aspen, CO. [More]

APTA Members Receive Operation Lifesaver Grants

Operation Lifesaver Inc. (OLI) has awarded $148,500 in grants to eight rail public transit agencies in seven states—all APTA members—for public awareness and safety education projects. [More]

BART's Railcars on the Road

The first new railcar in the San Francisco Bay Area Rapid Transit District’s Fleet of the Future is getting prepped for a cross-country journey on a flatbed truck from the Bombardier Transit Corporation plant in Plattsburgh, NY, to BART’s test tracks. [More]

'Taking the A Train' for Billy Strayhorn's Centennial

Vintage subway cars returned to service Nov. 29 to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the birth of Billy Strayhorn, composer of Duke Ellington’s theme song “Take the A Train.” [More]

Industry Briefs

Here are some brief news items from APTA member public transit agencies and businesses. [More]

Remembering Rosa Parks, 60 Years Later; Public Transit Commemorates its Role in Historic Action

Dec. 1 was the 60th anniversary of the day Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat on a bus in Montgomery, AL, leading to a bus boycott and a new phase of the civil rights movement. [More]

COMMENTARY

Who Pays for Roads? How the "Users Pay" Myth Gets in the Way of Solving America's Transportation Problems

Many Americans believe that drivers pay the full cost of the roads they use through gas taxes and other user fees. That has never been true, and it is less true now than at any other point in modern times. [More]

PEOPLE ON THE MOVE

Who's Doing What in the Industry

Passenger Transport announces the following hirings and promotions in public transportation agencies and business members. Items appear in People on the Move in the order in which they are received. [More]