The Daily Dig

April 14:

• The president and vice president stopped by the DOT to celebrate 2000 stimulus projects and that many of them are coming in cheap, cheap, cheap. (WaPo)
• The president may have been a bit misleading in his language — he suggested that 2000 projects were underway. Not so — they’ve simply been approved. (ABC News)
• A new tax benefit for bicycle commuters has a flaw: it doesn’t help cyclists who also use public transit. (City Room)
• The head of New York’s Dept of Transportation resigns unexpectedly after a lengthy trip to Borneo. (Albany Times Union)
• Eight mid-western governors and the mayor of Chicago are touting the many benefits of a regional high speed rail network. (Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel)
• Funding disputes are delaying the rollout of NextGen — the GPS-based air traffic control network that will replace the ancient and inefficient radar system we use now. (NPR)
• With transit cuts looming for NYC transit, the unregulated and sometimes rowdy “dollar van” may start playing a larger role in Gotham’s transportation mix. (Streets Blog - featuring a thoroughly amusing video)

April 13:

• Projections show that US gasoline consumption dropping 7% this year — part of what looks like a long term trend. (WSJ)
• Schwarzenegger and Rendell urge Obama to take the lead on infrastructure spending. (LAT)
• As a natural compromiser, Ray LaHood is Obama’s go-to Republican. (LAT)
• Boston’s MBTA announces dramatic cuts in service unless the state steps up to cover its losses. (Boston Globe)
• In New York, state senate Republicans are weighing transit cuts in NYC against potential highway funding. (NYT)
• A fantasy photo comparison of an NYC street, before and after it has been redesigned to be friendlier to bikes, transit and pedestrians. (Good)
• Would you prefer to use that $150 in taxes to cover your share of the transporation stimulus or buy a new Wii? (Freakonomics)

April 9:

• As we learned yesterday, the US electrical grid has been infiltrated by hackers. The Pentagon has spent $100 million in the last six months responding to these attacks. Federal regulators are expected to step in soon with tougher security standards. (Washington Post)
• If it failed, Wolf Creek dam in Kentucky could flood Nashville. It and 4,000 other dams need work in the US and the bill would be $50 billion. The stimulus bill allocated $50 million. (CNN)
• The national DOT announced $258 million in funding for airports. JFK in New York is among the recipients, getting $15 million for runway 13R/31L. (Press Release, WIVB)
• Australia is spending $30 billion to build the world’s most ambitious high speed broadband network. It will serve 90 percent of the population at speeds up to 100 mbps. (Independent)
• The Economist is the latest publication to urge caution about US high speed rail. After all, $8 billion won’t get you much these days!
• A chic new hotel opens in Manhattan straddling the High Line, an old elevated train track that is being turned into a green way. (NYT)
• From the Dept of Shocking Revelations: If you ride your bike drunk, you’re more likely to get hurt or killed. (City Room)
• Aggregation is a tough business, baby: a news site gets sucked in by April Fool’s story saying that the US and UK are planning to build a trans-Atlantic bridge. (Construction Contractor)

April 8:

• “Cyberspies” from Russia and China have infiltrated the US electrical grid and could potentially disrupt it in a moment of crisis. Water and sewer systems are also at risk. (WSJ)
• Bids for stimulus projects continue to come in cheaper than expected. An projected $50 million project at Baltimore’s BWI airport will be built for only $42 million. (WaPo)
• The proposed high speed rail link between Orlando and Tampa depends on “connectivity” with SunRail, a planned commuter light rail network — you can’t have one without the other, say local officials and transit advocates. (Orlando Sentinel)
• Construction of the smart grid and the smart broadband network “should go hand in hand,” proposes the Center for American Progress.
• Portland, OR, unveils the design for a new mass-transit only bridge over the Willamette River. (KGW)
• Illinois is spending $500 million in state funds on transit projects, including replacing track on Chicago’s red line and refurbishing stations on the network. (Progressive Railroading)
• Taiwain’s highly touted high speed rail network may be cutting back service because of a heavy debt burden and because the recession has driven down ridership. (China Post)