Creating Livable Communities: A Primer on the Federal New Starts/Small Starts Transit Program
Wednesday, March 10, 2010 3:00 PM - 4:00 PM EST 

The $2 billion Federal Transit Administration New Starts and Small Starts programs provide critical funding to support new transit investment in communities including street cars, buses, and light rail.

This webinar provides an introduction to this important federal transit program, including:

How to develop a project for federal approval

How to advance social equity and environmental sustainability goals

What the recently announced FTA policy changes mean for promoting livable communities at the local and regional levels

The webinar will feature FTA Deputy Administrator Therese McMillan and local transportation advocate Jim Erkel, Minnesota Center for Environmental Advocacy

Today’s equity news.

“Administration Loosens Purse Strings for Transit Projects,” -  The New York Times

WASHINGTON — The Obama administration will make it easier for cities and states to spend federal money on public transit projects, and particularly on the light-rail systems that have become popular in recent years, Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood said Wednesday.

Administration officials said they were reversing guidelines put in place by the Bush administration that called for evaluating new transit projects largely by how much they cost and how much travel time they would save.

 “White House: Stimulus saved 2 million jobs,” -  Reuters
Obama has called for more measures to boost $787 billion package

WASHINGTON - President Barack Obama’s emergency spending measures last year saved up to 2 million U.S. jobs, the White House said on Wednesday, but it warned that the outlook for the economy remained uncertain.

Obama, anxious to reduce double-digit U.S. unemployment which has dented his popularity, has already called for additional government measures to boost jobs on top of the $787 billion stimulus package he signed in February 2009.

“Americans are fat, study says, but not getting fatter,” - Mercury News

Americans are fat, but at least they’re not getting fatter.

Sixty-eight percent of Americans are overweight or obese, but that number hasn’t changed much in the last decade, according to a team of doctors Wednesday in two studies in the Journal of the American Medical Association.

The 775-page transportation authorization bill introduced in the House this week, offers a broad, reform-minded framework for fixing our nation’s transportation system. However, more must be done to ensure an equitable, smart, and green transportation system that provides real, affordable options for all Americans.
To help you stay abreast of the transportation authorization, we are hosting a conference call on Friday June 26th from 2:30 to 3:30 pm EST (11:30 am to 12:30 pm PDT), where PolicyLink, Transportation for America, and the Transportation Equity Network will break down the equity opportunities in the new transportation authorization bill.

To RSVP for the call, visit http://www.PolicyLink.org/AnEquitableFuture

“This bill provides a promising foundation for real transportation reform in America, but we must do more to ensure this bill promotes true access to opportunity for lower-income people and communities of color,” said Radhika Fox, PolicyLink Federal Policy Director. “While the House bill includes some positive provisions, more work needs to be done to ensure that this $450 billion dollar investment creates communities of opportunity for all Americans.”

We need far more detail, for instance, on whether low-income people and people of color will have meaningful access to good jobs and job training programs in the transportation sector. Most of the sections of the bill that cover these issues are blank with details “to be supplied.” In addition, we need stronger provisions to make sure cities and regions can use federal transportation resources to help cash-strapped transit agencies with support for the costs of current operations, not just capital construction.

The foundation for much-needed reform is in place, but the hard work of hammering out the details to ensure our nation’s under-served communities benefit still remains. PolicyLink stands ready to support members of the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee and House leadership to craft a transformative bill that will foster equity and inclusion in America.

We also encourage you to visit the Transportation for America and Transportation Equity Network for more information.

With the release this week of the 775-page transportation re-authorization bill, the starting gun has officially sounded on the effort to create real transportation reform in America.

During a conference call Friday, June 26, from 2:30-3:30 pm EDT (11:30 am to 12:30 pm PDT), we will break down the equity opportunities in the new transportation authorization bill introduced in Congress this week – which could include billions in funding for low-income communities and communities of color.

RSVP for the call here

Panelists will include:

• Radhika Fox, Federal Policy Director, PolicyLink
• James Corless, Director, Transportation for America
• Laura Barrett, National Policy Director, Transportation Equity Network

The folks at Transportation4America aren’t afraid to be blunt. Their new micro-site, www.mycommutesucks.org, is a great way to show how smart transit policies can end the vicious tyranny of the long commute. Check it out…and in the meantime, watch this tender love story:

The Obama Administration’s First 100 Days laid some vital groundwork for a more just, more vibrant, and more equitable America. But the change has only just begun.

America needs a movement to make sure all people can live in communities of opportunity - with access to quality jobs, good schools, and affordable, healthy neighborhoods. PolicyLink wants to work with you to build that movement.

What do you think Obama should focus on now that the First 100 Days are history?

Share your ideas and hopes in the comments.

Alongside the likes of Robert Reich, Grover Norquist and Dan Savage, PolicyLink CEO Angela Glover Blackwell took to the virtual pages of Salon to give President Obama a grade for his First 100 Days. It’s worth checking out the entire piece, but here is Angela’s take:

ANGELA GLOVER BLACKWELL, author and chief executive officer of PolicyLink

Economy: B+
Foreign policy/national security: A-
Overall: A-

The $787 billion stimulus package was an enormous step forward in strengthening the social safety net and building a foundation for real, sustainable economic growth in all our communities.

However, I would like to see a greater focus on communities that have been hit “first and worst” by this crisis — low-income communities and communities of color. By empowering mayors and community groups to take control of their own recovery — rather than centralizing power in the hands of governors — the recovery could truly harness the ideas, talents and innovations of all our people.

These vulnerable communities must be considered in every recovery discussion. They have, for instance, suffered disproportionately from foreclosure, disinvestment and lack of access to banking services, yet they have been totally absent from the conversations about the trillions of dollars that have flowed to the banking industry.

Though I lead a domestic policy organization, I know our national security depends on Americans feeling they have a voice in their government and other nations feeling they are being seen and heard by a fair, engaged America. Barack Obama’s commitment to listening and bringing all sides to the table has enhanced our security both here and abroad.

The Obama administration should be commended for their commitment to soliciting and pursuing smart, innovative, proven and equitable public policies. But there is still more he can do to help lead a equitable economic recovery. The White House seems ready to move this nation in a truly inclusive direction … now what they need is the full support of Congress.

What grades do you think Obama deserves for his First 100 Days? Tell us in the comments.

With all this stimulus news going around, we not only have to comprehend what “a trillion” really means, but also try to track just where all this money is going. ProPublica, a non profit newsroom, offers some powerful visualizations of what sectors make out the best in the current stimulus bill :

They also produced a map showing the pretty obvious inverse relationship between per-capita infrastructure spending and jobless rates…the higher the per-capita spending, the lower the unemployment rate:

Pro Publica used a very interesting tool to make these graphics and maps. Many Eyes, IBM’s stab at “democratizing information”, allows anyone to “visualize” complex data sets. And just like a YouTube video, these can be embedded into sites and blog posts (like we’ve done here). But there is a deeper dimension to this tool. The data you used gets added to the pool of data available to other map makers. Yours may be on infrastructure. But your data is now available to someone working on a health or education visual. So by using this tool, you’ve not only met your immediate objective (creating a map or diagram), you are helping meet your overall objective…adding to the larger community’s understanding and knowledge base.

More visuals: US Layoffs by Industry and Corporation and Green Jobs.

Cross-posted on the Huffington Post.

Grim, yet hopeful. Constrained, yet honest. President-elect Obama’s gripping recovery press conference today promised, in his words, a “clean break from a troubled past.”

Let’s hope so. Central to a clean break must be an emphasis on recovery for all Americans, not the just usual beneficiaries. This means a direct focus on the poor, the vulnerable and people of color who have not been able to participate for some time.

If we invest this money differently, this package can be the “new and hopeful beginning for America” that Obama called for.

More info (and video of the speech) after the jump…

(more…)

The good folks at the Transportation for America blog posted a two-page letter from President-elect Obama about the role of transit in rebuilding America (Obama was responding to a pro-transit petition circulated by T4A in the run-up to the final presidential debate — about 3,300 people signed it…maybe you?).

PolicyLink has been working with T4A for a while now to show how smart, targeted transit investments could play a vital role in spreading opportunity to communities throughout America.

You can visit the T4A blog to read the whole letter, but here’s a quick taste:

You’ve hit on one of the central challenges facing America now - how to convert this moment of crisis into a moment of opportunity. And I think you’ve identified an important part of the answer as well. Our economy is slowing down, we need to stimulate it. Jobs are disappearing; we need to create new ones. At the same time, our infrastructure is crumbling and we need to rebuild it.

Now is the time to invest in our future and strengthen our core infrastructure. You said we must build to compete in the global economy and fix what’s broken, and I agree. I’ll put two million more Americans to work rebuilding our crumbling roads, bridges and transit systems - because it is time to build an American infrastructure for the 21st century. Early in this campaign, I had already proposed creating a National Infrastructure Reinvestment Bank, funded with $60 billion over 10 years, to expand and enhance, not replace, existing federal transportation investments. Now, with unemployment rising, these investments are even more important.

Visit Transportation for America for the full letter and more info on how to help rebuild America.