Getting up to speed, June 24

Good morning, bottleneckers. The big story in transportation this year has been pretty obvious. Will high gas prices finally push Americans into cleaner cars, into funding more mass transit and into better urban planning? Those are the big themes we'll try to explore on this blog and, in that vein, here are some transportation news stories that caught my eye in recent days, along with a little context:

Amtrak ridership is way, way up

Two out of the last three weekends, colleagues of mine have messaged to say they or someone they knew took Amtrak to San Diego and it was packed. Copy editor Steve Eames said a conductor told him there are some weekend trains in which there are 300 more passengers than there are seats. As Steve pointed out, the problem is that Amtrak trains are not really designed for standing passengers -- there are no straps on which to hang, for example. Over the weekend, the New York Times also ran a story about Amtrak's increased ridership and said that some trains are already completely sold out this summer. The story also pointed out that Amtrak only has 632 rail cars at this time, making it difficult to run longer trains. I'm going to talk to Amtrak officials this week and post more about the local situation.

Transit ridership is up everywhere, but so are the costs

There are news stories coming from every corner of the country on the surging number of people using mass transit to avoid the high prices at the pump. Again, though, we return to the question of whether mass transit is ready to absorb this surge in passengers. Maybe not. People are standing on buses in Minneapolis, where the local transit agency is considering a fare hike because of increased fuel costs. If fares go up there and elsewhere, will people still ride or go back to their cars? In Washington state, the same problem exists and reporter Julie Van Pelt, on the Crosscut website, adeptly points out that even a jump in fares likely won't put mass transit in the black. There just isn't enough money dedicated to the service. Sound familiar?

Presidential candidates actually talking about transportation

Back in February, I wrote that the presidential candidates -- at that point, there were still several -- really didn't have much to say about transportation. What a shame, since mobility is so important to our lives. You're not mobile, you're not employable, right? Well, gas prices have changed and suddenly Sen. John McCain and Sen. Barack Obama are tackling the subject, although most of what they have to say involves getting cars to run on something other than oil. My colleagues Cathleen Decker and Michael Finnegan penned a good story in today's paper about McCain's call to allow states to decide if they wanted to pursue more off-shore drilling. Here's an excerpt:

In a visit to Fresno on Monday, McCain did not bring up offshore drilling, instead emphasizing alternative energy sources such as alcohol fuels and announcing a $300-million challenge to develop a more efficient electric car battery. In response to a question, he said he still did not favor drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge because it was pristine. When pressed, he declined to say whether the California coast was any less so, but argued that offshore drilling was safe.

Back at the N.Y. Times, columnist Thomas Friedman wrote what he believes the next president should be saying about oil:

Oil is poisoning our climate and our geopolitics, and here is how we’re going to break our addiction: We’re going to set a floor price of $4.50 a gallon for gasoline and $100 a barrel for oil. And that floor price is going to trigger massive investments in renewable energy -- particularly wind, solar panels and solar thermal. And we’re also going to go on a crash program to dramatically increase energy efficiency, to drive conservation to a whole new level and to build more nuclear power. And I want every Democrat and every Republican to join me in this endeavor.

Thinking about mortality on the freeway

Driving overall may be very safe, but it's hard to ignore the fact that more than 40,000 Americans are killed in vehicle accidents each year -- a number that is sadly tolerated. We've also all had those moments driving when suddenly the end seems near. Denise Hamilton, at L.A. Observed, blogged recently about having a trailer hitch slam into her windshield as she drove on the 5 Freeway. Let me repeat: Her car got hit by an errant trailer hitch. Just typing that is really awful scary. Hamilton wrote:

The next thing I remember is groping my head and face, expecting to feel wet warm viscous fluids, but nope, the stereo’s still playing Tori Amos, the engine is fine, the A/C is blasting and it’s just me and a million pieces of glass and a 15-pound cast-iron trailer hitch, cruising along.

-- Steve Hymon

Comments

[Dan W.]

"So really no mention of helping out transit agencies by the federal government. Well isn't that lovely. They still only know about cars, cars, and more cars."

---------------

We need a paradigm shift from moving "vehicles" to moving people.

Vehicles which move more people per vehicle, such as trains and buses, should receive a higher government priority than single-occupancy automobiles.

[Tony Fernandez]

So really no mention of helping out transit agencies by the federal government. Well isn't that lovely. They still only know about cars, cars, and more cars.

No mention of nuclear power either. Only renewable sources. We have a source of energy right now that is clean and safe, but people only think about the bomb. If we don't want oil, then this is the best way to go.

High-speed rail. Why can't we get a comprehensive national plan for it; it will provide jobs, create less pollution than planes, and will not take up much land. So it will help our economic troubles and lessen our dependence on oil. But I guess that's too crazy of an idea for politicians.

Hey Steve, maybe one day we can have a post about urban planning in LA? I'm sure that you would get tremendous debate in a post like that. It is important in the economy and oil dependence, two big national issues, and is one of the biggest if not the biggest issue in our city.