New Jersey Opens Up Round Of Transportation Enhancements

The following originally appeared on the Greater Philadelphia Bicycle News:

While the doomday clock on Transportation Enhancements (TE) is ticking, New Jersey has announced one more round of TE that can fund bicycle and pedestrian projects including Circuit trails.

Funds are available for design, right of way acquisition, and construction. Selection of TE projects involves the participation of civic and environmental groups, the transportation community, and other government organizations such as the state’s Metropolitan Planning Organizations. The solicitation letter from Commissioner James Simpson invites those with construction-ready projects.

The application deadline is July 17th. For more information, go to the New Jersey DOT Transportation Enhancements web page.

Correction: Albio Sires sick. Unable to vote on Bike/Ped Amendment

It should have been a tie!

If you checked the latest voting results on the bike/ped amendment from Rails-to-Trails Conservancyas I did. you may have noticed that Congressman Albio Sires' name (NJ 13 District) was nowhere to be found.  Unfortunately, the story coming to WalkBikeJersey straight from Andy Clarke at the League of American Bicyclists was that Congressman Sires was sick today.  As such he was unable to vote on the Bike/Ped amendment proposed by Congressmen Petri (R-WI), Johnson (R-Ill) and Lipinski (D-Ill) that would have to restored the Safe Routes to School and Transportation Enhancements programs in the Transportation bill.  This is contrary to an earlier report from my college here at WalkBikeJersey.

Besides Congressman Sires, Bob Filner (D-CA) also did not vote for some reason.  In all likelihood if they were there, both Democrats would have voted in favor of the amendment to save bike/ped, SRTS and TE funding in the transportation bill. As such it would have been a 29 to 29 tie.

Again we need to thank our own Republican Frank LoBiondo (NJ 1 District - Yeah Frank!) for having the fortitude to cross party lines to do the right thing and vote to save bicycling and walking.  He and the two other Republicans, both of whom sponsored the amendment, voted in favor of this amendment which shows weakness with the Republican position on this issue.

As for Congressman Sires, if you live in his district (Northern Newark, Perth Amboy, HOBOKEN, Jersey City, etc.) wish him well on his illness and just remind him of the importance of biking and walking not only in his VERY urban district but also to New Jersey and the Nation as a whole.

Albio Sires' 13th District

Senate forwards Transport Bill WITHOUT bike/ped funding

The following is written by Tanya Snyder at Streetsblog.DC and is reproduced here due to the importance and urgency of this issue and as she has done a MUCH better job summarizing the issue then I have the time to. 

The Senate Environment and Public Works Committee voted unanimously this morning to pass a two-year transportation reauthorization bill, moving the bill one step closer to passage by the full Senate.

Unlike in the House, where the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee has full responsibility for the transportation bill, the Senate splits jurisdiction among several committees, so the saga isn’t over yet by a long shot. The Senate Banking Committee still needs to consider the transit part of the bill, Commerce will get its hands dirty on the rail portion, and Finance is going to figure out how to pay for the whole thing.

Non-Motorized Transportation Takes a Hit
Rarely have bike and pedestrian safety been so squarely at the center of a Congressional boxing match as during the debate over this bill. The fight over dedicated funding for bike/ped projects – much of it focused on the Transportation Enhancements program – threatened the delicate bipartisan consensus for this bill. What emerged was a compromise that placated even the most hardened TE haters like Sens. James Inhofe and Tom Coburn.

To continue reading this article follow the link to the complete story at Streetsblog.DC.

Also make sure you read Tanya Snyder's second look at the Senate Transportation Bill and why she thinks it's not as bad as it could have been.  Also make sure you read the reaction by Rails-to-Trails' Kevin Mills to Tanya's second article (his is the second comment).  He is not so optimistic.

Rand Paul's Attack On Bike/Ped Funding Defeated In Senate

The below message comes from our friends at the Bicycle Coalition of Greater Philadelphia and was written by Nicholas Mirra.

They attacked again, and again safety and forward thinking prevailed.

Senator Rand Paul (R-Cars)'s plan to scrap the Transportation Enhancements program was defeated Tuesday by a 60-38 vote. Thank you to everyone who contacted your senators and urged them to vote against this backward-thinking, regressive bill.

Unfortunately, this will likely not be the last time members of Congress attack federal funding for bicycling and pedestrian improvements. We will keep you informed so you can help us drag members of Congress, kicking and screaming, into a future where pedestrians and bicyclists are safer.

The Boston Globe has an article about the vote, and some of the misinformation which was fueling arguments for ending the Transportation Enhancements program.

The League of American Bicyclists posted a recap and includes who voted how


[Update: 4:15 pm: A previous version of this post stated that Pennsylvania's two senators voted along party lines. Sen. Casey voted against the measure, and Sen. Toomey voted for it. Party lines, however, is an inaccurate method of recapping the vote. While no Democrats or Independents voted in favor of the bill, seven Republicans and one Independent voted against it. ~NM]

News Flash: "GOP lawmakers spin funding tall tales" about the need to eliminate TE funding

If you haven't heard, there are some Republican Congressmen and Senators who are claiming that Transportation Enhancement (TE) funding, the primary source for bicycle and pedestrian project from the federal government, is driving the US Government broke and causing our nation's bridges and roadways to crumble (read here). 

Well fortunately, the good folks at the League of American Bicyclists have done an excellent job of refuting those claims.  To backing up the League's arguments, Jay Walljasper of the Huffington Post wrote a great piece claiming that federal money on bicycle and pedestrian projects is money well spent. 

Well now there's even more!  An October 31st article by Joan Lowy of the Associated Press essential shreds any remaining credibility of the GOP claims that the TE program is full of wasteful spending.  She even goes as far to say in the title that "GOP lawmakers spin funding tall tales."  You can read the article in full here.

Also check out the Missouri Bicycle and Pedestrian Federations well articulated response to the revelations found in the AP article.  In their response, MOBikePedFed makes the the very astute observation:

The fact check is unusual — every supposedly horrible example of Transportation Enhancements spending is completely debunked. Each example turns out to be either grossly exaggerated or completely misleading. That’s not surprising, because Transportation Enhancements is the single largest source of funding for bicycle and pedestrian funding in the U.S. today, and those projects are important, popular, and much needed.

There are more than enough very good, very needed, projects to crowd out bad projects — and it looks like that is exactly what happened to many of the examples opponents have cited. They were bad and so they were turned down for funding entirely. That’s a sign of a system that is working — but it hasn’t stopped opponents from clogging the media airwaves and the public discourse with these fabricated examples. 

Enhancements funding is used effectively and fills an important need in communities large and small, and ranging from urban to suburban to rural. Bicycle and pedestrian projects are inexpensive, cost-effective, popular with citizens, and well used. We always have plenty of money to build a new freeway through town or add an extra lane so that semi-trucks can get there a few minutes faster. And you’re telling us we can’t put in a sidewalk and a crosswalk on the state highway going through town, so that grandma can get from her home to the grocery store safely?

It's great to read of the TE program and the spending of some of that money on much needed bicycle and pedestrian projects getting so much support. But there is something that you can do.  People for Bikes, an initiative of Bikes Belong, has put together this petition for us all to sign.  Take a minute or two to fill it out!