Transit for Connecticut, TSTC, and several other groups are sponsoring a forum on transportation funding in the state (and not a minute too soon). Emil Frankel of the Bipartisan Policy Center will deliver the keynote; Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro and Commissioner James Redeker will speak as well.

The event will run from 9am-12 on [...]]]>

Transit for Connecticut, TSTC, and several other groups are sponsoring a forum on transportation funding in the state (and not a minute too soon). Emil Frankel of the Bipartisan Policy Center will deliver the keynote; Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro and Commissioner James Redeker will speak as well.

The event will run from 9am-12 on January 20. It’s being held in the state capitol’s Old Judiciary Room.

For more information and to RSVP, click here.

In the spirit of the New Year, TSTC has drawn up a list of resolutions that we’d like to see various transportation officials and elected entities abide by.

Note: all of these quotes are fabricated, unless otherwise noted.

“We resolve to listen to years of community planning and build a [...]]]>

Photo: Elvert Barnes

In the spirit of the New Year, TSTC has drawn up a list of resolutions that we’d like to see various transportation officials and elected entities abide by.

Note: all of these quotes are fabricated, unless otherwise noted.

“We resolve to listen to years of community planning and build a Tappan Zee Bridge that includes bus rapid transit!” —Governor Cuomo and President Obama

“We resolve to repay the MTA after reducing the payroll tax.” —Governor Andrew Cuomo, Senator Majority Leader Dean Skelos, and Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver (actually promised here and here)

“We resolve not to steal any more dedicated transit funds. Fourth time’s the charm.”—New York State Legislature

“I resolve to make the South Bronx healthier, greener, and economically vibrant by replacing the Sheridan Expressway with housing and parks.”—New York State Department of Transportation Commissioner Joan McDonald

“We resolve to pay for transit access to our pleasure dome in the Meadowlands”—Triple Five Worldwide, developers of The American Dream.

“I resolve to walk regularly on dangerous arterial roadways on Long Island.” —NYS DOT Region 10 Director Subi Chakraborti

“We resolve to stand by transportation commissioners who get it right,” —New York City Council

“We resolve to restore funding for New Jersey’s Transit Village program.” —New Jersey Department of Transportation Commissioner James Simpson (not fabricated)

“We resolve to pass a Vulnerable Users Law that penalizes reckless drivers, protects all users of the road, and encourages cycling, walking and livable communities” —Connecticut General Assembly

“We understand that the loss of the transit tax benefit will cost riders hundreds of dollars of year. We resolve to show an understanding about transit’s importance to the economy and the environment by restoring it” —bipartisan coalition of Members of Congress.

“We resolve to start looking at roads in a new way, not just as corridors for cars, but as a public space that should be built to accommodate the needs of all users.” —traffic engineers everywhere

This Friday is the deadline for municipalities to submit letters of interest for the Tri-State Transportation Campaign/One Region Funders’ Group’s Transit-Oriented Development community assistance grant program.

The program provides grants between $10,000 and $50,000 for municipalities interested [...]]]>

Municipalities interested in transit-oriented development: This could be you! (Photo of award ceremony at Stratford, CT.)

This Friday is the deadline for municipalities to submit letters of interest for the Tri-State Transportation Campaign/One Region Funders’ Group’s Transit-Oriented Development community assistance grant program.

The program provides grants between $10,000 and $50,000 for municipalities interested in pursuing equitable transit-oriented development. The grants can be used for planning and public outreach in southwestern Connecticut (Fairfield and New Haven Counties), northern New Jersey (the NJTPA region), Long Island, Westchester County, and New York City.

For more information, download the RFP (request for proposals) on Tri-State’s website or contact Steven Higashide (steven@tstc.org or 212-268-7474).

Looking back at the year in transportation advocacy reveals that there’s a lot to be thankful for:

Safer streets for all in New York State… In one of this year’s most inspirational stories, Long Island mother Sandi Vega became a citizen [...]]]>

The MTA had this message for travelers in the region this year.

Looking back at the year in transportation advocacy reveals that there’s a lot to be thankful for:

Safer streets for all in New York State… In one of this year’s most inspirational stories, Long Island mother Sandi Vega became a citizen champion for complete streets after her daughter was killed while walking to school. Her persistence, and advocacy from dozens of groups across the state, led to the passage of a statewide complete streets law this summer.

… and elsewhere, too. The march of complete streets continued throughout the region, with local complete streets policies, laws, and resolutions passing in Linwood, Frenchtown, Bloomfield, Jersey City, Ridgewood, Maywood, and Point Pleasant, NJ; and Lewis, Lewisboro, and South Hampton, NY (we may have missed some). And a planned highway-to-boulevard conversion of Route 34 in New Haven, CT, is looking more pedestrian and cyclist-friendly these days.

NYC’s livable streets champion keeps on rolling. Let’s not forget New York City, where NYC DOT’s tireless commissioner, Janette Sadik-Khan, keeps rolling out the improvements. This month, the city created its first 20-mph “slow zone” in the Bronx. With the MTA, it brought faster bus service to 34th Street. And the agency is gearing up for what will be the country’s largest bike-sharing system next year.  Who’s excited about that? Apparently everyone.

Strong support for Tappan Zee transit from the Hudson Valley. You might have expected local officials to stay quiet when a “fast tracking” of the Tappan Zee Bridge project was announced by both Governor Cuomo and the White House. That’s exactly the opposite of what happened once people like Westchester County Executive Rob Astorino, Rockland County Executive Scott Vanderhoef, and State Sen. Andrea Stewart-Cousins realized that “fast tracking” meant nothing but dropping existing plans for public transit.

That things weren’t even worse for Long Island Bus riders. As dismal as things look now for bus riders and taxpayers in Nassau County,  they could have been even worse. A funding showdown between Nassau and the MTA meant riders faced the loss of half the system’s routes this summer. Long Island’s State Senate delegation stepped in to make sure service would keep running through the rest of the year.

Forward-looking governance in Connecticut. The Malloy administration has kept its nose to the grindstone in pushing forward the state’s major transit projects, the New Britain-Hartford Bus Rapid Transit and New Haven-Springfield Rail Line. It also released the state’s first-ever transit-oriented-development grants. The Nutmeg State will be better off for it.

TSTC/One Region grants pay off. Speaking of transit-oriented development, the grants we and the One Region Funders’ Group awarded to municipalities in 2009 have been extremely successful. Stratford, CT leveraged its grant to win a $250,000 state grant this year. Babylon, another grantee, won a $2 million federal transportation grant. And both Babylon and Brookhaven, another grantee, were named “transformative” projects by LI’s Regional Economic Development Council.  P.S. We are offering those grants again this year.

That transportation funding made it through the “House of Horrors.” Through spring, summer, and early fall, the constant rhetoric from the House of Representatives was 30% cuts in federal transportation spending — both in the 2012 budget and in the House’s long-term transportation bill. Turkeys don’t often escape the hatchet, but transportation did. The 2012 budget mostly preserved current levels of funds. And so many people decried a long-term funding bill that included serious cuts that the House took them out of that bill, too. Let’s hope the failure of the so-called debt supercommittee doesn’t bring back the axe.

TSTC: Still expanding our reach. This year, we were able to hire our first-ever South Jersey advocate. The hard look we’ve been able to take at dangerous conditions in southern NJ has paid dividends already, earning dangerous roads personal visits from NJDOT Commissioner Jim Simpson and new sidewalks. Many thanks to the foundations which generously support our work — and to readers like you, who helped make our annual benefit in November the best we’ve ever had.

MTR will return on Monday.

Today the Tri-State Transportation Campaign and the One Region Funders’ Group announced they would accept proposals for a second round of their community assistance [...]]]>

Stratford, CT was awarded $50,000 in the initial TSTC/One Region grant program in spring 2009. It was able to build upon that grant, winning a $250,000 state grant this year.

Today the Tri-State Transportation Campaign and the One Region Funders’ Group announced they would accept proposals for a second round of their community assistance grant program to help municipalities develop more equitable, sustainable, and transit-friendly communities. (Download the Request for Proposals here.)

The program intends to encourage transit oriented development, or mixed use development within a half-mile of a train or bus station, by offering financial support to municipalities ready to address the linkages between affordable housing, energy efficiency and equitable development near transit stations. Up to ten small grants will be awarded to communities in downstate New York (specifically Westchester County, Long Island, and New York City), Connecticut (with a preference given to municipalities in Fairfield and New Haven Counties), and northern New Jersey.

The grant initiative builds upon an initial set of philanthropic investments awarded by the One Region Funders’ Group in the spring of 2009. Several projects awarded funding in that initial round of grants have been able to leverage additional state and federal funds. In 2011, Wyandanch Rising (Babylon, NY) received a $2 million federal transportation grant, and Ronkonkoma Hub (Brookhaven, NY) was endorsed by U.S. Senator Charles Schumer. Both were also named “transformative” projects by the Long Island Economic Development Council, and will compete for state economic development funds. Stratford, CT received a $250,000 state TOD grant this year.

Representatives from many of the foundations which make up the One Region Funders’ Group expressed excitement about the program and hope that the successes of the first round would be repeated.

“We’ve seen during this recession that having to rely on a car can cause financial hardship and even price residents out of their neighborhoods,” said Karen Brown, vice president for programs at the Fairfield County Community Foundation. “This grant program will help build places where residents have affordable, convenient housing and transportation choices.”

“Equitable transit oriented development is an integral tool to combat suburban sprawl and stop the destruction of open space,” said Helen Chin, program officer at the Surdna Foundation. “These grants will help create diverse neighborhoods that offer convenient access to jobs, stores, schools, and services for people regardless of their income, race, age, or ability.”

“Investing in our downtowns and around transit hubs keeps dollars on Main Street and keeps the cost of public services low,” said Nicole Chevalier, program director at the Emily Hall Tremaine Foundation. “This program will fund projects that are smart both for the environment and for Connecticut communities’ bottom line.”

“More and more communities have learned that strong downtowns with good transit access help quality of life, and are especially attractive to young people and empty nesters,” said Catherine Marsh, executive director of the Westchester Community Foundation. “This program will strengthen and revitalize our important town centers.”

“These projects form the foundation of the funders’ collaborative work to promote sustainable and equitable development around transit hubs throughout the region,” said Pat Jenny, program director for Community Development and the Environment at the New York Community Trust. “We are interested in repeating the success of the first round of grant in promoting diverse and walkable residential communities.”

“We were proud to award grants to Wyandanch Rising and Ronkonkoma Hub during the first round of grants, two transit oriented development projects that can be game changers for the Long Island region,” said Sol Marie Alfonso-Jones, program officer at the Long Island Community Foundation.  “It is encouraging to see local leaders build upon this investment by winning state and federal grants and endorsements.”

The RFP and press release are available on TSTC’s website.

Image: Stratford, CT.

[Update: We are also excited to announce that NYCDOT Commissioner Janette Sadik-Khan will appear as a special guest.]

The Tri-State Transportation Campaign’s 2011 Annual Benefit is November 3 at Top of the Garden (251 W. 30th Street, 16th floor) in New York City. This year, we will [...]]]>

Sandi Vega and Sen. Charles Fuschillo.

[Update: We are also excited to announce that NYCDOT Commissioner Janette Sadik-Khan will appear as a special guest.]

The Tri-State Transportation Campaign’s 2011 Annual Benefit is November 3 at Top of the Garden (251 W. 30th Street, 16th floor) in New York City. This year, we will honor three champions for safer streets who were instrumental in the successful push for a statewide complete streets law in New York:

Charles Fuschillo, Jr. is the Chairman of the New York State Senate’s Committee on Transportation. Fuschillo introduced state complete streets legislation in the Senate and was one of its strongest elected supporters, fighting for the bill from the day it was introduced until the day it was signed into law by Governor Cuomo. This year, Fuschillo also supported additional funding for Long Island Bus.

Sandi Vega is a self-employed mother of five from Wantagh, NY. Last year, Sandi’s daughter Brittany was killed while crossing one of Long Island’s deadliest roads, Sunrise Highway, on her way to school. In response, Sandi became a citizen champion for a state complete streets law, repeatedly meeting with local and state elected officials and gathering thousands of signatures in support of the law.

AARP New York is the state office of the nationwide membership organization that helps people age 50 and over have independence, choice and control in ways that are beneficial and affordable to them and society as a whole. AARP NY has been a strong proponent of livable communities and complete streets that help older residents “age in place.”

TSTC’s Annual Benefit is one of the region’s premier transportation networking events, and always a great time. Learn more and purchase tickets/ads on our website. Paper invitations will be mailed soon. We hope you can join us!

Statewide, retail vacancies around transit hubs [...]]]> In today’s Star-Ledger, TSTC NJ Advocate Janna Chernetz and General Counsel Vincent Pellecchia write that the disruption caused by Hurricane Irene highlighted the importance of the transit network and the need to invest in the system. But in many ways, New Jersey is going in the opposite direction:

Statewide, retail vacancies around transit hubs are at 14.7 percent compared with 29.7 percent in areas not near such hubs.

But as demand grows for density and compactness, the state cut funding for programs that encourage this type of growth and the transit system that supports it.

In 2004, 49 percent of New Jersey’s transportation construction program was spent on public transportation. Every year since, that percentage has decreased. In 2012, the state will spend 32.9 percent on buses and rail. Commuters are becoming frustratingly aware of what this means for the transportation network: more delays, breakdowns, derailments and cancellations, not to mention more traffic as commuters cram into cars that add to poor road and bridge conditions, congestion and pollution problems.

Increased funding for transit would build more reliability and redundancy into the system and help spur the economy. Not doing so means more traffic on the roads and more of the derailments, electrical problems, and other delay-causing incidents that were plaguing NJ Transit even before the hurricane struck.

The storm also highlighted the importance of transit throughout the region. The closing of NYC’s subway system made global headlines, and heavy damage to Metro-North’s Port Jervis Line has caused great difficulty for those who used it.

The coming privatization of Long Island Bus could be bad news for county bus riders. Although Nassau County will hand over the system to international firm Veolia Transportation within 3 months (the privatization would be effective as of January 1), there are [...]]]>

Hundreds attended a "People's Hearing" on Long Island Bus last month.

The coming privatization of Long Island Bus could be bad news for county bus riders. Although Nassau County will hand over the system to international firm Veolia Transportation within 3 months (the privatization would be effective as of January 1), there are still virtually no details about what service and fares on the new system will be like after the first year.

With bus riders at risk, advocates hosted a “People’s Hearing” last month where riders, business representatives, and elected officials from both parties expressed concerns over the county’s lack of process and how the privatization will affect riders. Advocates have said the county should hold a formal public hearing and support a Nassau Bus Riders’ Bill of Rights, which says that bus riders deserve:

1. The same levels of service and fares as Long Island Bus currently provides, for at least 5 years.
2. Free transfers between county buses and New York City subways and buses, as exists today.
3. Safe and efficient service, provided by highly trained and qualified employees.
4. Equipment that is clean, modern, and in a state of good repair.
5. Transparent and responsive administration of service, which includes giving riders and taxpayers a way to provide input into how county transit is run.

New Yorkers can e-mail their state elected officials; Nassau County Executive Ed Mangano; and Veolia VP Michael Setzer, who would become LI Bus CEO, through TSTC’s website at tstc.org/billofrights/. (Nassau County residents’ messages will also be delivered to county legislators.)

Photo: Tri-State Transportation Campaign.