Hill Heat: Tag transportation

House to Debate Several Energy Proposals

The Cunctator — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 15:41:00 -0500

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has announced that the lower chamber of Congress will consider several pieces of legislation targeted at oil companies, energy markets, and transportation.

Reducing Transit Fares (H.R. 6052) – Gives grants to mass transit authorities to lower fares for commuters pinched at the pump and expand transit services.

Cracking Down on Price Gouging – Gives enforcement authority to the Federal Trade Commission to investigate and punish those who artificially inflate fuel prices, similar to legislation passed last year.

Closing the Enron-like “London Loophole” for Petroleum Markets – Takes steps to curb excessive speculation in the energy futures markets, which experts have noted is driving up the price of a barrel of oil.

“Use It Or Lose It” for Oil Companies Holding Permits and Not Drilling – Compels the oil industry to start drilling or lose permits on the 68 million acres of undeveloped federal oil reserves which they are currently warehousing, keeping domestic supply lower and prices higher.

Federal Policies for Climate-Friendly Development and Transportation

The Cunctator — Fri, 25 Apr 2008 10:00:00 -0500

The Environmental and Energy Study Institute (EESI) and the Urban Land Institute (ULI) invite you to a briefing that will examine the connection between transportation policy, urban development, land use planning, and the combined role they can play in reducing U.S. greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. The briefing will address policy options to be considered as a component of any comprehensive GHG reduction strategy.

The briefing will focus, in particular, on trends in the distances and time that Americans spend driving each year due to changing land use patterns, limited alternatives, transportation policies, congestion, highway operations, and other factors. The Energy Information Administration (EIA) projects automobile and truck use (as measured by vehicle miles traveled or VMT) to increase 48 percent by 2030. Such trends would have major implications for traffic congestion and the capacity of the U.S. transportation system to efficiently move people and freight. Increases in GHG emissions due to these trends, if unaddressed, would outweigh GHG emission reductions expected from higher fuel-economy standards contained in the recently enacted Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 (P.L.110-140). Goals to reduce U.S. reliance on foreign sources of oil would be more difficult to achieve under such trends.

ULI’s newly published book Growing Cooler: The Evidence on Urban Development and Climate Change surveys the best available research on the link between urban development trends, land use patterns, transportation alternatives, and greenhouse gas emissions, and identifies policy alternatives to promote more compact and energy-efficient development patterns and expand transportation choices including rail, transit, cycling, and walking. Representatives of transportation, real estate development, and local government interests will provide important perspectives on the challenges and feasibility of implementing such policies. Panelists include:

Reid Ewing, Professor, University of Maryland, National Center for Smart Growth
Steve Winkelman, Transportation Program Director, Center for Clean Air Policy
Geoff Anderson, President, Smart Growth America
John Horsley, Executive Director, American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials
Chris Zimmerman, Chair, Northern Virginia Transportation Authority; Member, Arlington County Board
Tom Darden,CEO, Cherokee Investment Partners LLC

The briefing will address key questions such as:

What transportation and land use policy options would be most effective in reducing GHG emissions?
What role can and should each level of government play in advancing such policy options?
What are the trade-offs among policy options in terms of mobility, quality of life, and consumer choice?
What are the opportunities and barriers to diversifying transportation choices for individuals and businesses?

This briefing is free and open to the public. No RSVP required. Please forward this notice. For more information, contact Jan Mueller, 202-662-1883 or jmueller@eesi.org

NOTE: Rep. Ellen Tauscher (D-CA) will hold a companion briefing with some of the same panelists later the same day on the House side, 2:30-4:00 pm, 2253 Rayburn House Office Bldg. Contact Paul Schmid, 202-225-1880, for more information.

Transatlantic Conference on Climate Change and Energy

The Cunctator — Fri, 25 Apr 2008 09:00:00 -0500

The Washington Conference will take place over two days. The first day will be an intensive expert workshop focusing on emissions from transport and biofuels use; this reflects concerns over the lack of action to address emissions from transport, rising concerns about expanded use of biofuels and pressure from some to include aviation, marine transport and road transport within cap and trade systems.

Day two will be a larger event designed to inform civil society more broadly about the differences and similarities between action in the EU and US, discuss best practice domestic solutions, demystify key policies such as the EU ETS etc. Discussions will predominantly focus on cap and trade, and the differing perceptions of actors on both sides of the Atlantic.

IEEP will be taking experts from the EU over to Washington for the event. European experts would take part in the workshop on day one, and potentially present ideas and concepts from a European perspective on day two.

If you would like to find out more about the conference please contact Sirini Withana (IEEP) or Melanie Nakagawa (NRDC).

For more information and background papers from previous T-PAGE discussions, visit the T-PAGE project website.

Location: 1616 P Street, NW, 1st Floor Conference Room
Resources for the Future building
Washington, DC 20036

Moving Passengers and Freight into the Future: A Review of the Report of the National Surface Transportation Policy and Revenue Study Commission

The Cunctator — Tue, 22 Apr 2008 14:30:00 -0500

The Commission’s Report, required pursuant to section 1909 of the Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users (SAFETEA-LU, Public Law 109-59), was released January 15, 2008. The hearing will examine the Report’s recommendations relating to freight mobility; highway, auto, and truck safety; passenger and freight rail capacity and service development; intermodal transportation; and the integration of our surface, maritime, and aviation networks. Witnesses are expected to testify regarding the methodology used to analyze the nation’s long-term transportation system needs and the Report’s recommendations for financing short- and long-term capital investment in infrastructure improvements and expansions.

Witnesses

Jack Schenendorf, Commission Vice Chair, Counsel
Frank Busalacchi, Commission Member, Secretary, Wisconsin Department of Transportation
Steve Heminger, Commission Member, Executive Director, Metropolitan Transportation Commission
Matt Rose, Commission Member, Chairman, President, and Chief Executive Officer, BNSF Railway
Patrick Quinn, Commission Member, Co-Chairman and President, U.S. Xpress Enterprises

The Electric Drive Answer: Transportation Technologies & Policies to End Oil Dependence

The Cunctator — Tue, 22 Apr 2008 09:30:00 -0500

The Electric Drive Transportation Association (EDTA), with support from the Environmental and Energy Study Institute, invites you to The Electric Drive Answer: Transportation Technologies & Policies to End Oil Dependence.

During this unique multi-industry panel, EDTA members will detail their latest projects and plans for battery, hybrid, plug-in and fuel cell electric drive vehicles, components and infrastructure. They will also discuss how federal policies can speed the commercialization of clean, efficient electric drive and reduce the role of oil in transportation.

EDTA members from the following companies will participate: Ford Motor Company, General Motors, Honda, Hyundai Motor Company, Toyota, Southern California Edison, Johnson Controls-Saft Advanced Power Solutions, Electrovaya, EnerDel, Phoenix Motorcars, and Vectrix.

Panelists:

Mike Andrew, Director of Government Affairs and External Communications, HEV Battery Systems Power Solutions, Johnson Controls-Saft Advanced Power Solutions
Edward B. Cohen, Vice President, Government & Industry Relations, Honda North America
Dr. Sankar Das Gupta, CEO, Electrovaya (or another representative)
Daniel J. Elliott, CEO, Phoenix Motorcars
Charles Gassenheimer, Chairman of the Board, Ener1
Nancy Gioia, Director of Sustainable Mobility Technologies and Hybrid Vehicle Programs, Ford Motor Company
Charles Ing, Director, Government Affairs, Toyota
Andrew J. MacGowan, Executive Chairman, CEO, & President, Vectrix
William MacLeod, Senior Manager, Government Affairs, Hyundai Motor Company
Dean Taylor, Technical Specialist, Southern California Edison
Joseph Trahern, Director Legislative and Regulatory Affairs, General Motors

This event is free and open to everyone. Pre-registration is not required. Please forward this notice. For more information please contact EDTA by visiting www.electricdrive.org or by contacting Jennifer Watts at 202-408-0774×306 or jwatts@electricdrive.org.

About EDTA: The Electric Drive Transportation Association is a trade association representing battery, hybrid and fuel cell electric drive technologies and infrastructure. EDTA’s membership includes major automotive and other equipment manufacturers, electric utilities, technology developers, component suppliers, and government agencies.

Plug-In Hybrid Electric Vehicles Come to DC

The Cunctator — Sun, 20 Apr 2008 12:00:00 -0500

The Environmental and Energy Study Institute (EESI) invites you to view and ride in a plug-in hybrid vehicle (PHEV) on the Capitol Mall during the Earth Day festivities. Flexible-fuel PHEVs offer a promising opportunity to reduce dependence on imported oil, decrease greenhouse gas and other transportation emissions, revitalize local economies, and lower fuel costs. The single largest contributor to America’s foreign oil dependence is the transportation sector which accounts for two-thirds of US oil consumption. Moreover, the transportation sector is 97 percent dependent on petroleum.

The vehicle, an XH-150, was developed by the Bellevue, Washington-based AFS Trinity Corp. and is a modified 2007 Saturn Vue Greenline SUV that gets up to 150 miles-per-gallon. Its energy storage system combines lithium-ion batteries with ultracapacitors. Adding ultracapacitors allows the vehicle to achieve top speeds and rapid acceleration in electric-only mode equal to a conventional hybrid. For a typical daily commute of 40 miles round trip, the vehicle does not use its internal combustion engine at all. The XH-150 was unveiled in January at Detroit’s North American International Auto Show. Look for the AFS Trinity Truck on the Mall.

A September 2007 Harris National Study found that more than one quarter of vehicle owners would consider purchasing a PHEV for their next vehicle purchase. On January 31, GM’s vice president for global program management, Jonathan Lauckner, said GM plans to build “tens of thousands” Chevrolet Volt plug-in hybrid electric cars by 2011. A shift to manufacturing flexible-fuel PHEVs could be central to revitalization of the American auto industry by positioning domestic automakers as leaders in this emerging technology. Plug-in hybrids can be recharged in standard electric sockets, then driven 20 to 60 miles without the use of gasoline. This means the commute of millions of Americans could be completed with the use of little, if any, gasoline. Such savings are critical in these tight economic times.

Federal and state support of this technology can accelerate commercial deployment. More than 45 bills have been introduced in the 110th Congress that include provisions for plug-in hybrid electric vehicles. A national campaign to raise awareness of PHEVs has received tremendous response from state and local governments, businesses, utilities, as well as national security, environmental and public interest groups. More than 630 entities have joined the National Plug-In Partners Campaign (spearheaded by Austin Energy), including a number of the nation’s largest cities including Austin, Chicago, Dallas, Los Angeles, Salt Lake City, Memphis, Philadelphia, Phoenix, San Francisco, Portland and Seattle. In addition, the campaign has now surpassed 8,000 fleet orders, helping to prove to automakers that if they build plug-in vehicles, Americans will buy them.

This event is open to the public. No RSVP is required. For more information, please contact Fred Beck at 202-662-1892 or fbeck@eesi.org.

Location: Capitol Mall between 4th and 14th Streets

Surface transportation and the global economy

The Cunctator — Wed, 16 Apr 2008 10:00:00 -0500

Witnesses

Siva Yam, President, United States of America-China Chamber of Commerce
John Isbell, Global Director of Delivery Logistics, Nike
Ray Kuntz, Chief Executive Officer, Watkins and Shepard Trucking, On behalf of the American Trucking Associations
Edward Wytkind, President, Transportation Trades Department, AFL-CIO

Transportation Challenges of Metropolitan Areas

The Cunctator — Wed, 09 Apr 2008 10:00:00 -0500

This hearing is the first in a series of hearings exploring emerging themes in transportation policy and practice, the needs of our national surface transportation system, and the reauthorization of our surface transportation laws. The Subcommittee will continue this series by holding hearings in the near future on the issues surrounding freight access and goods movement, infrastructure preservation and modernization, highway safety, mobility and connectivity of rural areas, and other issues.

Witnesses

Robert Puentes, Metropolitan Policy Program at The Brookings Institution
Robert D. Yaro, President of the Regional Plan Association in New York
The Honorable Ron Sims, King County Executive, Seattle, Washington
Jolene Molitoris, Assistant Director of the Ohio Department of Transportation
Michael R. Wiley, Executive Director of Sacramento Regional Transit District
Ron Kirby, Transportation Director of the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments

Surface Transportation Trust Funds and Amtrak

Wonk Room — Thu, 03 Apr 2008 09:30:00 -0500

Witnesses Panel I: Status of Surface Transportation Trust Funds and Impact on Federal Spending

James S. Simpson, Administrator, Federal Transit Administration, U.S. Department of Transportation
James D. Ray, Administrator (Acting), Federal Highway Administration, U. S. Department of Transportation
John F. McCaskie, Chief Engineer, Swank Associated Companies (Transportation Construction Coalition)
William W. Millar, President, American Public Transportation Association

Panel II: Future Outlook and Budgetary Needs for AMTRAK

Joseph H. Boardman, Administrator, Federal Railroad Administration
Donna McLean, Chairman of the Board, National Railroad Passenger Corporation-AMTRAK
Alexander Kummant, President & CEO, National Railroad Passenger Corporation-AMTRAK
David Tornquist, Assistant Inspector General, United States Department of Transportation
Joel M. Parker, International Vice President & Special Assistant to the President, Transportation Communications International Union

Around the Blogs: The Benefits of Density

The Cunctator — Thu, 21 Feb 2008 13:34:00 -0600

Alex Steffen at WorldChanging in January, with My Other Car is a Bright Green City (edited for publication in BusinessWeek), and Allison Arieff at the New York Times’s By Design blog on Monday, with Is Your House Making You Look Fat?, take involved and interesting looks at the environmental, energy, and health consequences of America’s love affair with sprawl. In Steffen’s words: “The best car-related innovation we have is not to improve the car, but eliminate the need to drive it everywhere we go.” Arieff mirrors his sentiment: “First, let’s talk about cars. Stop designing for them.“

Their excellent essays have spurred varied responses.

Ezra Klein at the American Prospect, yesterday: How We Live Now:

There’s often a tendency to assume that the status quo is the most “natural” way for things to be, and that rejiggering the relevant subsidies is somehow more artificial and presumptuous. But the current system was built atop a massive structure of subsidies and tax breaks. The mortgage tax deduction advantaged bigger homes; funding schools through inequitable property taxes encouraged families to move out of cities where the property taxes were low and into richer suburbs where the schools would be wealthy; putting billions into costly and little-used roads made far-flung developments appear cheap to those who only saw the finished product; underfunding public transportation heavily influenced development patterns, and so on and so forth.

Matt Yglesias picks up at the Atlantic: Dense:

What’s particularly astounding about this stuff, in my view, is that fixing the problem would hardly require some totalitarian density police to come around and force us to all live closer together. Instead, the main step we would need to take would simply be to allow people to build more densely if they want to. As a secondary measure, scrapping or limiting the tax code’s weird and destructive subsidy of big houses would do some good.

Other blogs that picked the thread up include Duncan Black’s Eschaton, 2020 Hindsight, Urban Grounds, Dove’s Eye View, Trinifar’s Some Maintenance Required, The Vigorous North, and The Velorution.