The Department of Transportation just announced the recipients of its $1.5 billion TIGER grant program,the US DOT’s first attempt at a competitive grant program where projects of all modes compete based on their ability to meet national goals. Complete streets projects across the country will be funded.
In today’s announcement of $1.5 billion in TIGER (Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery) awards, the US Department of Transportation (US DOT) showed the kinds of transportation projects that move people and freight in a way that makes places stronger, cleaner, and safer. DOT received 1,380 applications for the $1.5 billion pot, for a grand total of $56.5 billion in funds requested. The 51 projects announced under TIGER, part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA), include…
For those of you brave enough to dig into the numbers, the latest edition of the Washington Update from Smart Growth America details the President’s budget for smart-growth related programs in HUD, EPA, and DOT. If you want to know more about the details of policy and would like to receive the Washington Update newsletter … Continued
A few of the record-breaking 1,700 attendees at the New Partners for Smart Growth conference in Seattle might have been pinching themselves on Thursday night after hearing three of President Obama’s cabinet secretaries emphasize the importance of smart growth, sustainability and livability as core goals shaping the work of their three massive federal agencies. Demonstrating the Obama Administration’s commitment to making neighborhoods more livable, sustainable and affordable, Secretaries Ray Lahood and Shaun Donovan of the Department of Transportation and the Department of Housing and Urban Development came to Seattle to discuss their plans to use their giant agencies’ budgets and programs in unison to help American families in rural, suburban and urban communities have better options for affordable housing and getting where they need to go each day.
President Obama’s budget for the 2011 fiscal year, released this morning, contains more than $1 billion in programs and grants that will help create and support livable, sustainable communities and neighborhoods across the country. “This is good news for anyone looking to cut their transportation costs, find an affordable home in a walkable neighborhood, or live in a community with a multitude of transportation options,” said SGA President Geoff Anderson.
Tupelo, Mississippi is best known as the birthplace of Elvis Presley, but its fame may grow even larger next week. At Tuesday’s meeting, the City Council is set to vote on a complete streets ordinance.
The U.S. Department of Transportation was in snowy Minneapolis yesterday for the second stop of its Reauthorization Listening Tour. They heard plenty about complete streets.
Across the country, older cities are struggling with outdated water-sewer systems that collect sanitary sewage and stormwater runoff in a single pipe system. When a big storm occurs, the system gets overloaded: sewage combines with stormwater and runs into lakes and streams, causing serious water pollution and health issues. Cities are beginning to turn instead to “green” infrastructure as a viable alternative to addressing combined sewer overflow. Green infrastructure uses plants and porous pavement among other tools as natural ways to filter water, increase infiltration, and reduce stormwater runoff into pipes.
This program, “recognizes noteworthy projects and practices in rural and small metropolitan transportation planning, programming and service delivery.”