CTAG – Transportation Issues in the News

Climate and transportation

• • “E.V.s Start With a Bigger Carbon Footprint. But That Doesn’t Last.” – October 19, 2022, New York Times

Review of recent studies and conclusions about the life-cylcle carbon impact of electric vehicles compared to internal combustion engine vehicles.

• •  “Can Portland be a Climate Leader Without Reducing Driving?” – April 21, 2022, New York Times
    A look at how Portland, Oregon; despite notably large investments in transit, active transportation, and some changes to residential zoning; is still not on track to meet their GHG emission-reduction targets.

• Freight transportation
  • “The Real Reason America Doesn’t Have Enough Truck Drivers” – Feb 9, 2022,  New York Times
    An issue that affects us regionally but is national (and even continental) in scope.
• Land use, zoning
  • “The Next Affordable City is Already too Expensive” – Feb 20, 2022 – The Seattle Times
    With growing attention paid to the connection between land-use and transportation, this look at national housing and migration trends uses Spokane, WA as a case study. Especially interesting in light of current deliberations in the WA state legislature about lifting restrictions on housing types, transit oriented development, and climate action.

• Megaregional Planning
  • “How California’s Bullet Train Went Off the Rails” – October 9, 2022 – The New York Times
    Lessons for Cascadia? An assessment of how politically motivated routing decisions may have steered plans for high-speed rail into unaffordable territory.