Portland Transport

Author: Chris Smith

  • Driving the Bus with Carbon Monoxide?

    Readers of this blog will be aware that OPAL has been a leading voice criticizing TriMet service reductions in recent years. They’re now latching onto a somewhat obscure air quality regulation to try to put some teeth into that advocacy. The Portland region is under Federal compliance plans for two pollutants: ozone and carbon monoxide…

  • Global Road Kill

    Via Slashdot: An interactive map of road death rates worldwide. Depressing.

  • The ArrivalStar Patent is Dead

    As a provider of arrivals displays, Portland Transport is a happy organization today. (No, we never got sued – the lawsuits seem to have been limited to the providers of the web services and arrival estimates.)

  • I Have Some Good Ideas for that Other $850

    Joseph Rose is reporting on a survey indicating that Oregon is among the lowest cost states to own a motor vehicle. Among the cost differentials, an average of $157 in taxes and fees compared to $1,058 nationally. Imagine how many sidewalks we could build with that other $850/car…

  • The Virtues of a Parking Tax – But What Kind?

    Via Planetizen: Atlanta is considering a parking tax, with the conversation driven in part by this academic paper (PDF, 3.2M). The tax would help deal with a backlog of transportation projects, including an incomplete sidewalk network (sound familiar?) and potentially be used to match Federal dollars. The paper includes a very interesting discussion of the…