An article in Friday’s Trib suggests that funding for transit may make its way to the ballot soon. Some of the focus for the article is on the rail vs. bus issue that we’ve discussed often here. I’d like to focus on a different question the article raises (at least indirectly). Funding for transit today…

The Daily Journal of Commerce is reporting that a panel evaluating the reauthorization of the Transportation System Development Charge program for the City of Portland is unlikely to raise the rates for the charges by more than the level of inflation. “Cities around the country are paying for big projects, but they’re doing it by…

Planetizen is quoting a Philadelphia Business Journal article that suggests that leasing the Pennsylvania Turnpike could produce enough revenue to deal with much of the State’s transportation funding needs, including transit service. But the legislature is skeptical…

According to a Jim Mayer piece on Oregonlive, Metro is looking at the possibility of a transportation funding package on the ballot in ’08. Council Brian Newman has been tapped to lead the exploratory effort, says a Tribune piece this morning. Is the electorate ready for this?

A sobering article in the Wall Street Journal yesterday. The premise is that we are underinvesting in our infrastructure to the point that it will make us uncompetitive. While it’s not apples-to-apples because we’re maintaining while the other countries are developing, here are the comparative levels of infrastructure as a percentage of GDP: China: 9%…