NATIONAL NEWS

DC Streetsblog: Biden Says High-Speed Rail Money Ignored Politics — Was He Right?
http://dc.streetsblog.org/2010/01/29/biden-says/
...Florida and California's rail bids undoubtedly came the closest to "true" high-speed rail, as seen in China and Europe. The Sunshine State aims to reach maximum speeds of 168 miles per hour (mph) on its Tampa-Orlando link, while the Golden State plans for its ambitious bullet train network to top 200 mph.  But was Biden right to say that yesterday's rail awards made no distinction between states with Democratic governors and states run by Republicans -- who could tout their role in snagging employment-rich train funding during future campaign seasons? At the request of a reader, Streetsblog Capitol Hill crunched the numbers ...

Journal of Commerce: Highway Bill Detoured
http://www.joc.com/node/416346
The drumbeat of jobs, jobs, jobs in Washington and debate on financing have become major roadblocks to getting a six-year $500 billion transportation bill into gear and onto a fast-paced road to passage.  Infrastructure advocates argue that investment in transportation infrastructure is a sure-fire creator of jobs. There’s support for jobs and infrastructure on Capitol Hill, and the clamor for jobs will increase government investment in the latter. However, there’s no guarantee Congress will go further and address surface transportation’s long-term needs any time soon.

Journal of Commerce: It’s About Jobs
http://www.joc.com/node/416334
Last month’s special election in Massachusetts may have rocked the political landscape, but for anyone with a stake in transportation, the best and most immediate impact may be a clearer path toward investment in the country’s infrastructure needs.  At first glance, transportation and infrastructure may not have seemed to be issues in the election of Republican Scott Brown to the U.S. Senate from the overwhelmingly Democratic state...

STATE NEWS

Star Tribune: Editorial: A shrinking pot for transportation
http://www.startribune.com/opinion/editorials/83081317.html?elr=KArks:DCiUBcy7hUiD3aPc:_Yyc:aUU
Americans desperately need jobs. The nation's sagging infrastructure badly needs repair and renewal. Why not put people to work fixing and building roads, bridges and transit systems? It all seemed a no-brainer.

Baltimore Sun: Instead of a jobs tax credit, let's fix our infrastructure
http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/opinion/editorial/bal-jobs0201,0,2039842.story
...The jobs bill passed by the House -- and endorsed by Mr. Obama in his State of the Union -- includes such spending and is a good starting point. The Senate needs to make the $154 billion plan leaner and meaner, turning it into a straight public works bill that Republicans cannot so easily oppose -- at least if Democrats can refrain from larding it with earmarks and wasteful pet projects.

St. Pete Times: Tampa Bay rail advocates scramble for ways to connect with proposed high-speed line
http://www.tampabay.com/news/transportation/masstransit/tampa-bay-rail-advocates-scramble-for-ways-to-connect-with-proposed/1069571
The $1.25 billion in federal stimulus money that will help pay for a high-speed rail line from Tampa to Orlando has stirred visions of Disney visitors adding a trip to Pinellas beaches and Tampa residents riding the rail to Orlando, perhaps for a concert at the House of Blues.  But how will people get from their homes to the downtown Tampa station? And how will out-of-town travelers get from the station to the beaches?