The Trump administration is rescinding an agreement for New York’s Congestion Pricing and intends to cancel the program that reduces congestion and air pollution by charging a toll for vehicles to drive through Manhattan’s Central Business District. The Metropolitan Transportation Authority filed papers against the motion in federal court, and Gove…

 Welcome to your Transit Unplugged News Minute. Former New York Congressman Marcus Molinaro has been tapped to become the next administrator of the Federal Transit Administration. He has served on the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure. Source: Gothamist The FTA has released a Notice of Proposed Policy Statement, requiring transpo…

Sean Duffy has been sworn-in as the 20th Secretary of the US Department of Transportation. He said, “We're in a global race to out-innovate and out-compete the rest of the world. We will craft clear regulations which balance safety, innovation and cutting-edge technology.” Source: CBS News To increase safety and public confidence in New York, they …

On inauguration day, Donald Trump released 26 executive orders. Orders that will impact transit are the ones that impose a regulatory freeze, streamline the environmental review process, and roll back diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives. Source: APTA Early data is in from New York City’s congestion pricing where a toll has been implemented…

 During his confirmation hearing to be the next Secretary of the U.S. Department of Transportation, Sean Duffy said his priorities would be improving safety and building big infrastructure projects, if confirmed. Source: Mass Transit Magazine The American Public Transportation Association released a statement thanking outgoing DOT Secretary Pete Bu…

David Fink has been nominated by President-elect Donald Trump as the incoming Federal Railroad Administration administrator. He brings more than 45 years of experience, including with Pan Am Railway and General Motors. Source: Progressive Railroading In California, unprecedented wildfires in Los Angeles and Ventura Counties have burned roughly 40 t…

 After hurdles and delays, New York City's Metropolitan Transportation Authority launched congestion pricing on Sunday. Adding a $9 toll to motorists entering Manhattan below 60th Street. It is expected to bring 80,000 fewer vehicles a day to the area, while also providing $15 billion to the MTA. As we ring in the new year, 2025 brings the 200th ye…

It can be a two-hour slog to drive by car around California and Nevada’s Lake Tahoe. But a proposed flying electric ferry, the first of its kind in the US, could take 30 passengers across the lake in under 30 minutes. The ferry will use hydrofoil technology to lift the hull above the waves, and the vision is to implement the service at the end of 2…

The American Public Transportation Association released its “Transit Wrapped 2024” report, listing the transit agencies with the largest ridership increases this year. The top of the list included the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority, Seattle’s King County Metro, and San Francisco Muni. Source APTA/Instagram Houston METRO has broken g…

AI is going to report you if you drive in Seattle's bus only lanes, APTA talks Trump Vance transit funding, and the TTC is turning a parking lot into over 1,400 homes. Welcome to your Transit Unplugged News Minute. Seattle's AI-Powered Bus Lane Monitoring King County Metro in the Seattle area started a pilot project, installing cameras with artific…

Introduction and Headlines APTA is asking the government to approve emergency relief funding for hurricane victims. You can take a college course this summer in France and Spain to learn about high speed rail, and CUTA will be teaching riders about good manners. Welcome to your Transit Unplugged News Minute. Emergency Relief Funding for Hurricane V…

According to the Associated Press, President elect Donald Trump is naming former Wisconsin Representative Sean Duffy as his nominee to be Transportation Secretary. Duffy is co host of the "Bottom Line" on Fox Business and was featured on MTV's "Road Rules" and "The Real World." Source: AP Amtrak has successfully completed its track renewal work on …

Congestion pricing came back from the dead in New York City, and it's CUTA conference time. Welcome to your Transit Unplugged News Minute, where we cover the biggest stories in the transit industry. After being put on hold last summer, New York's congestion pricing just got the green light from the governor. The new $9 toll for the most gridlocked …

Transit won big in last week's United States elections, with 19 out of 25 communities approving transit measures on their ballots. According to the American Public Transportation Association, transit has seen an 86.67% win rate in 2024, with more than $25 billion going to fund public transit. Source: APTA On Remembrance Day, November 11th, Vancouve…

Welcome to your Transit Unplugged News Minute where we cover the biggest headlines in the public transit industry. It’s Election week in the United States, with 23 transit initiatives on the ballot in 9 states. On Thursday, The American Public Transportation Association will hold a post-election webinar to discuss how the results will impact the tr…

The State of New York's very first hydrogen fuel cell electric buses have arrived at Rochester's Regional Transit Service. The vehicles join the fleet that already has 20 battery electric buses. Source: RTS Trinity Metro in Fort Worth has brought some true Texas swagger to Cowtown with its new Orange Line service connecting downtown to the stockyar…

One of the biggest issues facing U.S. public transit is the bus manufacturing crisis. There aren’t enough manufacturers to make the number of zero-emission buses needed for agencies to reach their greenhouse gas reduction goals. One of the hurdles is too much customization. To help, the L.A. Metro Board of Directors adopted a new policy, which incl…

We've all been monitoring the heartbreaking news coming out of the Southeastern United States that has been ravaged by back to back hurricanes. The American Public Transportation Association has issued a statement saying APTA stands ready to aid our members, their employees, families, and communities. Source: APTA This Wednesday, the Transit Unplug…

Welcome to your Transit Unplugged News Minute, where we cover the biggest headlines in the transit industry. Good news for those who want to update their urban passenger rail systems. The U. S. Federal Railroad Association issued a Notice of Funding Opportunity for more than $1 billion. This funding is for systems working to expand, modernize, and …

If you're looking for a more sustainable way to travel, Google has teamed up with Amtrak to show train routes for people booking travel on the search engine. Each time travelers choose Amtrak instead of flying, they can reduce their carbon footprint by up to 72%. Source: Amtrak This week, the American Public Transportation Association hosts its ann…

Welcome to your Transit Unplugged News Minute, where we cover the biggest headlines in the transit industry. Ferry systems across the U.S. are about to get an upgrade. The Federal Transit Administration has awarded $300 million in grants to modernize ferry systems across 14 states. Source: FTA Vancouver's TransLink is one step closer to achieving i…

Welcome to your Transit Unplugged News Minute, where we cover the biggest headlines in the transit industry. Last week, the American Public Transportation Association held a fly-in in Washington D.C. where transit agency leaders and advocates met with over 75 members of Congress and staff, urging them to not cut the funding levels to public transit…

Welcome to your Transit Unplugged News Minute, where we cover the biggest headlines in the transit industry. As we kick off the new school year, we are seeing a lot of transit agencies launching. Launching new vehicles, new services, and new programs. In Houston, Texas, they rolled out their first electric buses. The Metropolitan Transit Authority …

Welcome to September and your Transit Unplugged News Minute, where we cover the biggest headlines in the transit industry. Most transit systems will be operating on a holiday schedule today due to Labor Day in the United States and Canada. The U.S. Transportation Security Administration expects this will be the busiest Labor Day travel period on re…

Ohio's Stark Area Regional Transit Authority is going all-in with hydrogen fuel. SARTA will use federal grant funds to build an electrolyzer facility that will make fuel for their 23 hydrogen vehicles and for private companies in the area. Source: SARTA It’s back-to-school season, and the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority is implem…

APTA wants Congress to honor their funding agreement. Source: APTA Bay Area schedules get in sync. Source: BART Old railcars get a second life as coral reefs. Sources: MARTA and YouTubeעל ידי Julie Gates

This week: CUTA presses for funding Miami-Dade is building a first-of-its-kind facility for electric buses More students are riding free Congrats to SWTA Spotlight Award winners (including us!)על ידי Julie Gates

The Olympic Games kicked off in Paris on Friday, and in advance of the 2028 California games L.A. METRO was granted $77 million dollars in federal funds to buy electric buses to ensure it’s a “transit-first games.” Source: LA Times After six years of hard work, the new Gordie Howe International Bridge has been connected in the middle over the Detro…

With the largest public transit investment in Canadian history, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced the new Canada Public Transit Fund of $30 billion. Keolis North America released a study sharing the top priorities of transit executives, with 78 percent saying decarbonization is their focus for the next five years. Since the Chicago Transit Au…

Welcome to your Transit Unplugged News Minute. There is so much going on right now. Let's kick it off with happy 60th birthday to the U.S. Federal Transportation Administration. The FTA was born in 1964 and is still going strong. Last week, the FTA announced 1. 5 billion in bus grants, helping 47 states to replace old buses with zero and low emissi…

Expect this to be a busy holiday travel week with Canada Day on Monday and the U.S. Independence Day on Thursday. Welcome to your Transit Unplugged News Minute.על ידי Julie Gates

Toronto's CEO is stepping down, Chicago brings average weekday ridership up to 1 million, and MBTA is a world record holder, but not for what you think. Welcome to your Transit Unplugged News Minute.על ידי Julie Gates

New York is still leading transit news headlines this week due to the indefinite pause of the congestion pricing program in Manhattan. Welcome to this week's Transit Unplugged News Minute.על ידי Julie Gates

New York congestion pricing gets canceled before it even gets started, and transit celebrates dads as we approach Father's Day. Welcome to your Transit Unplugged News Minute.על ידי Julie Gates

It's complicated to expand Rome's subway underneath the Coliseum. LA Metro will have law enforcement onboard vehicles, and Pride Month kicks off with colorful transit vehicles. Welcome to your Transit Unplugged News Minute. Sources: https://www.euronews.com/next/2024/05/24/work-on-metro-line-under-romes-landmarks-enters-crucial-phase https://www.nb…

The DOT needs your feedback about the future of AI in transportation. The first hydrogen fueled ferry in the United States is about to start service, and one of our Canadian transit leaders lost his Stanley Cup wager. Welcome to your Transit Unplugged News Minute. It's worth noting the series went to game 7 with both teams playing excellent hockey.…

Utah offers unlimited summer rides for youth. A Discord server updates Bay Area riders and it's graduation season for brand new transit leaders. Welcome to your Transit Unplugged News Minute. Sources: https://www.rideuta.com/Rider-Info/Riders-License https://www.caltrain.com/news/caltrain-launches-bay-area-transit-discord-server https://vatransit.c…

MTA steps up security efforts. Brightline could deliver service to Tampa. Hawaii provides autonomous airport shuttles. And Stanley Cup playoffs are serious business for Canadian transit. Welcome to your Transit Unplugged News Minute. Sources: https://new.mta.info/press-release/photos-mta-police-officers-graduate-nypd-academy-0 https://ridebeep.com/…

Big collaboration news in the US capital region the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority and the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments launched a historic initiative, creating comprehensive regional transit planning for Washington DC, Maryland, and Virginia. Congratulations to the winners of the APTA Bus Safety, Security, and Eme…

The BBC reports an autonomous transit bus is being tested in Seoul, South Korea, the first of its kind in the world. The self-driving Night Bus still requires a safety driver at this time while testing is underway. Anaheim Transportation Network opened a new electric bus charging facility. As one of the first all-electric bus fleets in California, …

Welcome to your Transit Unplugged News Minute. Brightline breaks ground in Vegas… Broward County Transit addresses homelessness with a compassionate approach… and Earth Day Canada is giving away year-long transit passes. Sources: https://www.brightlinewest.com/media/press-releases https://www.broward.org/BCT/Pages/default.aspx https://earthday.ca/a…

An innovative trespassing system will be tested on passenger rail tracks in California… a new report says public transit is good for the environment… and a new group of graduates is ready to work on the California high speed rail project. Welcome to your Transit Unplugged News Minute. Southern California’s passenger rail, MetroLink, was awarded a D…

Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority successfully completed its five year tunnel drilling project to expand the D Line subway and connect downtown and West L.A. One of the engineering challenges included The program included drilling through prehistoric tar sands near the La Brea Tar Pits. Source: LA Metro Las Vegas is starting …

The IBTTA extends support to Baltimore, New York is one step closer to congestion pricing, and the ThinkTransit Conference wraps up in Tucson. Welcome to your Transit Unplugged News Minute. In response to the tragic collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore, Maryland, the International Bridge, Tunnel, and Turnpike Association has offere…

are evasion enforcement is heating up and the MBTA is celebrating transit driver appreciation month. With a fiscal cliff coming for many transit agencies who are nearing the end of COVID relief subsidies, farebox revenue is becoming increasingly important and now there are efforts to step up fare enforcement. Last year, the Toronto Transit Commissi…

The U.S. Department of Transportation has awarded over $3 billion dollars in federal funding through the Reconnecting Communities Pilot and Neighborhood Access and Equity grant programs. This funding will reconnect communities that were divided by transportation infrastructure decades ago. Source: U.S. DOT A one-year multi-modal pilot is underway i…

At the inaugural Public Transit Conference this May, cybersecurity will be at the top of the agenda. Cyberattacks have become an industry hot topic and have impacted many transit agencies, including San Francisco and St. Louis. The conference is being hosted by METRO Magazine. Source: METRO Magazine. North Carolina’s GoDurham has a new way for ride…

The city of Hoboken, New Jersey, has achieved an important milestone. It has been seven years since it has had a traffic death. They credit the success to their Vision Zero program, which has created dedicated spaces for different transportation modes, and added curb extensions to help pedestrians cross the street faster. Source: City of Hoboken. T…

Bloomberg reports a two-day experiment at a Paris metro station, where passenger turnstiles were turned into turbines that converted kinetic energy to electricity. If turbines were implemented across the entire Paris metro network, they could produce 136 megawatts a year, saving 30, 000 tons of CO2. Source: Bloomberg. In the US, the Washington Metr…

There’s a bus manufacturing crisis in the U. S. as several manufacturers have to close their doors due to multiple issues including inflated supply chain costs and long procurement timelines. To add more stress to the situation, transit agencies are receiving more funding than ever to convert to low or zero emission bus fleets to meet their greenho…