Word: transitions
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...recession has encouraged more innovation. For example, a Vermont business association is getting ready to launch a statewide cashless trading network. Ithaca, N.Y., which has the nation's longest-running independent currency, agreed in June to let people start using the 18-year-old bills to buy transit passes...
...Lowdown: Despite its modest good news, this report offers little cause for celebration. Traffic problems in the country have worsened dramatically over the years, and solutions like greater investment in mass transit may not be effective in the long term for our population boom. What's more, the study's authors say, history shows that after a recession, traffic growth often comes roaring back. In other words, they write, "Anyone who thinks the congestion problem has gone away should check the past...
...renewable energy that would have been produced without the bill. (The share of renewables in the total U.S. electricity market will be larger under the bill, because total electricity use will have dropped.) Instead of investment flowing to new solar and wind companies, to electric cars and public transit, that money is likely to go to foreign offsets and farmers. "It should be a key goal to see renewable energy get picked up under this bill, but it's not happening," says Shellenberger. "That's pretty demoralizing...
...problem is that it's not clear how Oberstar's draft bill, which transit advocates argue still needs to be strengthened, will be fully funded, and the Obama Administration has urged a more modest bill in the short term. It's clear, however, that if the nation has any real interest in reducing driving, unclogging our roads and cutting back on the carbon emissions that come from transportation, we need to get serious about overhauling our antiquated public-transit system - and that will cost billions. "Failing to fix this will be unacceptable," says Goldberg...
Although public transit is aging, it's worth noting that it is not unsafe - crashes like the one in D.C. are an anomaly, and statistically, riding a train is far safer than driving. Still, failing to shore up transit is an invitation to risk, and while accidents may be infrequent, as the Metro crash may show, they can be deadly...