Newsroom

May 16, 2011

The Yardstick has been chock full of great information this spring and since it’s been awhile since our last round-up of some of our favorite posts we put together an updated collection. Now’s a good time to get caught up on anything you may have missed. Happy reading!

May 12, 2011

The National Capital Region Transportation Planning Board (TPB) today launched the full service of the District of Columbia’s first wheelchair accessible taxicab pilot project, rollDC. Today’s launch caps the successful testing phase of the program that saw a seven-fold increase in use by people using wheelchairs. rollDC’s full service includes a fleet of 20 accessible taxicabs, provided by Royal Cab and the Yellow Cab Company of D.C., to serve people with disabilities using wheelchairs in the​

May 12, 2011

Funding Transportation Matters. It’s a really simple notion that bears repeating. As American roadways become more and more clogged we desperately need to be investing in alternative ways for getting around. Even if the environmental and climate impacts of traffic congestion – such increased air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions – aren’t a top priority for you certainly reduced economic activity is. That’s your wallet we’re talking about. For years we’ve known that traffic congestion r

May 11, 2011

Earlier this week we noted the dilemma environmentalists often find themselves in when they contemplate putting the effects of environmental degradation into economic terms. By essentially putting a price on nature environmentalists are confronted with the unpleasant notion of placing the earth and its ecological benefits on par with other things that we stick a dollar value on. Like French fries or magazines. However disconcerting we argued that it may sometimes be necessary to make this c

May 9, 2011

Putting things like clean air and water into economic terms is a bit grating on the nerves for many environmentalists . The fact that a clean stable environment is positive for our health and the health of the planet should be enough. Unfortunately it’s often not.

May 6, 2011

We’ve got a short but fun Global Fridays piece today on the little heard of topic of personal rapid transit or PRT (a topic which is likely little heard of unless you’re a transportation dork like some of us). The inspiration for this post is found across the pond at London Heathrow Airport in the UK which this week began passenger trials for its PRT service connecting passengers from parking areas to terminals.

May 5, 2011

While we’re sure most of our readers have already signed up for Bike to Work Day 2011 if you haven’t had the chance you can go ahead and register now . Bike to Work Day has grown from a small event with a few hundred participants when it began over a decade ago to a region-wide event in which over 9000 people took part last year. Surely the program’s expansion into more parts of the District Maryland and Virginia was a catalyst for some of that growth but a general momentum in favor of bikin

May 4, 2011

Arlington County Board Member Jay Fisette, who is also Chairman of COG’s Climate, Energy, and Environment Policy Committee was joined by John Mataya, COG Regional Planner, on Bruce DePuyt’s NewsTalk program on NewsChannel8 to discuss Green Building Trends, a recently released report by COG on the progress the region is making towards adopting green building.

May 4, 2011

A COG Forum brought together representatives from local governments, utilities, and electric vehicle suppliers to discuss how local governments in the region can plan for and encourage the use of electric vehicles. Falls Church Vice Mayor David Snyder and other forum participants were interviewed by News Channel 8 and WUSA9.

May 3, 2011

Despite the market demand for transit-oriented mixed-use development and the multiple studies that prove that location decisions have the greatest impact on a building’s environmental footprint Congress and certain federal agencies appear to be disregarding those significant pieces of information.