I live in Bordeaux right now where we have our tramway with APS (ground level power) system. It had some problems at the beginning but so far it works pretty well. People demanded it in the center city because they didn’t like how it would affect the views of some really beautiful buildings… and, it is nice, I have to agree. The biggest issue is that it cost a lot more money to install… which I doubt is a problem for Bombardier but is for tight budgets. Having wires most places isn’t a big problem until we can find a solution that costs the same.

RE: Oberstar: Transit Pushed Aside for Tax Cuts in Stimulus Bill (TPM)

That really is short term thinking. Not that I enjoy paying taxes but right now we need the tax dollars and letting us spend it on anything (which will include imported goods, worthless crap, etc.) offers no long term benefit unlike funding transit. Let’s make sure our stimulus dollars go to projects that will improve our economy not just now but in the future.

Gillibrand is a horrible pick. Hates gays & immigrants, loves guns & war

That’s funny, the Empire State Pride Agenda says she supports marriage equality, repeal of Don’t Ask Don’t Tell, and legislation outlawing discrimination against transgender people. I don’t have any information about her feelings towards immigrants or war, but if she hates gays she’s disguising it well.

Sorry if you don’t like it, but it’s the truth.

We may not start until the 2020s. (I’m pretty kunstlerian about this.)

When we do start, it will be an explosion the likes of which the world’s never seen. But we won’t do it until it’s too late, and tens of millions of people are going to have a very hard time bridging the gap.

Roads/road improvements/capital improvement is much easier because the edifice is already there.

Not every StreetsBlogger is a liberal Democrat, and not everyone with reservations about gay marriage or free immigration is a bigot.

Frankly I’m ecstatic about Gillibrand; then again, I used to be a Republican.

I love the piano metaphor for the east broadway incident.

Neat, but NIMBY’s will find something else to complain about.

RE: Driver Left Van Double-Parked, in Reverse Before It Killed Kids; No Charges Filed

I read all three stories pretty fast so I might have missed a couple things. But I’d swear The Post made no mention of the fact that the vehicle was double-parked and *left running*. The Daily News mentioned the double-parking only. Only The Times provided enough detail to actually make sense of the story and pin the blame on the driver. The Post made the driver sound rather blameless, and I made the mistake of reading the Post story first and almost not reading the others. I guess I should have expected as much.

Anyway… if the details in The Times are correct, how is this not involuntary manslaughter?

“Change” I’m having trouble believing in.

Except for the retired, who always get to share, never sacrifice, have left us with massive debt and pension obligations, and will leave us right back in the same place in five years — but with higher taxes. Meanwhile, plans are afoot to slash the senior benefits of those who come after, once the state and country are bankrupted.

One word: evil. And no one talks about it.

Paterson is thinkning of himself, hoping for strong fundraising in 2010, when both will lose their seats