Washington Post – Metro to close sections of lines in year-long repair project – “Metro next month will begin a massive subway rebuilding effort that will inconvenience virtually everyone who uses the system, with portions of most rail lines shut down for up to a month at a time and reductions in train service throughout… Continue Reading
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Category Archives: Transportation
NASA Makes Dozens of Patents Available in Public Domain to Benefit US Industry
“NASA has released 56 formerly-patented agency technologies into the public domain, making its government-developed technologies freely available for unrestricted commercial use. In addition to the release of these technologies, a searchable database now is available that catalogs thousands of expired NASA patents already in the public domain. These technologies were developed to advance NASA missions… Continue Reading
Recalls Spotlight: Takata Air Bags Recalls
Via NHTSA: “Takata air bags installed in tens of millions of U.S. vehicles are subject to recall due to a safety defect that may cause their inflators to explode and cause serious injuries or deaths. If your car or truck is included in this list of affected vehicles, contact your dealer for the appropriate repair.… Continue Reading
Ineffective Inspection, Maintenance Practices, Oversight Led to Washington Metrorail Fatal Accident
NTSB news release: “A short circuit on Washington’s Metrorail system that caused thick smoke to fill a stranded train, killing one passenger and injuring 91 people on Jan. 12, 2015, was the result of WMATA failing to follow its own safety procedures and inadequate safety oversight by the Tri-State Oversight Committee and the Federal Transit… Continue Reading
GAO Reports – Defense Health Care, Indian Health Service, SEC InfoSec, Missile Defense, Public Transit, Veterans Justice, F-35 Joint Strike Fighter
Defense Health Care: DOD Is Meeting Most Mental Health Care Access Standards, but It Needs a Standard for Follow-up Appointments, GAO-16-416: Published: Apr 28, 2016. Publicly Released: Apr 28, 2016. Indian Health Service: Actions Needed to Improve Oversight of Patient Wait Times, GAO-16-333: Published: Mar 29, 2016. Publicly Released: Apr 28, 2016. Information Security: Opportunities… Continue Reading
Graphic: Bike to Work Day
“To commemorate Bike to Work Week (May 16-20) and Bike to Work Day (May 20), the U.S. Census Bureau presents a graphic showing the percentage of people biking to work in cities with a population of 100,000 or more. The percentages are derived from the 2014 American Community Survey. Internet address: www.census.gov/library/visualizations/2016/comm/bike2work.html.” Continue Reading
New LA Database Seeks to Help Keep Streets Clean
Los Angeles Times: “A new database, Clean Streets LA, measuring garbage on more than 9,100 miles of Los Angeles streets and alleys shows poorer areas of the city see more illegal dumping and litter than affluent ones. City officials on Friday released details on the far-reaching study, which is designed to help guide the city… Continue Reading
Pew – Planning for responsible shipping in Canada’s Arctic waters
Via Pew Charitable Trusts: “The world is looking to Canada’s Arctic Ocean for the promise of faster and cheaper intercontinental shipping and unexploited natural resources. The Arctic ice is melting because of climate change, which is creating a longer shipping season and has already resulted in vessel traffic increases of 166 percent through the Canadian… Continue Reading
Micro Unmanned Aircraft Systems Aviation Rulemaking Committee Recommendations Final Report
Micro Unmanned Aircraft Systems Aviation Rulemaking Committee (ARC) – ARC Recommendations Final Report, April 1, 2016. “The ARC membership represented diverse interests and viewpoints. Although some decisions were not unanimous, the ARC reached consensus on all of its recommendations to the FAA , as reflected in this report. The recommendations in this report reflect the… Continue Reading
Map – more than 10 percent of American bridges are structurally deficient
America’s Oldest, Most Crumbling, Most Crowded Bridges, Mapped: “For an advanced industrial country, America has pretty lousy infrastructure. Our ports, airports, roads and transit regularly get ‘D’ and ‘C’ grades in the the American Society of Engineers’s report cards. As in: Could do a lot better. About 11% of the nation’s 600,000 bridges are “structurally… Continue Reading
NYT – Washington Metro, 40 and Creaking, Stares at a Midlife Crisis
The Washington DC Metro system opened on March 27, 1976. Much has been written recently, over the past few years and further back as well, about the system’s deteriorating safety, reliability, passenger dissatisfaction with increasingly frequent delays, overcrowding and relentless service delays. Citizens and public officials have called for much need improvements that include the… Continue Reading
GAO Reports – Federal Protective Service, HUBZone Program, 2015 Lobbying Disclosure, Unmanned Carrier-Based Aircraft System, Vehicle Safety
Federal Protective Service: Enhancements to Performance Measures and Data Quality Processes Could Improve Human Capital Planning, GAO-16-384: Published: Mar 24, 2016. Publicly Released: Mar 24, 2016. HUBZone Program: Actions Taken on February 2015 GAO Recommendations, GAO-16-423R: Published: Mar 24, 2015. Publicly Released: Mar 24, 2016. IRS Referral Programs: Opportunities Exist to Strengthen Controls and Increase… Continue Reading
