![\"image\"](\"https:\/\/wp.baltimorespokes.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/02\/Traffic_842866223_8490f33410_b.jpg\")
\nEconomic recovery is good, but increased driving and congestion is not. How can we have both at the same time? Photo: A*censored*er Village Newbie, flickr.<\/p>\n
Oh great, driving is up, mass transit being slashed, more congestion, funding for car centric roads coming from general funds and Senator “Car Tax Credits While Transit Burns” Mikulski is seeking reelection. What more can an American want? <\/p>\n
\nEconomic recovery is good, but increased driving and congestion is not. How can we have both at the same time? Photo: A*censored*er Village Newbie, flickr.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s official \u2013 the historic decline in driving we\u2019ve seen for the past two years has ended. From 2007 up to a few months ago, the economic crisis and high gas prices combined to produce some of the largest decreases in driving since the 1970s. We know that recessions lead to reduced driving, but still, these numbers along with the increased transit ridership we saw gave sustainable transportation advocates hope that we were witnessing a paradigm shift. The drop in miles driven even continued as gas prices plummeted in the fall of 2008. As the Boston Globe reported at the time:<\/p>\n
\u201cThe fact that the trend persists even as gas prices are dropping confirms that America\u2019s travel habits are fundamentally changing,\u201d Transportation Secretary Mary Peters said.
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\n While driving declined, subways, buses, commuter rail, and light-rail systems have reported record increases in ridership. Amtrak, the nation\u2019s intercity passenger railroad, said it carried the highest number of passengers and brought in the most revenue in fiscal 2008 in its 37-year history.<\/p>\n
The hope of a fundamental travel behavior shift faded a little with the release of INRIX\u2019s 2009 National Traffic Scorecard today.
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Driving Decline Ends<\/a><\/p>\n Transit cuts will mean gridlock every day:<\/a><\/p>\n Congress supports cars not paying for road improvements<\/a><\/p>\n Mikulski Fiddles with Car Tax Credits While Transit Burns<\/a> Oh great, driving is up, mass transit being slashed, more congestion, funding for car centric roads coming from general funds and Senator “Car Tax Credits While Transit Burns” Mikulski is seeking reelection. What more can an American want? Economic recovery is good, but increased driving and congestion is not. How can we have both at … <\/p>\n
Mikulski ‘not retiring,’<\/a>oldId.20100228104418906<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"