Policy Page 10

Obama’s Budget: How Would It Impact Trails?

Posted 04/11/13 by Marianne Wesley Fowler in Policy | Tagged with State and Federal Programs

Yesterday, President Obama proposed a budget that would keep funding for core transportation programs even with the levels authorized in MAP-21, while adding $50 billion for immediate funding of transportation projects in key areas. The proposal also takes aim at some non-DOT programs of interest to the trail and active transportation constituencies.

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What Sequestration Will Mean for Trails: The Latest

Posted 03/27/13 by Marianne Wesley Fowler in Policy | Tagged with State and Federal Programs, Threats to Trail Building

Last month, we posted our analysis of the impact of sequestration on the nation's trails, and biking and walking infrastructure. On March 1, as scheduled, federal agencies were subject to mandatory funding cuts. As we expected, monies in the Highway Trust Fund were protected from cuts, and programs funded with these monies continue as normal.

What Sequestration May Mean for Trails, Biking and Walking

Posted 03/04/13 by Keith Laughlin in Policy | Tagged with State and Federal Programs, Threats to Trail Building

There has been a lot of news coverage and analysis recently of a federal government sequestration and its potential impacts. At Rails-to-Trails Conservancy, our experienced policy and research staff have been mining their sources and sorting through all available information to estimate what impact sequestration could have on our movement for better trails, biking and walking.

Photo of ribbon cutting on the Charter Oak Trail © Hartford Courant

Connecticut On a Roll As the Trail Gaps Disappear

Posted 01/16/13 by Rails-to-Trails Conservancy in Building Trails, Policy, Success Stories | Tagged with Champions, Connected Systems, Connecticut, Products of Good Policy

Driven by a supportive governor and a forward-thinking state department of transportation that is conscious of the role of biking and walking in modern planning, Connecticut has done some great things in recent years to connect, and expand, its network of trails.

Photo of Cal Park Hill Tunne © MCBC

In California, RTC Urges Gov. Brown on Active Transportation Strategy

Posted 01/11/13 by Rails-to-Trails Conservancy in Policy, Building Trails | Tagged with California, Demand for Trails, State and Federal Programs

The state of California is a unique bird, particularly when it comes to transportation planning. A massive space populated with a mixture of booming metropolises, sprawling suburbs, and sparse rural areas, the Golden State's dire financial straits of late have made solving its intense congestion, connectivity and public health challenges all the more difficult, and important.

RTC Study of California DOT Reveals Need to Improve Bike/Ped Culture

Posted 09/27/12 by Rails-to-Trails Conservancy in Building Trails, Policy | Tagged with California, Design Strategies, State and Federal Programs

How prepared are the planners, designers, engineers and work crews of our state departments of transportation to deliver this active transportation infrastructure? Aware of the critical role of these staff in facilitating walking and biking, Rails-to-Trails Conservancy (RTC) recently led a study of the California Department of Transportation's (Caltrans) bicycle- and pedestrian-related technical training for its staff.