Hawaii is one of the states that has spent the most federal funding on transit projects. Photo via Wikipedia.

Welcome to “Research Recap,” our series highlighting recent reports, studies and other findings in sustainable transportation policy and practice, in case you missed it.

Transit Funding

The Tri-State Transportation Campaign, a transit-oriented nonprofit that advocates for increased mobility in the states of New Jersey, New York and Connecticut, released a report, “Tracking State Transportation Dollars,” detailing federal spending on transportation projects. The report and its interactive map  detail proportional spending on transportation, finding that Hawaii and New York have spent the most on transit—nearly $20 billion combined.  Nebraska and Mississippi, the states that spent the least on transit, invested a total of $108.5-million.

Urban GDP

The U.S. Conference of Mayors released its U.S. Metro Economies report, “Outlook-Gross Metropolitan Product, and Critical Role of Transportation Infrastructure,” detailing GDP growth by metropolitan regions. The report shows that several America urban economies produce more GDP than entire countries. For example, the D.C. metro area’s economy is about the size of South Africa’s. However, the report notes, U.S. infrastructure growth is not large enough to sustain economic gains across other sectors.

Youth Driving Habits

The University of Michigan Transportation Research Institute found that young people, over the past two decades, have consistently reduced their rates of driving, as indicated by declining rate of driver’s licenses issued among 16- to 24-year-olds. The subgroup with the sharpest decline in driving rates were among slightly older young people, aged 20 to 24, indicating a 10.9 percent dip in issued licenses since 1983.

U.K. Driver Fatalities

By contrast, 16- to 24-year-old drivers in the United Kingdom, combined with cyclists, are increasing traffic-related mortality rates in the the U.K. for the first time since 2003, according to a new House of Commons report. Though these findings are not without tragedy, the U.K. also has one of the lowest rates of traffic fatalities in the European Union, with Sweden being the member-state with the lowest traffic-induced mortality rate over the last decade.

Japanese and U.S. companies team up on smart grid project in Maui, Hawaii. Photo by Marks Jonathan.

Welcome back to TheCityFix Picks, our series highlighting the newsy and noteworthy of the past week. Each Friday, we’ll run down the headlines falling under TheCityFix’s five themes: mobility, quality of life, environment, public space, and technology and innovation.

Mobility

Smartmatic signed a US$ 370 million deal to implement and operate the ticket collection and fleet management areas of Colombia’s new bus rapid transit (BRT) system. The BRT will service the district of Cartagena and its surrounding areas.

Central Florida lawmakers took steps towards creating complete streets by passing legislation calling for narrower road lanes, wider sidewalks and more buildings closer to road’s edge.

U.S. gas prices are forecasted to decrease during the summer months, with the explanation of shrinking public demand and increases in refinery inventories.

Toronto Mayor Rob Ford will present his cycling plan next month, according to Councilor Denzil Minnan-Wong. The plan will include physically separated bike lanes.

Malaysia’s traffic congestion problem could be alleviated by implementing a BRT system, contra-flow bus lanes and comprehensive sidewalks, according to Muhammad Zulkarnain Hamzah of the Association for the Improvement of Mass Transit.

Quality of Life

Put on your helmets and roll-up those pant legs—today is the U.S. National Bike to Work Day! Bike commuting has increased nationwide by 44 percent over the past 10 years.

The New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene released a new report purporting the benefits of active transportation. Among the report’s most memorable findings is that “physical inactivity contributes to one in eight deaths annually among New Yorkers aged 30 and older.”

The Vulnerable User Bill was officially signed into law by Washington State’s governor, Chris Gregoire. The law’s penalties include fines of up to $5,000 to those who seriously injure or kill “a more vulnerable road user.”

Bicycle illumination, and consequently bicycle safety, was improved by a recently developed bicycle lighting system,  Project Aura. The system consists of lights that attach to wheel rims, making bikes visible at night from any perspective.

Environment

U.K. Transport Minister Norman Baker announced a new carbon calculator tool for use in aiding the development of local transport projects.

The body heat of commuters will be captured and transferred to the heating of buildings through a new system in Paris and Stockholm.

Converting agricultural waste into biofuel could satisfy 59 percent of India’s transport gasoline demands, asserts a new study by Bloomberg New Energy Finance.

Japanese and the U.S. companies are teaming up on a smart grid project for the Hawaiian island of Maui. Hitachi, the electronics and IT group, will serve as the project leader.

Public Space

A recent conference in Barcelona, titled, “What’s the Place for Public Space in our Cities?” explored the arena of public spaces.

Farmingthecity.net, an interactive website showcasing urban farming projects, was launched by the European urban research institute CITIES. The project aims to encourage the development of local urban food systems.

Farmers’ markets in Prague have blossomed, growing from zero to 20 markets that feature local farmers’ produce within the past 12 months.

Technology and Innovation

General Motors is revving up production of its all-electric Chevy Volt, planning to increase production from 16,000 units this year to 60,000 units in 2012.

St. Albert Transit became one of the first Canadian transit agencies to offer real-time bus arrival information. In the United States, LA Metro launched its real-time bus information system this week, as well.

Fiat’s 875cc TwinAir engine was honored with a number of awards including Green Engine of the Year, Best New Engine of the Year and the International Engine of the Year.

A myriad of EV-industry experts convened in the first edition of the “Charging Forward: Electric Vehicle Survey“ to assess the factors impacting the success of EVs in the short-, mid-, and long-term.

Chiltern Railways of the U.K. launched the first fully mobile ticketing platform, allowing rail users to use mobile devices to buy, download and even scan tickets. “This innovation in ticketing is a first within the rail industry,” said Thomas Ableman, marketing director of Chiltern Railways.

"If aliens were looking down on Los Angeles they would come to the conclusion that the ultimate life form is the automobile." From BMW's Activate the Future series.

Welcome back to TheCityFix Picks, our series highlighting the newsy and noteworthy of the past week. Each Friday, we’ll run down the headlines falling under TheCityFix’s five themes: mobility, quality of life, environment, public space, and technology and innovation.

Mobility

Obama’s transit upgrade proposal, if approved, will cost $556 billion, the largest amount for such projects in U.S. history. Even now, there is a$134 billion gap between sources of funding for transport infrastructure and funding needed to maintain and improve the current system.

Hawaii’s most expensive public works project, Honolulu’s new rail system, broke ground this Tuesday. By 2019 the system will connect the fast-growing West Oahu region to the city’s core.

Construction began on the $1.45 billion transit project in Panama City that will run from a national bus terminal to the north of the city and is considered the first mass transit system in Central America.

Megabus expands its bus services to Philadelphia, in line with growing demand.

Chennai Metro Rail awarded its last major contract to build tunnels and an 18-kilometer corridor, of which 14.3 kilometers will be underground.

Lyon, France is aiming for 5 percent modal share of bikes by 2014 and will continue to make the city bike- and pedestrian-friendly by creating innovative bike paths and greenways.

Quality of Life

A developer who owns land near the Tysons East Metro Station in metropolitan Washington, D.C. is proposing 21 walkable new developments near the future station.

Also in the District, government officials take the heat for drivin’ big cars, guzzlin’ gas and takin’ up resident road space.

BMW produced a four-part documentary series, “Activate the future,” on the future of mobility.

Public Space

During political upheaval, people always hijack the streets. Recent events show how public space has been crucial for political change and protests in Egypt.

Underway today, the Complete Streets for Los Angeles Conference discusses ways of improving road safety, multi-modal transportation and design.

A lawyer based in Cape Town, South Africa developed a campaign, called Rock Girl, to plant benches in the city that are literally and figuratively symbolic of female voices, safety and non-gendered public spaces.  The first bench was installed this Wednesday.

Hollywood actor Edward Norton launched a bike ride for sustainable communities from the headquarters of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP ) in Nairobi, Kenya to Mount Kilimanjaro as part of three-week campaign.

Rahm Emanuel, Chicago’s new mayor, plans to build off Chicago’s Complete Streets policy plan by investing in trains, buses, biking and walking.

Environment

Air pollution triggers more heart attacks than the use of cocaine and “poses as high a risk of sparking a heart attack as alcohol, coffee and physical exertion.”

Gas is cheaper than water, Streetsblog points out.

Targets to improve average fuel economy by 50 percent for new cars by 2030 and for the entire global light duty vehicle fleet by the same amount by 2050 is achievable using “existing, cost-effective technologies,” according to a new report commissioned by the Global Fuel Economy Initiative.

Technology and Innovation

Next month, Zen Car will launch 29 all-electric cars as part of a carsharing organization that will include 15 charging stations in Brussels, Belgium.

America’s first offshore turbine wind factory opened this month in Norfolk, Va. that will supply windmills for future projects.

In 10 years, look for Driver Alcohol Detection Systems for Safety that would use sensors to measure blood alcohol content, either by analyzing a driver’s breath or their skin, using touch-based sensors.

We can’t get enough maps! This one shows the cost of train tickets by distance in the U.K.

Transport for London will roll out contact-less payment for its entire transport network with compatible credit cards, just in time for the 2012 Olympics.