Cars too expensive in time and money

MyNorthwest.com: "While it might be convenient to have that sedan waiting for you in the driveway, the frequent trips to the gas station, mechanic's shop, car wash and DMV are anything but. Add to that the hours per week you spend sitting in rush-hour traffic and you might be surprised at how much time you're wasting on that "convenient" car.

And then there are the expenses. You already knew what you'd be paying each month when you signed that five-year auto loan, but that's just where your vehicle expenses start. Add to that the costs of gas, insurance, registration, tires, oil changes and general maintenance and you've got a much larger figure. According to Consumer Reports, the true cost to own an average car is more than $9,000 per year for the first five years."

Portland parents launch national Vision Zero PAC to push 'traffic violence apologists' out of office

BikePortland.org: "“When we moved back to Portland two years ago, we were excited to ditch our cars and raise our family primarily using human powered transportation,” Subach, who also volunteers as social media coordinator for the local group Better Block PDX, wrote in an email Monday. “We discovered that Portland is selling a package of goods that it can’t deliver. People continue to get hurt and killed crossing streets. Parents who bike their kids to elementary school have to seek out support from other people driving cars and riding bikes so that they don’t get aggressively passed riding on the Clinton neighborhood greenway. We ride our bikes with our daughter to and from school on the Going Street neighborhood greenway, and every single time we are out there a car runs a stop sign, or blasts down the street, because Portland politicians don’t have the will to make the streets safe for all users.”"

UTA want a Sale Tax Increase, well give us FREE PUBLIC TRANSIT

Catmeow Public Transit Tammi Diaz Thoughts: "UTA want a Sales Tax Increase, Well give us FREE PUBLIC TRANSIT. TAXPAYERS are not made of $$MONEY$$."

Seattle is planning to replace parking spots with bus passes

CityMetric: "37 per cent of the parking in recently-built apartments was empty. It also estimated that those empty spaces were adding around $250 a month to the cost of renting an apartment, since parking spaces in the city can cost between $20,000 and $50,000 to build. 

So the city government is thinking of going a step further. A bill presented by the city's departments of transport, development and planning to the city council last week proposes that developers should issue residents with transit passes or membership of car sharing schemes, in place of parking spots. "

Transit free during May to older riders

Wallowa County Chieftain: "Public Transit operations in Wallowa, Union and Baker counties announced they will provide free rides for people age 60 and over to and from meals at the Enterprise, Wallowa, La Grande and Baker City dining centers during the month of May."

Public wants more, not less, #publictransit

Spokesman.com: "Prop 1 is about responding to the public and ensuring accountability. Residents of Spokane County have continually called for more, not less transit service. This ballot measure is the result of three years of public input into a 10-year plan that invests in over 25 projects across the county to expand service by 25 percent."

MISSOULIAN EDITORIAL: Missoula rallies for public transportation

missoulian.com: " As ridership increases, so does the need to provide stable, long-term funding for transportation infrastructure.

This is true for Mountain Line as well, which relies on federal funding for transportation infrastructure in addition to community support in order to offer innovative new options like zero-fare service. The three-year demonstration project was boosted with $460,000 in sponsorships from 14 different community partners, including the Missoulian. Additionally, Mountain Line added 15-minute BOLT! service to one of its routes, and began offering service late into the evening."



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