Mass transit in the United States

Mass transit in the United States

Mass transportation systems in the United States include buses, trolleybuses, trams and trains, 'rapid transit' (metro/subways/undergrounds etc) and ferries. Intercity public transport is dominated by airlines and intercity rail. The number of miles traveled by vehicles in the United States fell by 3.6% in 2008, while the number of trips taken on mass transit increased by 4.0%. At least part of the drop in urban driving can be explained by the 4% increase in the use of public transportation [1]

Contents

Cities

See also: List of rail transit systems in the United States and List of bus transit systems in the United States
Some North American cities arranged by size along the horizontal axis and public transportation use on the vertical axis. U.S. cities have lower public transit use than similarly sized Canadian and Mexican cities.

Most medium-sized cities have some form of local public transportation, usually a network of fixed bus routes. Larger cities often have metro rail systems (also known as heavy rail in the U.S.) and/or light rail systems for high-capacity passenger service within the urban area, and commuter rail to serve the surrounding metropolitan area. These include:

About one in every three users of mass transit in the United States and two-thirds of the nation's rail riders live in New York City and its suburbs.[2][3] (See Transportation in New York City.) Some railroads, such as the Long Island Rail Road in earlier times, maintained a separate fleet of specially configured electric railway cars to provide a rapid transit service on designated routes that was distinct from its regular passenger operations.[citation needed]

Funding

American mass transit is funded by a combination of local, state, and federal agencies. At the federal level, the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) provides financial assistance and technical assistance to state governments and local transit providers. From FY 2005 to FY 2009, the funding scheme for the FTA was regulated by the SAFETEA-LU bill, which appropriated $286.4 billion in guaranteed funding.[4] The FTA awards grants through several programs, such as the New Starts program and Transit Investments for Greenhouse Gas and Energy Reduction (TIGGER) program.

Legislation

On June 26, 2008, the House passed the Saving Energy Through Public Transportation Act (H.R. 6052),[5], which gives grants to mass transit authorities to lower fares for commuters pinched at the pump and expand transit services. The bill also:

  • Requires that all Federal agencies offer their employees transit pass transportation fringe benefits. Federal agencies within the National Capital Region have successful transit pass benefits programs.
  • Increases the Federal cost-share of grants for construction of additional parking facilities at the end of subway lines from 80 to 100 percent to cover an increase in the number of people taking mass transit.
  • Creates a pilot program for vanpool demonstration projects in urban and rural areas.
  • Increases federal help for local governments to purchase alternative fuel buses, locomotives and ferries from 90 to 100 percent.

Advanced public transportation systems

Advanced public transportation systems (or APTS) is a Intelligent Vehicle Highway Systems, or IVHS, technology that is designed to improve transit services through advanced vehicle operations, communications, customer service, energy efficiency, air pollution reduction and market development.[citation needed]

See also

References

  1. ^ http://apps1.eere.energy.gov/news/news_detail.cfm/news_id=12283
  2. ^ "The MTA Network: Public Transportation for the New York Region". Metropolitan Transportation Authority. http://www.mta.info/mta/network.htm. Retrieved 2006-05-17. 
  3. ^ Pisarski, Alan (October 16, 2006). "Commuting in America III: Commuting Facts" (PDF). Transportation Research Board. http://onlinepubs.trb.org/onlinepubs/nchrp/CIAIIIfacts.pdf. Retrieved 2007-03-27. 
  4. ^ SAFETEA-LU Implementation, Federal Transit Administration.
  5. ^ http://speaker.gov/issues?id=0031#13

Further reading


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Нужна курсовая?

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Transportation in the United States — is facilitated by road, air, rail, and water networks. The vast majority of passenger travel occurs by automobile for shorter distances, and airplane for longer distances. In descending order, most cargoes travel by railroad, truck, pipeline, or… …   Wikipedia

  • Sales taxes in the United States — are a tax added onto the price of goods or services that are purchased in the United States. A sales tax is a tax on consumption, which is displayed as a percentage of the sale price. Sales taxes are assessed by every state except Alaska,… …   Wikipedia

  • Rail transportation in the United States — Rail transport Operations Track Maintenance High speed Gauge Stations …   Wikipedia

  • Rail transport in the United States — This article is part of the history of rail transport by country series. Today, most rail transport in the United States is based in freight train shipments. Changing U.S. economic needs and the rise of automobile, bus, and air transport led to… …   Wikipedia

  • Chinese immigration to the United States — consists of three major waves with the first beginning in the early 19th century. For nearly two centuries, the history of Chinese immigration to the United States has witnessed hardship as well as success.The Chinese have been arriving in large… …   Wikipedia

  • Human rights in the United States — In 1776, Thomas Jefferson proposed a philosophy of human rights inherent to all people in the Declaration of Independence, asserting that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that… …   Wikipedia

  • Demographic history of the United States — This article is about the demographic history of the United States. Contents 1 Historical population 2 Age at marriage 3 Immigration 3.1 Earlier Colonial era …   Wikipedia

  • mass transit — a system of large scale public transportation in a given metropolitan area, typically comprising buses, subways, and elevated trains. Cf. rapid transit. * * * Transportation systems, usually publicly but sometimes privately owned and operated,… …   Universalium

  • Mass transit in New York City — Main article: Transportation in New York City Inside New York s Grand Central Terminal, the second busiest rail station in the United States. New York City s public transportation network is the most extensive in North America. About one in every …   Wikipedia

  • Society of the United States — The society or culture of the United States is a Western culture, and has been developing since long before the United States became a country with its own unique characteristics and developments such as dialect, music, arts, cuisine, etc. Today… …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
… Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”