George Monbiot in The Guardian, Thu 13 Sep 2018 Illustration: Eva Bee Never underestimate the power of one determined person. What Carole Cadwalladr has done to Facebook and big data, and Edward Snowden has done to the state security complex, the young Kazakhstani scientist Alexandra Elbakyan has done to the multibillion-dollar industry that traps knowledge behind paywalls. Sci-Hub, her pirate web scraper service, has done more …
Congestion Pricing Will Help Stop Climate Change, but the direct tailpipe emissions impact of congestion pricing is outweighed by its force multiplier effect
By Charles Komanoff, StreetsBlog, Jan 12, 2018 With congestion pricing, New York will function better, enabling many more people to live and do business in low-carbon NYC instead of Anytown, USA. Photo: TransitCenter Will congestion pricing deter climate change? I ponder that a lot, both as an ordinary citizen and as founder-director of the Carbon Tax Center, which promotes robust carbon taxes as …
Congestion pricing and new revenue for transit in Virginia and DC
By Aarian Marshall, 9 Dec 2017 Drivers who choose to drive alone on Northern Virginia’s Interstate-66 express lanes get charged based on how far they’re traveling—and how much traffic is already on the road. GETTY IMAGES THERE ARE PLENTY of reasons for outrage coming out of Washington, DC, these days, but this week the divided region found a common enemy. The …
The 2018 Zayed Future Energy Prize (ZFEP) finalists in the Small and Medium Enterprise (SME), Nonprofit categories have just been announced
28 October 2017 by Zachary Shahan on Clean Technica The 2018 Zayed Future Energy Prize (ZFEP) finalists in the Small and Medium Enterprise (SME), Nonprofit, and Global High Schools categories have just been announced. The next step in the ZFEP evaluation process is that the ZFEP Jury, led by Ólafur Grímsson, the 5th President of the Republic of Iceland, will debate the merits and limitations of …
How Big Corporations Game Our Democracy into Their Plutocracy. Also, Highlights from “The Rich Don’t Always Win: The Forgotten Triumph over Plutocracy that Created the American Middle Class” by Sam Pizzigati
When public institutions are governed by private interests. By Ralph Nader, 4 Oct 2017 on Common Dreams A major chapter in American history – rarely taught in our schools – is how ever larger corporations have moved to game, neutralize and undermine the people’s continual efforts to protect our touted democratic society. It is a fascinating story of the relentless exercise …
Pricing cuts traffic. Massachusetts lawmakers have already proposed a tax on driverless vehicles to prevent zombie cars. The bill calls for a per-mile fee of at least $0.025.
By Danielle Muoio, Business Insider, 4 Jun 2017 A fleet of self-driving Ubers in Pittsburgh. Business Insider/Corey Protin Self-driving cars might make your future commute a lot more pleasant, but they won’t eliminate traffic. Execs like Google cofounder Sergey Brin have touted traffic reduction as one of the many benefits of having self-driving cars on the road. The idea is that autonomous cars will eliminate accidents caused by …
Including avoided cost for electricity when valuing local generation by wind and solar
September 11th, 2017 by John Farrell Originally published at ilsr.org. A federal policy enacted nearly 40 years ago has breathed life into an ongoing argument at the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission over utility opposition to a wind-solar hybrid project proposed in the rural city of Red Lake Falls. The law, known as PURPA, was designed to promote local renewable generation by requiring utilities — even monopolies — …
Congestion pricing comes to NYC. London’s former mayor said it was the only thing in his political career that “turned out better than I expected.” Safety improved and speeds would be 20-30 percent lower without it
Ken Livingstone, the London mayor when congestion pricing began in 2003, has said it’s the only thing in his political career that “turned out better than I expected.” London’s vehicle speeds would be 20 percent to 30 percent lower without the charge to enter central London, the urban expert Charles Komanoff has estimated, and a separate study found a significant decline in crashes. …
It’s time to stop pretending that roads pay for themselves: Car owners don’t come close to covering the price of maintaining the roads they use
By Angie Schmitt, 25 Nov 2015 If nothing else, the current round of federal transportation legislating should end the myth that highways are a uniquely self-sufficient form of infrastructure paid for by “user fees,” a.k.a. gas taxes and tolls. With all the general tax revenue that goes toward roads in America, car infrastructure has benefited from hefty subsidies for many …