Author: James A. Bacon
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McAuliffe Provides More Relief for Hampton Roads Tolls
by James A. Bacon The Commonwealth Transportation Board voted Wednesday to make good on Governor Terry McAuliffe’s campaign promise to lower the tolls on two Elizabeth River tunnels. Tolls still will go up but less rapidly than provided for in the $2.1 billion public-private partnership agreement for the Downtown Tunnel/Midtown Tunnel project. Relief for the…
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Virginia’s Fiscal Condition: Average
Virginians persist in the belief that the commonwealth is an exceptionally well managed state with lower-than-average taxes, better-than-average services and rock-solid finances, as exemplified by its AAA bond rating. But there’s more to a state’s fiscal health than its ability to repay bonds. Sarah Arnett with the Mercatus Center rates the fiscal condition of the…
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The Statewide Importance of the 495 Express Lanes
by James A. Bacon Traffic and revenues on Northern Virginia’s 495 Express Lanes increased steadily in 2013, generating a record 47,000 trips and toll revenue of $124,000 on December 19, according to data the company released yesterday. Whether that’s enough to meet expectations of parent company Transurban Holdings Ltd., headquartered in Australia, or to encourage…
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Biophilia, Happiness and Place Making
by James A. Bacon Biologist and philosopher E.O. Wilson coined the term “biophilia” to describe humans’ deeply rooted love of life and nature — a sentiment that may be a product of man’s biological evolution. It is human nature to take delight in the presence of wildlife (at least the kind that doesn’t eat you),…
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Add One More Item to the Ethics-Reform Agenda
In a recent survey of registered voters, 64% of respondents agreed with the proposition, “Political leaders are less ethical than they used to be.” Distrust of political leaders crossed party lines, gender and race. “While public officials still may think they operate with a sense of noblesse oblige, the public clearly does not,” say Quentin…
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Depressing
So depressing… The red line in the chart above chronicles the steady erosion of America’s economic freedom, the fountainhead of its prosperity. The United States’ score has fallen seven years straight, from one of the Top 10 freest economies to No. 12, according to the 2014 Index of Economic Freedom published by the Heritage Foundation…
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Factoids of the Day: Domestic Violence in Virginia
From the 2013 Annual Report on Domestic and Sexual Violence in Virginia: “In 2012, at least 117 men, women, and children lost their lives to domestic violence, representing a 12.7% increase in family and intimate partner homicides from 2011 to 2012. Also in 2012, there were more than 67,000 calls to domestic and sexual violence…
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LaRock Targets MWAA, Dulles Rail, Mass Transit
by James A. Bacon Del. David A. LaRock, R-Hamilton, the man who beat legislative veteran Joe May in the Republican primary last year, comes to the General Assembly promising to represent conservative values and principles. Judging by the bills he has submitted so far, he will be true to his word. Aside from one bill…
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EMS as Competitive Economic Advantage
by James A. Bacon Eleven years ago NASCAR racer Jerry Nadeau was blazing hot on the Richmond Raceway… until he barreled into a turn and smashed into a concrete wall. The wreck registered at 121 times the force of gravity — three to six times the force that had sent other NASCAR drivers to the…
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A Roadmap for the Future of Self-Driving Cars
by James A. Bacon Self-driving cars (SDCs) are coming. Will Virginia government, law and transportation planning keep up? There’s sign no of it. Indeed, the Old Dominion could experience a transportation crack-up in 15 to 20 years if we don’t start preparing now. There’s no excuse for not thinking ahead. A new study by the…
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Hugo Proposes to Restructure the CTB
A bill submitted by Del. Tim Hugo, R-Centreville, would expand the Commonwealth Transportation Board from 18 members to 24 by adding three members of the Virginia Senate and three members of the House of Delegates. I have not talked to Hugo about his reasoning, but I can conjecture. The bill represents an effort to make the…
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What Do You Get When You Cross a Segway with a Skateboard?
Here comes another example of creativity and innovation from the private sector that politicians, planners and pundits (even clear-eyed, forward-looking pundits such as myself!) could not possibly have foreseen — the Onewheel. Onewheel, whose inventors are trying to raise $100,000 through Kickstarter, is a one-wheeled, self-balancing skateboard-like transportation device. It can reach speeds up to…
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Renewable Portfolio Standards: To Mandate or Not to Mandate?
This blog posting represents the first in a debate series developed by authors of Bacon’s Rebellion and Blue Virginia on actions that Virginians can take to address climate change. All articles will be simultaneously posted on both blogs. Introduction. Renewable Portfolio Standards (RPS) are laws or regulations designed to increase the percentage of energy…
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Conservative vs. Progressive: Global Climate Change
Killer Bs. In an unprecedented move, two prominent Virginia blogs, Bacon’s Rebellion and BlueVirginia, have agreed to cooperate in a structured debate over a series of possible programs designed to combat global climate change. The programs were selected based on two major criteria – they had to be applicable to Virginia and they had to encompass actions…
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New Names for the Redskins
OK, this Washington Redskins controversy is getting out of hand. If people don’t like the name, let’s change it! My two nominations: The Rednecks Major advantage: With a little white-out, you wouldn’t even have to change the team stationery. The Palefaces Major advantage: The Palefaces didn’t win all the battles but they won all the…