The Victoria Transport Policy Institute has published a report, “Smart Transportation Investments: Reevaluating the Role of Highway Expansion for Improving Transportation.” This study argues that investment in urban highway capacity suffers from the law of diminishing returns. Early investments generated a high return on investment. But comparable investments today will generate a much lower rate…

A quick note about Bacon’s Rebellion‘s endorsement policies: We don’t endorse political candidates and we don’t endorse political parties. Contributing bloggers are, of course, free to vote for and endorse anyone they like on their own websites — and they do. But this blog eschews partisan politics. We focus on state and local issues, most…

Patrick Michaels, Virginia’s state climatologist, is not alone in questioning global warming hysteria. He has allies among other state climatologists in departing from the putative “consensus” among climatologists regarding the severity and urgency of the global warming crisis. Now, according to the Washington Post, the “irregular system” of state-supported offices of climatologists is coming under…

Talk show host Rosie O’Donnell may think that “radical Christianity is just as threatening as radical Islam in a country like America where we have separation of church and state.” But one indisputable difference should give her pause: When offended by blaspemy, radical Christians don’t riot and kill the people who offend them. UVa’s student…

Gov. Timothy M. Kaine has finally announced his appointments for Commonwealth Transportation Board seats that expired June. Two of the five appointments are reappointments: Mary Lee Carter, a former chair of the Spotsylvania County Board of Supervisors, and John J. “Butch” Davies, a Culpeper attorney and former member of the House of Delegates. Bringing new…

Business and political elites in Virginia are far more agitated about traffic congestion than average voters are, and they are far more willing to pay higher taxes to address it. Why is that? This chart, excerpted from “Smart Transportation Investments,” published by the Victoria Transport Policy Institute, provides important clues why. This chart compares various…

Greg Pearson is the publisher and editor of the Chesterfield Observer. Regarding the News Council blog, my differences with the Richmond Times-Dispatch, WWBT or any other daily media does not concern their size. The issue is simply accurate and fair reporting. All of the media, regardless of size, need to be monitored, including the Chesterfield…

The Northern Virginia Transportation Authority has released its $46.6 billion transportation plan, TransAction 2030 (See the April preliminary report), and the Coalition for Smarter Growth is quick with a response. Executive Director Stewart Schwartz praised the Authority for “developing the first set of evaluation measures and for prioritizing projects based upon those measures,” but expressed…

In the comments section of one of our posts, someone asked whether former VDOT Commissioner Philip Shucet ever espoused any transportation reform other than raising taxes for more road projects. I alluded to a letter he had written to the General Assembly last October in which he recommended 10 reforms. I provide a copy of…

It’s illegal to discriminate against minorities in U.S. housing markets. It’s illegal to discriminate against old people. It’s illegal (I think) to discriminate against people on the basis of sexual orientation. But it’s OK to discriminate against families with children. Indeed, it’s perfectly acceptable for local governments to institutionalize that discrimination with their zoning codes.…

When rolling out his legislative package for transportation reform, House Speaker William J. Howell criticized the Virginia Department of Transportation’s performance in negotiating new public-private partnerships. As the Speaker said in his prepared statement: We will never effectively and affordably address this challenge without incorporating the lessons of the private sector, harnessing the power and…

The Daily Press editorializes today (‘Church and State, York County Schools try to better define the line’. Sep 15, 2006) about the York School Board changing its policy on Religion and Religious Instruction that “separation of church and state is a bedrock of our Constitutional protections, and public schools are one of the front lines…

Three multinational business groups have submitted proposals in response to a Kaine administration solicitation to upgrade U.S. 460, a four-lane highway that runs through peanut country between Suffolk and Petersburg. The project, which could cost in excess of $700 million, is deemed crucial for handling an anticipated surge in container shipments from a $450 million…

Bart Hinkle, the libertarian-leaning columnist at the Richmond Times-Dispatch, has launched his own blog, Barticles. In his first few days of blogging, he has covered a broad assortment of topics: from the pontifications of Pope Benedict to Bob McDonnell’s advisory opinions on same-sex marriage; from the politics of redistribution to anti-American animus in Europe. Hinkle…

Attorney General Bob McDonnell has issued an opinion on the same-sex marriage ban, specifically upon the question of whether the proposed constitutional amendment would affect the rights of unmarried persons involving contracts, insurance policies, shared equity agreements and advance medical directives. Money quote: “The intent of the amendment is clear. The first sentence defines marriage…