News on Public Transportation

US lawmakers wowed by Japan bullet train

2010-03-17T16:16:11Z

<div><p>US lawmakers voiced awe Wednesday at taking a ride on Japan's sleek bullet trains, with one congressman saying he felt like he was in a videogame.</p><p>At a congressional hearing, Representative Don Manzullo said he took the ultra-fast train from the central city of Nagoya, where he visited Reuters) - As U.S. gasoline prices head toward $3 a gallon, states with many drivers in rural areas would take the biggest financial hit if pump costs spiked to record levels again, according to a new report released on Wednesday.</p><p>Consumers in all states are dependent on oil for their transportation needs, but drivers in som...

Houston Transit Crash

2010-03-15T17:16:39Z

The front windshield of a transit bus is broken after colliding with a light-rail train in downtown Houston, Monday, March 15, 2010. (AP Photo/Houston Chronicle, Julio Cortez)

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19 hurt when Houston transit train, bus collide

2010-03-15T17:15:17Z

<div id="subtitle">Collision of Houston transit train, bus sends 19 people to hospitals</div><div><p>Officials say a collision between a transit bus and light-rail train in downtown Houston has sent 19 people to the hospital. No serious injuries were reported.</p><p>The Metropolitan Transit Authorit...

Soweto drivers arrested during W.Cup bus protest

2010-03-15T09:15:44Z

<div><p>South African police Monday fired rubber bullets at striking Soweto minibus drivers who blocked roads to protest a new public transport system being roll out ahead of the football World Cup.</p><p>An AFP photographer in Soweto said police fired rubber bullets at the drivers after they refused to disperse, a...

2 killed, 2 injured in Salt Lake TRAX accident

2010-03-12T03:45:06Z

<div id="subtitle">2 killed, 2 injured in South Salt Lake light rail accident</div><div><p>Two people are dead and two are in critical condition after their car collided with a light-rail train.</p><p>Unified Fire Authority Capt. Clint Smith says the TRAX train hit the car at 7:10 p.m. Thursday at an intersection near 200 W. Central Ave. in South...

APTOPIX Greece Financial Crisis

2010-03-11T03:47:04Z

A train company worker walks between parked train carriages as the main entrance is locked with a chain at subway station of Piraeus near Athens Greece, during a 24-hour nationwide strike on Thursday, March 11, 2010. Greek public transport was halted, flights grounded and state hospitals left with emergency staff only on Thursday as workers held yet another general strike to protest painful spending cuts. (...

5 freight train cars derail in Philly; none hurt

2010-03-08T21:15:59Z

<div id="subtitle">5 CSX train cars derail in Philly but remain upright; none hurt, no hazardous materials leak</div><div><p>Authorities say five cars on a freight train derailed in downtown Philadelphia, but none tipped over and there were no injuries or hazardous materials involved.</p><p>CSX spokesman Bob Sullivan says the 123-car train was headin...

High Speed Rail Conflict

2010-03-08T00:46:41Z

In this photo taken March 4, 2010, a man waits for a train at the Buena Park Metrolink station in Buena Park, Calif. It's a huge challenge getting car-dependent Californians to embrace mass transportation, so getting them to move into a community centered around a train station seemed like the impossible. Now as construction wraps up on townhouses built next to a commuter train station here ci...

U.S. government awards final stimulus transit grants

2010-03-05T13:20:41Z

<div><p>WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. government on Friday met its deadline for awarding all of the $7.5 billion allotted for public transportation grants in the stimulus plan passed last year.</p><p>Vice President Joe Biden and Transportation Secretar...

NJ Transit announces fare hikes, service cuts

2010-03-05T13:00:25Z

<div id="subtitle">NJ Transit to boost fares by 25 percent, cut service to help address growing budget woes</div><div><p>Bus and rail commuters will be digging deeper to ride NJ Transit.</p><p>James Weinstein, the transit agency's new executive director, announced Friday that he'll seek approval from NJ Transit's board to increase fares by 25 percent systemwide and trim...

Pentagon Metro Shooting

2010-03-05T13:01:30Z

Alease Turner, right, with Metro, welcomes people to a shuttle bus headed for the Pentagon at the Pentagon City Metro stop in Arlington, Va., Friday, March 5, 2010, after a shooting at the Pentagon Metro stop on Thursday temporarily closed down the stop. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

Greece Financial Crisis

2010-03-05T05:46:09Z

A man stands in front of a closed gate at the Syntagma Metro Station in central Athens on Friday, March 5, 2010. Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou on Friday launched a diplomatic quest for concrete support from European leaders in fighting off his country's debt crisis, as workers back home shut down hospitals, schools and public transport to protest painful cuts. ...

Two Police Officers Shot At Entrance To Pentagon

2010-03-04T19:33:35Z

ARLINGTON, VA - MARCH 04: Military Force Protection Agency spokesman Richard Keevil briefs reporters near the Pentagon Station Metro stop, the area of the Pentagon near where two police officers were shot late March 4, 2010 in Arlington,

Pentagon locks down after reported metro shooting

2010-03-04T17:15:59Z

<div><p>The Pentagon imposed a security lockdown Thursday following an incident in the metro station that serves the US military headquarters, a spokesman said.</p><p>The Pentagon spokesman would not comment on the incident itself, but television news reports said shots were fired in the station.</p><p>"The Pentagon is in lockdown due to an...

Snow Storm Slams Northeast

2010-02-26T10:31:53Z

MAPLEWOOD, NJ - FEBRUARY 26: A commuter walks to the NJ Transit train station on February 26, 2010 in Maplewood, New Jersey. Over a foot of powdery, drifting snow fell overnight, closing many schools and delaying commuter trains. (Photo by Jeff Zelevansky/New York terrorism case</div><div><p>A federal grand jury has indicted two men in the foiled New York City subway bomb plot.</p><p>Charges unsealed this morning in Brooklyn allege that Zarein Ahmedzay (zah-RAYN' a...

"Dire" NY MTA finances may mean another fare hike

2010-02-25T06:00:12Z

<div><p>NEW YORK (Reuters) - The financial problems confronting New York's Metropolitan Transportation Authority are so "dire" that straphangers might be hit with a fare hike this year, one year sooner than planned.</p><p>Calif. stations, lost his hand in 1st accident</div><div><p>A man who lost his hand after being dragged by a commuter train two weeks ago in Southern California has been hit by a train again. Police say the man claimed he fell from the platform onto the tracks at the Irvine station and was hit by a northbound trai...

Trains and buses steal gold for Vancouver

2010-02-24T08:45:30Z

<div><p>VANCOUVER (Reuters) - Vancouver's driverless trains have been steady winners at the Winter Olympics during which passengers have poured on to a transit system that has stretched way beyond expected capacity but not snapped.</p><p>Vancouver's Translink local transit system says usage has averaged 1.6 million people a day over the Games so far, more th...