Most Americans rely on cars to get around, as “87 percent of daily trips take place in personal vehicles,” according to the Bureau of Transportation Statistics. In addition, during the COVID-19 pandemic, fear of public transportation has led to more reliance on personal vehicles than usual. Due to the pandemic, 20 percent of people who don’t own a car are considering buying one. While driving offers a more isolated commute, it is often a major hassle and expense. Drivers annually spend an average of more than 310 hours on the road. That’s nearly 13 days. Add the costs of wasted time and fuel due to traffic congestions, and our collective tab comes to about $1,400 per driver each year. Road q

The Philadelphia Inquirer Elaine Paul Schaefer In the coming months, our Pennsylvania state lawmakers are going to have some tough decisions to make. Back in the height of chaos of this pandemic, they opted to pass only 5/12ths of the state 2020-21 budget, leaving the tough decisions until the fall. Fair enough, but now the time has come to pass the remaining 7/12ths. And the numbers are daunting — some say we are looking at a deficit over $5 billion resulting from a crippled economy and massive public health expenditures. It is absolutely critical that our lawmakers do not further cripple our economy and jeopardize the health of Pennsylvania residents by decreasing our investment in parks,

While the coronavirus continues to plague the nation, Pennsylvania transportation and environmental planners are gearing up for an easy transition from gasoline to electric cars. Transportation and environmental planners provided a lesson in electric cars in celebration of National Drive Electric Week. “The sale of electric cars will continue to grow and one day will dominate,” said Alissa Burger, a program manager at Electrification Coalition, a Washington, D.C.-based network advancing the transition to electric cars. Burger said the automobile companies, including General Motors, Toyota, Ford, and Volkswagen are investing billions of dollars in electric cars. Department of Environmental Pr

The nearly overnight shift to remote working situations had a broad impact on commutes across the country, but the changes have also raised questions when it comes to planning for the future of transportation. The COVID-19 pandemic has upended so much of daily life, and the rush-hour commute is no exception, with large swaths of the workforce now working from home. This shift has opened the door to extensive research and conversation centered on the disruption, raising questions about the longevity of work-from-home setups, the larger transportation patterns emerging and how to plan for the future. Some of the broad-stroke changes seen in many metropolitan areas, said Martin Morzynski, vice

Click here to view the video. Although many students at Valley Forge Middle School continue to learn remotely due to COVID-19, the school, in partnership with GVF, did not let that stop them from celebrating National Bike or Walk to School Day on October 14th virtually. Through the My School in Motion program, GVF and Valley Forge Middle School put together a fun educational video for students that discussed the school's bike and walking infrastructure, safety policies, and the My School in Motion Club. The video (above) also highlighted those who took part in the poster challenge, which asked students to draw a creative and educational picture of what walking/biking to school means to them.

Cities Today - The US Federal Transit Administration (FTA) is making US$10 million available in grants for public transport agencies to develop, deploy and demonstrate innovative COVID-safe solutions. The funding follows a series of FTA ‘listening sessions’ held over the last three months, during which transit agencies requested support for research to identify measures to address the operational challenges that they are facing as a result of COVID-19. The FTA’s Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) says that eligible projects should demonstrate how they will “improve the operational efficiencies of transit systems and enhance mobility for their communities” in four key areas: vehicle, facili

It happened for me three years ago in Turku: the moment I realized that cycling in the snow was going to become normal. I was winding my way up Finland, en route to the world’s first ever Winter Cycling Congress, hosted by a city called Oulu some 400 miles north. It had been snowing non-stop for a week. I thought I had already found somewhere quite special. Earlier that afternoon, I had watched what I believed to be an impressive number of people riding their bicycles on Turku’s main shopping street in the falling snow. I remember thinking, as I ran around with my camera taking as many pictures as possible before sunset: “Oulu must be like this.” When I arrived in Oulu that year, everything

GVF advocates that now is the time to assess and change commuter travel behavior to avoid returning to normal levels of congestion in our region. A recent study, by accounting and consulting firm KPMG, suggests a nationwide decline in the number of people on the roads may never recover from the pandemic, but a Philadelphia-area expert says the effect has been highly exaggerated. Greg Krykewycz, associate director of multi-modal planning at the Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission, says: Don’t count on the end of the rush hour just yet. "Reports of driving’s decline have been greatly exaggerated in the past," he said. He says, when the stay-at-home order went into effect, traffic was

Big News! In order to better meet the needs of our customers and their current commuting patterns, we're making a new pass option available on SEPTA Key beginning October 20, 2020! The NEW - Three Day Convenience Pass - is ideal for individuals who travel on SEPTA Transit Routes (bus, trolley, Broad Street Line, Market-Frankford Line, and the Norristown High Speed Line) less than 5 days a week and visitors and tourists enjoying a multiple day stay in Philadelphia. The Convenience Pass is available for purchase on the reloadable, contactless SEPTA Key card. The cost is $18 and it's good for 24 trips over 72 consecutive hours. Time starts with first tap. It is meant for one rider. To compare,

Harrisburg, PA -- Today, Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (DCNR) Secretary Cindy Adams Dunn joined trail supporters and government officials in three counties in announcing official designation of the 85-mile Schuylkill to Susquehanna Greenway as a Statewide Major Greenway. Spanning Chester, Lancaster and Montgomery counties, the state’s newest greenway enables users to travel between the Schuylkill and Susquehanna rivers. “This designation of the Statewide Major Greenway elevates the closing of existing gaps and completion of the trail to DCNR’s highest trail-funding priority,” said Dunn. “DCNR views closing priority trail gaps essential, as they form the major ‘arteries’ of

As the School District of Philadelphia stares down the possibility of resuming in-person classes in November, some have raised concerns about the safety of public transit for student commutes. Many students use SEPTA to get to and from school and may worry about COVID exposure. Young Philadelphians like myself who rely on transit understand these concerns, but we worry that a lack of understanding, rather than scientific evidence and SEPTA’s progress, could guide riding behavior. The reality is that transit is safe. The real danger transit faces is that the latest scientific evidence is not reaching our communities. In the short term, residents may skip safe and essential trips to access cri

A study aiming to revamp several area trail points has cleared its final hurdle with county leaders' stamp of approval at a recent Montgomery County Commissioners meeting. The Montgomery County Trail Access, Diversity and Awareness Plan was funded by an $87,000 grant through the Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission’s Transportation and Community Development Initiative, according to Bill Hartman, the Montgomery County Planning Commission’s section chief for trails and open space. “The trail access diversity and awareness plan was initiated by the planning commission to better understand and identify solutions to barriers that prevent the equitable use of the county’s trail system,” Ha

A new analysis illustrates how more than 3 million people across 10 U.S. regions could lose access to high-quality public transportation, with Black residents severely affected. When Maryland transit officials canceled plans to permanently cut 25 bus lines and reduce service on a dozen other routes in the Baltimore area, it was a bright spot in a dismal year for public transit. With ridership and revenues plunging during the pandemic, critics had warned that the Maryland Transit Administration’s proposal to slash city bus service would disproportionately target “low-income communities, communities of color, and people with disabilities,” according to one opposition statement signed by 64 gro

Choosing how to travel to and from work isn’t always an easy decision, even under normal circumstances. What time do you have to arrive at work? Is it going to rain in the afternoon? Will parking be available? How much is the transit fare during rush hour? That’s all before Coronavirus impacted daily routines, now people commuting again must think about safety above all else, adding a layer of stress to the mix. This decision-making process is one that all commuters go through before deciding on the mode choice for the day, and research shows that most commuters tend to choose the convenient option. If all commuters think about is the ease of a commute, they may be missing out on a great op