Secretary of Transportation nominee Foxx expected to be rail friendly - TRAINS Magazine

Secretary of Transportation nominee Foxx expected to be rail friendly - TRAINS Magazinehttp://trn.trains.com/Railroad%20News/News%20Wire/2013/04/Secretary%20of%20Transportation%20nominee%20Foxx%20expected%20to%20be%20rail%20friendly.aspx

A non-partisan news item I wrote as a Trains Magazine correspondent on April 30th on Charlotte Mayor Anthony Foxx's probable even handedness towards rail and intermodal transportation.  Certain Charlotte controversies might receive a national spotlight during the confirmation process and if Foxx is confirmed, at the cabinet level in national politics. - Mark Carolla

DC Streetcar Seeks Enhanced Connectivity

An article in Railway Age Magazine (see http://www.railwayage.com/index.php/passenger/light-rail/study-eyes-extension-for-dc-streetcar-startup.html?channel=61) highlights some changes in the plan for the District of Columbia's budding streetcar system. Modifications and extensions are called for to link it with the Metro system. As a note, across the Potomac in Arlington and Alexandria, Virginia streetcar lines are also being developed. Perhaps this could be a case study for Charlotte's first steps with a streetcar. Another Railway Age article (see http://www.railwayage.com/index.php/passenger/light-rail/here-come-the-streetcars.html?channel=61 ) suggests indirectly that differentiating between light rail as in the case of LYNX and streetcar lines is really not appropriate and the two can and should be linked as the technologies are quite similar. Of course, local political and budgetary concerns might be different from elsewhere in the US, but these concepts are worth a thought. - Mark Carolla, April 10, 2012