CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Police officers in West Virginia could immediately pull over people caught texting while driving under a bill modified by state lawmakers Tuesday.

The bill – approved unanimously by the Senate Judiciary Committee – makes a violation of the texting ban a primary offense.

A previous version treated a violation as a secondary offense, meaning officers couldn’t cite drivers for text messaging unless they committed another traffic offense first.

Judiciary Committee Chairman Corey Palumbo said the tougher standard would make West Virginia’s roads safer.

“When you hear that drivers who text are 23 times more likely to be involved in accidents, you have to do something,” Palumbo said after Tuesday’s committee meeting. “Everyone realizes this is so dangerous.”

Thirty-five states already ban texting while driving, including all states that border West Virginia except Ohio. Thirty-two of those states have primary enforcement.

“It’s time for us to join the majority of states with a strong position,” Palumbo said.

The senate committee also changed the bill so that motorists would receive three points on their driving record after their third citation for texting while on the road. The bill’s previous version wouldn’t have assessed any points.

The legislation also would outlaw using a hand-held cell phone while driving. However, the Senate Judiciary Committee kept a violation of that ban as a secondary offense, just like the seatbelt law. Drivers also could still use a cell phone with hands-free equipment.

Ten states ban cell phone use while driving. All of those states, except Maryland, make a violation a primary offense.

“It would have been difficult to get that passed as a primary offense,” Palumbo said.

The bill now goes to the full Senate.

The House Judiciary Committee is considering a similar bill that treats both texting and cell phone use as a secondary offense. Some members of that committee have said they would push to make a violation of the texting ban a primary offense.

Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin supports the bill. He first proposed the texting ban during his State of the State address.

Earlier this month, West Virginia State Police troopers told lawmakers that it would

Article source: http://feeds.stateline.org/~r/StatelineorgRss-Transportation/~3/lU60QzP3WPA/201201310282

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CROWN POINT, N.Y. — The new $76 million bridge over Lake Champlain has cracks in the concrete on the span’s support pillars, but New York transportation officials say there’s nothing to be concerned about.

The Lake Champlain Bridge connecting Crown Point and Addison, Vt., opened Nov. 7. It replaced an 80-year-old bridge that was closed in October 2009 when it was deemed to be structurally unsound.

The old bridge was closed when inspectors found cracks in the concrete pillars.

New York state Department of Transportation officials told the Press-Republican of Plattsburgh that the hairline cracks on the pillars of the new span were anticipated and are normal for newly poured concrete.

DOT officials said the cracks don’t need to be repaired.

Article source: http://feeds.stateline.org/~r/StatelineorgRss-Transportation/~3/WtW3gN1ejds/Lake-Champlain-Bridge-shows-cracks-pillars

A trip to the driver’s license station to obtain or renew a
license is not a pleasant experience. After taking a number or
waiting in line for a long time, a bad photo is often the
result.

Since 2009, when South Dakota adopted federally required rules on
driver’s licenses, people have had to bring a stack of documents to
prove that they are who they say they are:

–  An identity document, proving identity, date of birth and
lawful residency status, such as a birth certificate, valid U.S.
passport or certificate of naturalization.

–  Document proving one’s Social Security number.

–  Two documents proving current residential address.

–  For anyone who has changed their name, documentation is
required, such as a marriage certificate, certificate of adoption,
or court order; women who have been married more than once, need to
show proof of each name change.

The federal rules are an effort at making the country more secure
in the era of the global war against terrorism, but many people
object to bringing the enhanced scrutiny and security measures
required to board an airplane to getting a driver’s license.
Merging the TSA with    the DMV makes an already unpleasant
experience worse.

The federal rules are required to allow the use of state driver’s
licenses as proof of identity when boarding a plane or entering a
federal building. However, the enhanced security measures at
airports and federal buildings are not going to go away. Even with
the more stringent driver’s license requirements, people still will
have to empty their pockets and go through metal scanners at
federal buildings and airports, and remove their shoes and have
carry-on luggage X-rayed before boarding a plane.

A bill before the Legislature would halt the driver’s license rules
that treats South Dakotans like criminals when they go to renew
their driver’s licenses.

Senate Bill 118, sponsored by Sen. Stan Adelstein of Rapid City,
would eliminate the “chain of identity” requirement, require only a
single proof of identity and address and block plans to upload the
driver’s license documentation into a central database. Adelstein
said there’s no reason to impose a hardship on citizens, and thatArticle source: http://feeds.stateline.org/~r/StatelineorgRss-Transportation/~3/jMEUYYQStNM/article_534e0644-4ba4-11e1-b16f-0019bb2963f4.html

That is the state’s highest price since Nov. 20, according to AAA’s gasoline price-tracking website FuelGaugeReport.com.

“These rising pump prices are largely the product of expected refinery shutdowns, both in the U.S. and Europe, as refiners cut production in the face of limited demand for their product,” AAA Oklahoma spokesman Chuck Mai said. “The U.S. Department of Energy reports refinery utilization last week decreased to 82.2 percent from 83.7 percent the week before.”

That fueled an increase in gas prices in Oklahoma and nationwide.

Tuesday’s average price in Oklahoma City was $3.19, about 7 cents higher than the average in Tulsa.

The national average on Tuesday was $3.443, the highest price since Halloween.

Mike Thornbrugh, Tulsa-based QuikTrip’s spokesman, said unprecedented hedging activity on crude oil futures has affected gasoline prices.

“That’s driving our price up,” he said. “Whether we like it or not, it is a worldwide commodity.

“Unfortunately the market responds to what goes on worldwide.”

On the positive side, Thornbrugh said he expects Oklahoma gasoline prices to remain below the national average.

“Oklahoma is pretty fortunate,” he said. “We’ll pretty much always be below the national average.”

Six states had a lower statewide gasoline price average than Oklahoma on Tuesday, according to AAA, with Wyoming boasting the least expensive fuel in the nation at $2.98 a gallon. Hawaii had the country’s highest state price average at $4.108.

Article source: http://feeds.stateline.org/~r/StatelineorgRss-Transportation/~3/jpgrNNwRo2s/3645109

Nathaniel Brooks for The New York TimesAssemblyman Andrew Hevesi

ALBANY — The State Assembly has begun an investigation of a little-known government body that plays a major role in setting transportation policy in New York City and its suburbs.

The investigation is the first significant inquiry undertaken by Andrew Hevesi, the new chairman of the Assembly’s Oversight, Analysis and Investigation Committee. He is investigating the New York Metropolitan Transportation Council, which consists of leaders from the city’s government, three Hudson Valley counties, two Long Island counties, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority and the State Transportation Department, as well as nonvoting representatives from the federal government, New Jersey, and the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey.

“It’s an entity that’s ripe for review,” Assemblyman Hevesi said. “I’m not going to prejudge, but there needs to be an analysis of their decision making since they’re using large amounts of taxpayer dollars for different projects in communities throughout the city of New York.”

The inquiry was not prompted by a suggestion of corruption. Instead, Mr. Hevesi said that he was concerned by a council study aimed at expanding the use of trains carrying commercial freight into the city, and that he was worried about the environmental impact on districts like his in Queens.

Lisa Daglian, a spokeswoman for the council, said Mr. Hevesi’s office sent a letter on Monday night.

“We are reviewing it and are happy to provide the information that he is seeking as expeditiously as we can,” Ms. Daglian said. She said less than 1 percent of freight coming into the city was transported by rail.

“New York City has the highest volume of freight movement of any metropolitan area in the nation, and we expect, over the next 30 years, an increase of about 85 percent,” she said, adding that the council was seeking “ways to accommodate all of the growth in the region.”

Mr. Hevesi sent a letter to the council seeking various documents, including six years of transcripts from a variety of council meetings, studies related to rail freight, copies of grant

Article source: http://feeds.stateline.org/~r/StatelineorgRss-Transportation/~3/zhhy6zu_7Tc/

As the owner of Duffy’s Tavern in downtown Lincoln, Scott
Hatfield has witnessed the frustration of people who have had too
many drinks and call a cab to get home.

“On weekends, we consistently see hourlong waits, sometimes two
hours,” he said. “People got around on horses faster than
that.”

Hatfield is among those who support a legislative bill (LB889)
that could improve taxi service in Lincoln.

Lincoln Sen. Bill Avery’s proposed bill, discussed Tuesday by
the Legislature’s Transportation and Telecommunications
Committee, would exempt taxi companies applying for operating
permits in Lincoln and Omaha from having to prove to the Nebraska
Public Service Commission that their service is a public
convenience and necessity.

That requirement, Avery said, amounts to a monopoly for Servant
Cab of Lincoln and has prompted public outcry over the lack of cabs
and complaints about excessive wait times and high fares.

“We have one cab company in Lincoln that has effectively
established a monopoly. They have used that monopoly to restrict
service … to an unacceptable level. They used that monopoly also
to raise their rates to an unacceptable level,” Avery said. “My
bill would introduce competition that would bring a little bit of
market discipline to the business environment for cabs in
Lincoln.”

Servant Cab charges $5.35 to start and $3.90 per mile, making a
2-mile ride about $12.95.

Happy Cab of Omaha, by comparison, charges $2.95 to start and
$2.20 a mile, making a 2-mile ride $7.35.

Servant Cab co-owner Kirby Young said the reason for the
difference is simple: His drivers work for him, but Happy Cab’s are
independent contractors who lease their taxis from the company.
That means Happy Cab doesn’t pay employee costs such as worker’s
compensation and unemployment insurance and Medicare and Social
Security payments.

Avery said cab service in Lincoln is more expensive than in most
other cities around the nation.

According to Young, the city does not need more cab service all
of the time.

“Lincoln could use more cabs on the street during six days out
of the year — football days – and sometimes at nighttime when the
bars close,” he said. “But the difficulty has always been …
hiring somebody who just wants to work from

Article source: http://feeds.stateline.org/~r/StatelineorgRss-Transportation/~3/48TbRUIWUD8/article_e42d57d7-e087-5102-8930-b14b8ed13af6.html

BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) – For 684,000 North Dakotans, there are now
1 million vehicles.

North Dakota Transportation Department director Francis Ziegler
reports Tuesday the agency registered more than 1 million vehicles
last year. It’s an all-time high.

The registration number includes all sorts of machines – cars,
trucks, boats, trailers, motorcycles, buses, snowmobiles and motor
homes.

Ziegler says it’s a reflection of western North Dakota’s booming
oil-producing region and the robust economy statewide.

He says vehicle dealers across the state say they’re doing good
business.

Article source: http://feeds.stateline.org/~r/StatelineorgRss-Transportation/~3/7i-qtBP1r5k/article_e94e7e06-4c5a-11e1-9104-001871e3ce6c.html