Navigating the Shift in Transportation Funding: From Formula to Discretionary Grants

As the new Trump regime begins, we talked with Dani Simons—who until recently led the Office of Public Affairs for the federal Department of Transportation—about the Biden administration’s legacy on transportation. What are the stakes as we go from Amtrak Joe and DOT Secretary Pete Buttigieg to an administration made up of oil barrels disguised as people? What are the last four years’ biggest achievements on the transportation front? How do we communicate better about federal investments in active transportation? And how do we hold onto the hard-fought policies aimed at pedestrian safety and mitigating the climate crisis?

This episode was recorded at the Brooklyn Podcasting Studio by Justin Fernandez. It was edited by Ali Lemer. Our theme music is by Nathaniel Goodyear. Transcriptions are by Russell Gragg.

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LINKS:

• The Wall Street Journal’s Dorothy Rabinowitz and the Citibike moral panic (original video here)

• Eliot Spitzer at the Mayflower Hotel

• New York City’s Open Streets program and Michael Bloomberg’s PlaNYC

• And if you were wondering what Dani meant when she said “NHTSA,” that’s the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration.

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