Discourse for all interested in all things air-quality related
LOS ANGELES, CA — Today [Sept. 11, 2024], the Environmental Protection [Agency] (EPA) approved the inclusion of Southern California’s Warehouse Indirect Source Rule (ISR) in the state’s air plan. This innovative policy is addressing the region’s notorious smoggy skies by cutting pollution from the trucks traveling to and from warehouses, electrifying warehouses, and creating local … Read more
Interstate 580 between Castro Valley and the Altamont Pass can look like a parking lot at times. Much of the thoroughfare’s traffic is comprised of commuters traveling to San Francisco Bay Area-based destinations from points in the San Joaquin Valley. There is more or less a stub of the Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) system … Read more
Nairobi, 7 September 2024 – The world marked the fifth annual International Day of Clean Air for blue skies today with calls for investment in clean air solutions now, as air pollution causes increasing public health, environmental, and economic harms. More than 99 percent of humanity is now breathing polluted air, leading to more than 8 million annual deaths, … Read more
More than 50% of ride-hailing trips taken by surveyed riders in California replaced more sustainable forms of transportation — such as walking, cycling, carpooling, and public transit — or created new vehicle miles, according to a study from the University of California, Davis Institute of Transportation Studies. The study was conducted to help guide development … Read more
SACRAMENTO – California is launching a new statewide funding program that will put 1,000 new, zero-emission school buses on the road, furthering the state’s lead in having the most clean buses in the nation. “California is showing the nation and the world how to move from ambition to action,” said Gov. Gavin Newsom. “This is … Read more
San Diego – The San Diego Metropolitan Transit System (MTS) today [Aug. 22, 2024] announced that ridership increased more than 10% over the past year as more and more residents opt to use the transit system to get around. During the last fiscal year (July 2023 – June 2024), the transit agency logged 75,663,343 passenger … Read more
Washington, DC — A new analysis, Permit to Kill, released today [Aug. 14, 2024] by the Sierra Club and Greenpeace USA shows that permitted emissions from both currently operating and planned LNG terminals are estimated to have a major price tag for communities’ public health. The briefing, which adds to the mounting body of evidence showing that … Read more
Today [Aug. 10, 2024], Caltrain debuted its cutting-edge electric fleet, hosting a VIP tour where participants boarded the trains for its historic inaugural service. After nearly a decade of construction, these new trains signify a landmark shift towards a faster, more frequent and environmentally friendly public transportation network along the San Francisco Peninsula. The event … Read more
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Supreme Court ruled today [Jun. 24, 2024] that it will consider part of an appellate court decision tossing out the U.S. Surface Transportation Board’s permit for the proposed Uinta Basin Railway. The project is designed to quintuple oil production in Utah’s Uinta Basin and move crude through the Colorado Rockies to … Read more
Over the past several years I’ve been keeping a watchful eye on the goings-on in the locomotive-and-train-propulsion-power-development-progress arena. There have been numerous postings here at the Air Quality Matters blog since day 1 that have dealt with this area. Here is just a small sampling of those. American high-speed rail building on a roll – … Read more