Angie Schmitt

Rental assistance from HUD isn't enough to make the cost of living affordable when the subsidies go toward housing in car-dependent areas, according to a new study by researchers from the University of Texas and the University of Utah. The study evaluated transportation costs for more than 18,000 households that receive HUD rental subsidies, estimating that nearly half of recipients have to spend more than 15 percent of their household budgets on transportation.

A big part of reducing car traffic involves using cars more efficiently. Ride-hailing services like Uber and Lyft are supposedly assisting in this transition by making car ownership less necessary. But even though both companies operate carpool-type services, most of their business still comes from single passenger trips.

The city of Detroit lost a stunning 25 percent of its population between 2000 and 2010. Even as the city struggles heroically to repair the damage, the Michigan state government is undermining Detroit's fragile recovery.

In a relatively short amount of time -- a generation or two -- the number of American kids walking or biking to school has plummeted. This isn't the result of some natural law -- it's the product of public policy decisions about how to design streets and build schools.

According to a recent analysis by the Century Foundation, during the recession and recovery Cleveland transit riders endured more bus service cuts than any other major system in the country. But just a few years later Cleveland transit riders are facing further cuts, and a fare hike to boot.

Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx announced this week that U.S. DOT is seeking applications for $500 million in TIGER grants -- the eighth round of funding since the program was launched in 2009.

A good deal of the $46 billion the federal government pours into highway spending each year is going to waste, according to a new Congressional Budget Office report [PDF].

Missouri lawmakers are really grasping for ways to keep the highway money flowing, after voters rejected a regressive sales tax hike backed by road builders in 2014.

Albuquerque is at a pivotal moment that could determine whether it becomes more a walkable and transit-oriented city.

In almost every state, politicians beat the drum for hundreds of millions of dollars to "solve congestion" by widening highways. After spending the better part of a century doing this, we know that thanks to induced demand, soon after the asphalt sets on the new lanes, people will drive more and congestion will return. The whole exercise is a bit like a dog chasing its tail.