A new report released by INRIX, the leading provider of real-time traffic information for many popular GPS devices, found Dallas to be the 5th most congested market in the country. According to the INRIX National Traffic Scorecard, traffic congestion across the U.S. increased nearly 2% in 2007 over 2006 and there appears to be no relief in sight in 2008. They do concede that higher fuel prices and the economy are affecting the rate of growth. With many drivers paying over $4 a gallon at the pump and roads clogged with traffic congestion averaging 60 hours a week across the nation’s 100 worst bottlenecks, traffic continues to have a major impact on consumers, businesses and the American economy. The INRIX National Traffic Scorecard is the first to measure the nation’s traffic congestion problem by going beyond the traditional limitations of road sensors and statistical sampling techniques to evaluate real-time traffic on almost every major metropolitan roadway nationwide.  The scorecard takes a micro look at traffic problems all across the country – zooming in on the total hours spent in traffic, worst day of the week for commuting and average speeds for the top 100 ...

Citizens can now weigh in on the new name for Industrial Blvd.  The Public Interest Survey will run until Friday May 30 at 5:00 P.M.  The renaming of Industrial Blvd. is part of the Trinity River Corridor Project as evidenced by some of names that are being considered. Click here and you will go directly to the survey where you will have an opportunity to vote on one of the six finalists below.  In June, the Dallas City Council will make its final selection on the new name. Cesar Chavez Blvd. Eddie Bernice Johnson Pkwy. Riverfront Blvd. Trinity Lakes Blvd. Trinityview Blvd. Waterfront Blvd.

What can you say but.....man. As I went through my morning routine checking news sites I saw a disturbing headline at DallasNews.com: Two found fatally shot at former DART chairwoman's home. The News reports that Rufus Shaw died of a self inflicted gun shot wound. The story by Dave Levinthal and Scott Goldstein says that "the body of a woman was also found." Everyone that I've spoken with has confirmed that the woman is Mrs. Shaw. I first met Mrs. Shaw during the 2006 Dallas Bond Campaign. She was one of those in charge of educating the citizens of Southern Dallas about the merits of the proposal. The measure very well received among black voters due in large part to the efforts of Mrs. Shaw. She was later appointed chairwoman of the DART Board of Directors. She eventually resigned that post after she was accused of forging a letter on Dallas DA Craig Watkins' letter head. I never met Rufus Shaw, but in many ways he was my first blogging mentor. When I started Dallas South, I had no idea who else was out there in the ...

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Last week Kirby Warnock continued to make the case for improved services in Southern Dallas via a thoughtful Dallas Morning News.  Here are some highlights from Mr. Warnock's column: What has become painfully obvious to me is that there are two Dallases, and I'm not talking about the racial divide. I'm speaking of basic city services: roads, parks and code enforcement. The city cannot do anything about the demographic makeup of my neighborhood, but it can do something about the roads and parks. First, our roads. They are in worse shape than our northern neighbors'. Oak Cliff has more streets that require resurfacing, more that lack curbs and sidewalks, and more without street lights than north Dallas. These statistics come from the city of Dallas' Web site, under "unfunded needs." Why can't the city pave and repair our roads with as much vigor as it does the northern half? Second, our parks. A visit to Kidd Springs Rec Center in Oak Cliff should be contrasted with a visit to the Churchill Rec Center in North Dallas. Don't our children deserve a decent, well-maintained rec center, too? A quick check of the Dallas ...

Sharon Grigsby and the Editorial Staff at the Dallas Morning News are keeping their word of helping to bridge the gap between North Dallas and Southern Dallas.  This morning the entire left page of the editorials is devoted to 10 suggestions to improve Southern Dallas neighborhoods. See "10 Drops in the Bucket" by clicking here.  Here are a few of the suggestions made in this mornings paper. The Dallas Zoo is an attraction that should lure visitors from across North Texas to the southern part of the city. But for families exiting Interstate 35E one of the first businesses they'll see is the ramshackle Dallas Inn. One look at the broken windows and the bombed-out-looking building, and zoo-goers might be tempted to turn around and head home. You can't pull up a chair and enjoy your Frosty in the Wendy's at Lancaster Road and Kiest Boulevard. The drive-through-only restaurant wants your money but won't allow you to take a seat, leaving pedestrian patrons to eat on the sidewalk. In the future, the city should take a hard look at requests to build eating establishments that lack tables and chairs. The intersection of Hampton Road and ...

Washington, DC (Wednesday, November 14, 2007) Congresswoman Eddie Bernice Johnson today called on President Bush to make the enactment of the 2008 Transportation, HUD appropriations bill, a top priority before Congress adjourns this year. Congresswoman Johnson successfully secured $86,250,000 for Dallas Area Rapid Transit's new Green Line, currently under construction. Congresswoman Johnson also secured $250,000 for the Martin Luther King Family Center in Dallas. The Administration said today that the President intends to veto the bill. "The Transportation and Housing conference report addresses the important challenges of community development and keeping our transportation system safe and strong, and does so in a way that strengthens the economy and is environmentally responsible," stated Congresswoman Johnson. The Transportation and Housing Conference Report provides approximately $70 billion in federal funds for vital community development projects, highway, transit and other critical infrastructure programs throughout the country. "Contrary to President Bush’s stance, our country cannot continue to put an arbitrary cost ceiling on investment in our public works. Simply put, this legislation is about meeting our commitments to the nation on protecting lives and livelihoods through bolstering our crumbling infrastructure." Specifically, the conference report invests:   ·  Community Development Block Grants: $3.79 billion, ...

Not much for me to say here, but I would advise reading the Final Analysis of the Trinity Vote at Dallas Progress. The victory goes in the win column of Tom Leppert which makes him 3 for 3 in my book (election, runoff, Trinity).  Too bad the strong mayor initiative isn't coming up for a vote. Tom Leppert has substantial political capital with me right now.  I've seen Mr. Leppert talking to citizens and sharing with families in places where there were no cameras around.  That's a novel concept for a politician.  I'm gonna give him a shot. Another winner in my eyes is Angela Hunt.  She did what so many of us are afraid to do; sacrifice personal and political gain for what she felt was right. This was a close vote, and considering every other elected official in Dallas lined up against her, it went really well. Dallas comes out as a two fold winner.  First the Trinity Project will move forward.  Leppert had vowed to move the project forward and with all of the officials that supported "No", they should know we'll all be watching. Second, it caused the city to take a look at how ...

Unfortunately I don't have the opportunity to link to this story from the dallasblog.com right now, but I've gotten a number of e-mails regarding my "Vote No" post last week. Here's the post and I'll clean it up and give the proper credit later. From DallasBlog.com Texas Transportation Chairman Ric Williamson agreed there would be delays, but he said he can't imagine a scenario where Project Pegasus would be scrapped, according to KERA. Project Pegasus is TxDOT's plan to improve the Canyon/Mixmaster. "If the toll road as envisioned now is radically changed, Project Pegasus will have to be redesigned. I'm not taking a position; it's just a logical conclusion," Williamson said. "Project Pegasus is so important to the clean air plan and congestion relief for North Texas. I can't imagine a circumstance where it wouldn't be redesigned and moved forward. It's just that important." The Vote No! campaign and Michael Morris of the North Central Texas Council of Governments have continued to scare voters into believing that Project Pegasus depends on a reliever route. In fact, Morris's 10 reasons to build the Trinity Parkway was published in The DMN and no. 5 says "creates opportunity to rebuild Canyon/Mixmaster." This is taken from the ...

I have tell you, I had written an entire post titled "I'm voting Yes," with all these reasons why.  Many of them were in line with facts detailed by Renee at Blue Island.   The Vote "No" people have not been straight with the citizens of Dallas in their reasoning.  They have used hot button issues to tug at emotions.  And I have been reluctant to align myself with the crew that has been assembled in the 'No' camp.  But my No vote is based on a paragraph and a half that I read in the Dallas Morning News on August 15.  When I ran back across it in my research, it was just too much for me to ignore. For a decade, TxDOT has crafted a two-pronged approach to unsnarling traffic through this critical spaghetti bowl of highways. Project Pegasus includes the redesign and reconstruction of the downtown interchange. And the Trinity Parkway provides congestion relief by carrying 90,000 to 100,000 vehicles per day. The two pieces of the plan are interdependent. Abandoning the parkway isn't an option. "It's like a house of cards." This information came from Tim Nesbitt, Texas Department of ...