City: New York City

The ride share ordinance proposal would:

• A fee for drivers of $2000 per car
• A fee for transportation network companies of $20,000 per year
• Ride Share companies could operate in neighborhoods if and only if it is found that the neighborhood “a need for their service in neighborhoods where they plan to operate”
• City regulators will presume that there is no need for ride share. Companies must prove otherwise.
• Effectively limits drivers to 1 ride share company

New York Daily News  | City councilman’s proposed bill will charge e-hail drivers $2,000 a year to drive

• The New Hampshire Senate Committee on Transportation
• Considering HB 2018 (NH 2018), relating to the state 10-year transportation improvement program
• Removed from the bill provisions for $4 million in federal funding for a detailed analysis of passenger rail expansion and bus service

What was the $4 million in federal funding set to cover?

• a detailed analysis of engineering, environmental, and geotechnical aspects
• And, a firm financial plan for expanding passenger rail from Boston to Manchester

Manchester Ink Link | NH Senate Transportation Committee Strips Funding for Passenger Rail Expansion Project

Where: California

What: California Legislature passed a gas tax increase 

How is the inititiative and referendum moving to repeal the gas tax?

• California’s Congressional Delegation is Supporting the initiative & referendum by Give Voters a Voice
• State Republican party strategists fear conservative voters will stay home if the open primary doesn’t qualify a conservative candidate for the general election

Sacramento Bee | Gas tax repeal gets more cash from California GOP

Where:  Marietta, Georgia

The technology: An app that allows parents to track school buses

The messaging to parents: 

• The App will “look and operate much like ride sharing apps for Uber and Lyft.”
• The App will have privacy and security features to protect students
• The App can ” also be used to track real-time progress on student field trips”

WSB TV 2 | Parents will soon be able to use Uber-like tech to track school buses. 

Louisiana Legislature approved statewide ride share regulations, but offers these carrots to Lousiana cities:

•  local governments without fee arrangements could charge fees of up to 1% of each gross fare
• grandfather in existing fee agreements between Baton Rouge, New Orleans and other cities
• Separates airport fees from local fees

The Advocate | Bill to regulate Uber, Lyft clears House; key test in Senate

Louisiana HB749 (2018)

California Public Utilities Commission adopted new rules for self-driving taxis, and the key points are:

• The 1st pilot program will be for at least 90 days and allow:
  • “Transportation Charter-Party  (TCP) Carrier permit-holders to add test autonomous vehiclesto their passenger carrier equipment statement, where the TCP permit-holder also holds an Autonomous Vehicle Tester Program Manufacturer’s Testing Permit (AV Testing Permit) issued by the DMV, including where the service is provided free to the passenger”
• ​The 2nd pilot program will:
  • Allow TCP permit-holders that hold a DMV Manufacturer’s Testing Permit – Driverless Vehicles (DMV AV Testing Permit – Driverless Vehicle) to operate AVs in passenger service in driverless mode (Driverless AV Passenger Service) with a remote operator for at least 90 days; provided free to the passengers

• DMV regulates Autonomous Vehicles & California PUC regulates common carriers, and the rules must work together

   San Francisco Chronicle | Robot-taxi services could soon operate in California

State: Pennsylvania

The EV Bill: Pennsylvania’s HB 1446 (2018)

The EV Charging Station framework proposed by HB1446:

• Governor must set EV charging station rollout based at 50% above 2030 estimates
• the framework must set statewide goals
• the framework must also establish separate regional goals
  • developed by stakeholders including agencies, municipalities & electric distribution companies

The response by an EV charging station company:

• before HB 1446, “the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission should set rules of the road and evaluate how rate payer funds should be used by utilities in support of EV infrastructure”
• “utilities must work with private businesses in the EV industry” to “leverage matching payments when ratepayer dollars are spent.”
• “Consumers should have the ability to choose things like charging station type, manufacturer and network services.”

PennLive | Lawmakers need to level the playing field for Pa’s electric-driving future | Opinion

City: Phoenix Area

Self Driving Taxi Proposal: 

• Waymo is proposing an autonomous taxi service in 100 square miles in metro Phoenix
• In preparation, Waymo testing has:
  • driven on public roads for more than 5 million miles
  • traveled five billion miles in computer simulation

Response to the autonomous driving fatality in Phoenix: Waymo CEO John Krafcik said his company’s technology could have avoided the incident

KTAR News | Waymo plans for 100-square-mile driverless taxi service in Phoenix area 

City: Seattle

The local government proposal on minimum ride share fees: $2.40 base charge

The policy rational: 

• To help drivers make a better wage
• To support the taxi industry

HHQ Q | Seattle may set minimum base fare for ride-shares Uber, Lyft

Nebraska Legislature sent to final reading LB989 (2018) that will:

• permit self driving cars anywhere in Nebraska
• allows for no human driver as long as certain conditions are met
• allows for consultation with railroads concerning self driving vehicles and railroad crossings

How did the bill begin? As a pilot project in Lincoln on a fixed route and was expanded to anywhere in the state.

NPR | Legislature Steps Toward Allowing Self-Driving Vehicles; Senators Give Up On Property Tax Measures

The locality: West Memphis, Arkansas

The ordinance: blight ordinance banning unregistered, uncovered vehicles on private property, Ordinance 1298

The fine for property owners:  $250 and $1,000

How is inoperable vehicle defined?

• doesn’t have a current license plate
• has any wheels removed
• cannot be legally operated on the streets, e.g. “lack of proper mufflers, tires, headlights, or other mechanical defects.”
• Really anything that prevents the car from being unable to move under its own power

Jalopnik | An Arkansas Town Is Ticketing People For Having ‘Inoperable’ Cars On Their Property

Georgia is considering HB 134 (2018) that will:

• Allows voters in 13 metro counties  to vote on a 1-cent sales tax
• Allocates $100 million to expand transit
• Create the Atlanta-region Transit Link with a 16 member board that will:
  • Serve the needs of hardworking Georgians
  • Respond to the demands of our employers and workforce
  • Reduce traffic congestion

13WMAZ | What does Georgia’s new transportation bill mean for you? 

Open records requests, after the self driving Uber fatality in Arizona, reveal the following ways Governor Ducey actively promoted Uber publicly:

• He tweeted an Uber ad
• He helped Uber deal with other state officials
• He was open to wearing an Uber T-shirt at an official event

NYPost | Arizona governor, Uber kept self-driving car tests a secret

State: Missouri

The bill to repeal mandatory vehicle inspections: HB 1444

Missouri’s HB 1444 (2018) is authored by :  a Republican 

Opposition:  Missouri’s AAA which says inspections are a plank in traffic safety

Supporters say:  

• 34 states do not have mandatory inspections
• There is no causal link between inspections and traffic fatality rates

KTTS 94.7 | Bill In Legislature Would Do Away With Vehicle Inspections 

Where is this ride share for kids progtram launching? Denver Colorado

What’s the company? HopSkipDrive

What parameters are around the ride sharing for kids?

• HopSkipDrive is open to children aged 6 and up unattended
• parents monitor the trips in real time

The big question: Should ride share for children be regulated differently when it comes to background checks?

KRDO | Uber for Kids Starts in Denver

California’s AB 1745 looks to support EVs by prohibiting vehicle registrations of any non-EV vehicle after 2040.

The opposition: the California Chamber of Commerce

Sacramento Bee | California’s most powerful business group plans to kill these 21 bills

Audi is “carefully evaluating” consumer acceptance of semiautonomous driving feature until there is better legal and regulatory clarity.

Wall Street Journal | Tesla, Uber Deaths Raise Questions About the Perils of Partly Autonomous Driving

Texas High Speed Rail opposition points from the week of March 15th 2018,  are trending:

Government Technology | Is a High-Speed Rail Line Right for Texas?

Dallas Morning News | Dallas-to-Houston high-speed rail plan will make Texas’ I-35 corridor a loser, competitor says

4 Point Opposition to Houston to Dallas High Speed Rail. 3 Counterpoints of Support. High Speed v. Higher Speed.

Who is making these statements? SNCF America, Inc  in written comments to Federal Railway Administration (FRA) Draft Environmental Impact Statement (Draft EIS) for the Dallas to Houston High-Speed Rail Project

What is causing the impending “doom” on passenger rail in Texas?

• 1 Company benefits. The Texas Central Rail Project is “designed around the best interest of a single company, not what is best for Texans or the state’s rail transportation future.”
• Limited Area. Modern rail is only successful in the US with network planning
• Taxpayers will be liable. operational revenue will not cover debt service
• Relies on incompatible technology. 

What does SNCF support?

• T-bone network. passenger rail “​network would serve Houston, College Station, Dallas, Fort Worth, Waco, Temple, Georgetown, San Marcos, and San Antonio”
• More train options that consider higher speed rail (125 mph max trains)
• Rail competition based on compatible train technologies

Business Wire | SNCF America, Inc. States Proposed Texas Central Rail Project Would Doom Texas’ Passenger Rail Future

Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety are calling for self driving car/ autonomous vehicle legislation that:

• mandatory “vision test”to test what a vehicle’s different sensors actually see
• a bill should also cover cover semi-automated systems like Tesla’s autopilot

Other advocates are calling for legislation that also:

• require vehicles to meet performance targets
• greater manufacturer transparency, including data from makers and operators of the vehicles
• increased  monitoring of and engagement with human drivers
• stronger regulatory oversight

Insurance Journal | Safety Experts Weigh In on Autonomous Car Standards After Uber, Tesla Fatal Crashes

• Cattle Raiser memers will be impacted
• Horses and tractors cannot fit in the culverts that will be built to traverse land divided by high speed rail
• The animals are disturbed by the noise (as are the humans)

WILLY 1550 AM | HSR Concerns Cattle Raisers

Rhode Island H7392 (2018)  updates transportation network statutes to clarify that the vehicle driver and vehicle owner may be distinct entities to address, in part, automanufacturers that provide fleets for ride share drivers.

Connecticut is considering the following fines for parking in a shared EV charging station spot illegally by parking a non-hybrid or non-EV vehicle in the parking spot:

• civil penalty of $150
• repeat violations would incur a fine of $250

What entity would set how long a car can be parked at a shared EV charging station? The operator of the charging station

Bristol Herald Courier | Fines may come to illegal parkers of hybrid vehicle spots

• CEO of The Alliance for Transportation Innovation says we’re “on the cusp of being able to accelerate deployment in a way that will transform society for the better”
• Assistant director of connected and automated transportation strategy at the Texas A&M Transportation Institute points to humans being worse at operating vehicles, and that automation is better than humans
• A senior research scientist at Texas A&M says we need to focus on the human behaior, that automobile automation is to make driving safer, while humans tend to chose to do seomthing else if they are freed from a task.

Dallas Morning News | Self-driving cars still safe despite Arizona death, Texas researchers say

4 Ways Cities Can impact Ride Hailing:

• zoning regulations
• parking
• curbside allotment
• city messaging

2 Ways Ride Hailing Services can impct local policy by:

• participating in land development code amendments
• engaging in long-term discussions on city problems

Automotive News | Austin, we still have a problem: Return of ridehailing services masks lingering tensions over mobility models

Texas Attorney General Opinion, KP-0189, answers this question from the Liberty County Attorney:

City: San Diego

The ordinance San Diego is changing to help taxis compete with ride share? 

• Reduce insurance coverage from $1 million to $350,000

What supporting arguments for the reduction in coverage?

• Data shows 99.61% of the crashes caused damage of less than $350,000
• taxi permit numbers have fallen 30% in 2 years
• Ride share drivers are required to have less coverage when no riders are in the car and drivers don’t have to pay for the increased coverage when there is a rider
• San Diego has the hightest ratge at $1million of the largest 10 cities in the US

City: Lewsiville

What action is the city being asked to take: To add support for the high speed rail to its legislative agenda

What entity does the city council point to asking for the high speed rail support?  Dallas Regional Mobility Council  

City of Lewisville City Council Agenda March 19 2018

Community Impact News | City of Lewisville passes resolution in support of high-speed rail project from Dallas to Houston

Who is making these statements? SNCF America, Inc  in written comments to Federal Railway Administration (FRA) Draft Environmental Impact Statement (Draft EIS) for the Dallas to Houston High-Speed Rail Project

What is causing the impending “doom” on passenger rail in Texas?

• 1 Company benefits. The Texas Central Rail Project is “designed around the best interest of a single company, not what is best for Texans or the state’s rail transportation future.”
• Limited Area. Modern rail is only successful in the US with network planning
• Taxpayers will be liable. operational revenue will not cover debt service
• Relies on incompatible technology. 

What does SNCF support?

• T-bone network. passenger rail “​network would serve Houston, College Station, Dallas, Fort Worth, Waco, Temple, Georgetown, San Marcos, and San Antonio”
• More train options that consider higher speed rail (125 mph max trains)
• Rail competition based on compatible train technologies

Business Wire | SNCF America, Inc. States Proposed Texas Central Rail Project Would Doom Texas’ Passenger Rail Future

State: Utah

Background: HB 369 MOTOR VEHICLE FRANCHISE AMENDMENTS

• 2015 Tesla builds showroom
• State denies Tesla the ability to sell vehicles directly
• Utah State Supreme Court Agrees
• 2018 Legislative Action

The 2018 Utah Compromise for Direct Manufacturer Sales:

• Limits direct sales to:
  • electric vehicles, hydrogen fuel cell vehicles or other non-fossil fuel vehicles
  • cars and trucks less than 14,000 lbs
  • companies domiciled in the US
  • whose chief officers direct, control, and coordinate activities as a direct-sale
    manufacturer from a physical location in the United States

KUTV | Tesla on track to sell new cars in Utah after bill passes

The County: Madison County Texas

The high speed rail project: Texas Central Partners’ Dallas to Houston High Speed Rail

The 4 Levels of Madison County road protection:

• No county road will be closed
• No county road will be vacated
• No county road will be altered
• No county road will be abandoned  to accommodate the proposed high-speed rail route

Madisonville Meteor | County takes stand on railway

Fee background:  50 cent surcharge on ride share & taxi rides in Portland Oregon since 2016

Is the fee a dedicated revenue fee? Yes, the fee revenue can only be used for enforcement and regulation of the ride-hailing and taxi industries

How much excess fee has Portland collected in 2 years? $3 Million

What enforcement does Portland conduct? 

• it boasts more on the spot inspections of ride share and taxi vehicles than any other US city, except NYC
• In 2017 that meant 10 city inspectors conducted roughly 3,300 on-street field audits 

What possible uses for the revenue are being floated?

• A wheelchair accessibility fund

KGW8 News | Portland collects $3 million more than it needs from Uber and Lyft passengers

Where: San Francisco Board of Supervisors

What’s an infrastructure impact fee? a fee to to ameliorate the impacts of ride share

What 5 impacts do ride share have on local government?

• reduced pulic transportation revenue
• increased traffic congestion
• increased traffic safety issues from collisions
• increased traffic safety issues for pedestrian safety
• increased road wear and tear

What entities are a proposed infrastructure impact fee to be levied against? Ride Share

San Francisco Examiner | SF supes want infrastructure impact fees for Uber, Lyft

State: Connecticut

What’s the dealer EV incentive program called? the Connecticut Hydrogen and Electric Automotive Purchase Rebate (CHEAPR) program

What incentives are available to auto dealers under Connecticut’s program?

• $500 per car sold
• “Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection, in partnership with the Connecticut Automotive Retailers Association (CARA), present an annual “Revolutionary Dealer Award” to the dealership that sells or leases the most electric cars, hybrids and fuel-cell vehicles”

Governing | A Critical Partnership in the Push for Electric Cars

Pennsylvania Attorney General has filed suit against Uber for violating the state’s data breach notification laws.

What are the alleged violations? (Also Known As red flags for drafting data breach notification laws)

State: Connecticut

The Connecticut bill: HB 5310 (2018)

How does CT HB 5310 allow for directr sales?

• Re-define manufacturer
• Allow for manufacturer sales when:
  • only Electric Vehicles
  • There are no franchise agreements
  • only sells its own cars
  • is duly licensed
  • isn’t owned by another manufacturer
  • doesn’t own another manufacturer

What are 5  opposition arguments from motor vehicle dealers in CT?

• Aren’t you special? “Tesla wants special treatment”
• Foreigners. fear that 25 other international manufacturers would set up shop in CT
• It’s not fair. “unfair playing field”
• When in doubt, throw California under the bus. “ Any decision that supports a California company over our local jobs is not the right one.”
• Protectionism. A Mercedes dealer owner says ““It’s not about competition,” Aiosa said. “We welcome Tesla. It’s about dismantling the franchise system.”

New Haven Register | Tesla makes plea to sell electric cars in Connecticut

State: Missouri

The Legislation: MO SB872 (2018) 

Bill Description: Enacts provisions relating to motor vehicle franchises

How does it lay goundwork for autodealers to file suit concerning direct sales?

• Establishes the dealer franchise sales was enacte to be fair, uniform and without discrimination
• Allows any dealer/franchise to bring suit in Cole County against any entity that seeks to sell vehicles wihout a franchise agreement

St. Louis Today | Auto dealers renew fight against Tesla in Jefferson City

LOOPHOLES in the Attorney General Cap on administrative fees: toll roads that are operated by non-TXDOT entities, or that have contracts awarded for operation by non-TXDOT entities.

What’s an example of a non-TXDOT tollroad? Tollraods operated by Central Texas Regional Mobility Authority

What’s the legislative fix? Adding the administrative cap to Texas Transportation Code, Section 370 which govrns tollroads operated by regional mobility authorities.

Statesman | Wear: Why toll fees remain uncapped on some Central Texas roads

Refreshing our recollection, informed:intel:

Texas Attorney General Opinion KP-0184 establishes that 2017’s SB 312 caps administrative fees of private toll operators too.

Yes, yes it does and here is why:

• Operators get to operate a toll lane only by order of TXDOT
• TEX. TRANSP. CODE § 228.007(a)  says the toll operation agreements charge a toll “under this section”
• “This section 228.007(b)(2) gives the toll operator the same duties as TXDOT which means the limits on administrative fees applies

San Francisco City Council members want to tax ride share to fund:

• police services
• street resurfacing
• traffic calming
• pedestrian safety

Supporters say:

• California is behind the times, localities like Chicago, Portland & Philadelphia tax ride share
• State lawmakers should let cities regulate the entities that impact them

CBS SanFrancisco | San Francisco Supervisor Wants Tax On Uber And Lyft

Arizona Governor Doug Ducey revised Executive Order: 2018-04 on autonmous vehicles includes:

• follow applicable traffic laws and regulations of Arizona and the federal government
• fully autonomous vehicles, with no driver in the vehicle, and on pulic roads must:
  • written statement to AZ Department of Transportation (AZDOT)
  • or, within 60 days of this order provide a written statement
  • waivers from the National Highway Safety Administration will be recognized
  • autonomous vehicle failures must achieve a minimal risk condition
  • the person operating the vehicle can still be issued a traffic citation
  • get the cars registered, licensed and insured

Texas Attorney General Opinion KP-0184 establishes that 2017’s SB 312 caps administrative fees of private toll operators too.

Yes, yes it does and here is why:

• Operators get to operate a toll lane only by order of TXDOT
• TEX. TRANSP. CODE § 228.007(a)  says the toll operation agreements charge a toll “under this section”
• “This section 228.007(b)(2) gives the toll operator the same duties as TXDOT which means the limits on administrative fees applies

•  

• It is projected that the sale of connected car data wille a multiple billion dollar industry by 2020
• In 2017, more cars were connected to cellular netowrks than new phones
• Will states protect consumer connected car data, for instance:
  • will disclosures be required to share data with the manufacturer?
  • will disclosures allow for limited data sharing to the driver’s insurance company but not to related 3rd parties
  • will a hard wired privacy switch be required?

ARS TECHNICA | Car companies are preparing to sell driver data to the highest bidder 

The wood violet state: Wisconsin

The preemption bill for taxis: AB 918 (2018) Prohibits local regulation of taxis and requires state regulation and licensing

Wisconsin State Journal | State Assembly passes bill barring municipalities from regulating taxi companies

• His constiutents oppose it
• Disturbs rural Texas with no benefit to rural Texas
• A better route is along already developed I-45
• He opposes the use of eminent domain for the project
• Opposes federal funds for the project

The Navasota Examiner | Brady: Why I Oppose the Texas High-Speed Rail

New Sheriff Coalition: Sheriffs from Grimes, Navarro, Freestone, Limestone, Leon, Madison, Waller, and Ellis counties

Issues that the Sheriff’s raise about the high speed rail in Texas?

• Which law enforcement agency is repsonsible for patrolling the track?
• “Who’s going to be responsible for hazmat emergency services if it derailed over there?”
• Has there been a survey of emergency response teams and hospitals along the track, is fire or hospital distance and response impacted?

KBTX Texas | Local sheriffs concerned about public safety along proposed bullet train route

KWTX 10 | Central Texas sheriffs join coalition to address high speed rail concerns

New Sheriff Coalition: Sheriffs from Grimes, Navarro, Freestone, Limestone, Leon, Madison, Waller, and Ellis counties

Grimes County Sheriff Don Sowell says high speed rail will:

• slow down response times
• No representative from high speed rail has talked to the sheriffs
• cost of increased patrols along the train route

KBTX Texas | Local sheriffs concerned about public safety along proposed bullet train route

KWTX 10 | Central Texas sheriffs join coalition to address high speed rail concerns

Safety and ride share is everywhere:

• California requirement on a lower lood alcohol level standard
• Arizona talking legislating car seat requirements and ride share drivers
• And now….this….

Prohibiting ride share vehicle operations if the vehicle has an active recall notice.

How would this work? Recalls are easily tackable via the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration

KTVU Fox 2 | Recalls among Uber & Lyft cars pose safety risk on roadways

Mississippi is considering a proposal to reduce its income tax by moving to a consumption tax that raises more revenue by

• taxing fuel
  • add $0.03 to the price at the pump each year over 4 years
• annual fees of $300 on electric vehicles &$150 on hybrid vehicles

Tax Foundation | Mississippi’s Pro-Growth Tax Swap Proposal

it started with: A pilot program. A 2017 Waymo Phoenix-based pilot program that still had “operators” ready to take vehicle control in an emergency. Pilot program volunteers received  free service.

the successful pilot led to: approval of a permit of the self-driving transportation network service

the touted benefits: Self driving taxis will cut per mile costs for consumers and for programs that rely on rideshare for rides for seniors or medical trasnportation

Business Insider | Waymo gets the go ahead for autonomous ride-hailing in Arizona

NBC News | Driverless taxi rides are headed your way this year

Colorado’s House Bill 1107  requires that home builders give buys the option of wiring for EV charging.

Denver Post | Electric cars and technology are upending transportation as we know it. But is Colorado prepared?

Governor Abbott appointed Alvin New to the Texas Transportation Commission.

Term exprires:  February 1, 2021

About Alvin New:

• Christoval, TX
• owner of 4N Ranches
•  former CEO of Town & Country Food Stores
• former mayor of San Angelo
• former member of the San Angelo Chamber of Commerce Board & the Concho Valley Center for Economic Development Board
• Texas Tech University Foundation Board member
• Goodfellow Air Force Base Advisory Council
• former state board member of the Texas Restaurant Association
• former vice chairman of the National Association of Convenience Stores
• BBA San Angelo State

Governor Abbott | Governor Abbott Appoints New To Texas Transportation Commission

Colorado Governor is prposing the following legislative proposals in response to the growing use of EVs:

• more funding to build out Colorado’s network of charging stations
• Buy more electric-powered buses
• Push public and private employers to make charging ports available for workers

Colorado’s Trasnportation Commission is adapting to EVs by:

•  experimenting with ways to charge motorists by how far they drive as opposed to the gas tax

Denver Post | Electric cars and technology are upending transportation as we know it. But is Colorado prepared?

Denver city auditor identified that Denver International Airport wasn’t tracking ride share rides.

Why wasn’t Denver’s airport tracking ride share rides? Because it relied on the ride share comapnies to self report

Why is self reporting from ride share a problem? Other local governments say the companies are underreporting based on the cities own tracking numbers

What are concrete examples? San Francisco found underreporting of 39,000 rides in 8 months, which accounted for $150,000 in revenue

Denver Post | DIA does not track Uber and Lyft rides, opening risk of losing revenue, Denver auditor warns

The new business: scooter sharing via Bird

Launch city: Santa Monica CA

Seed funding: Yes, $15M to expand nation wide

The laws/regulations/ordinances at play:

• Do scooters need permits to park?
• Do scooters need permits to park on sidewalks?
• Do scooter sharing comapnies need a permit? Satan Monica wants it to have a permit like a food trailer vendor.
• What kind of local government/scooter sharing compoany data sharing arrangement can be had?

Tech Crunch | This former Uber (and Lyft) exec just raised $15 million for his controversial e-scooter startup: Bird

The company: Hyperloop Transportation Technologies (HTT)

The state partners: North Ohio Areawide Coordinating Agency (NOACA) and the Illinois’ Department of Transportation (IDOT)

The deal: Connecting Chicago and Cleveland by Hyperloop. The starting point: a feasibility study to determine the viability of a number of different corridors. The “first real public-private partnership to bring Hyperloop travel to the US”

The legislative work:

• Ohio’s legislature passed a resolution supporting the initiative in January 2018
• Congresspersons from multiple states  sent a formal letter to the Trump administration asking for federal funding support for building out a Hyperloop network

TechCrunch | Hyperloop Transportation Technologies signs first cross-state deal in the U.S.

The nationa’s only privately funded passenger rail: Florida’s All Aboard Florida’s Brightline venture, a high-speed train that would connect Miami, Ft. Lauderdale, West Palm Beach and Orlando with an expansion of the project linking West Palm Beach to Orlando

Who brought suit to stop the privately funded rail? 2 Florida counties + Citizens Against Rail Expansion in Florida

What are the complaints? 

• That federal agencies did not sufficiently assess the project’s environmental impacts and risk to public safety when approving $1.5 Billion in bonds
• Traffic congestion
•  Noise
• Property devaluation
• Boat back-ups at bridge crossings
• ublic safety risks at the 59 at-grade road crossings 

What’s happening legislatively?

• Florida’s Republican US Seantors are meeting with US rail officials over saety after 4 deaths
• 2 bills in the legialature to require greater safety standards

Courthouse News Service | Lawsuit Seeks to Derail Florida Passenger Train Project

State: Georgia

The transportation funding bill, HB 160,  would add $40 million for mass transit by:

• 50 cent additional tax/ride surcharge on ride share
• 50 cent additional tax/ride surcharge on taxi and limos

News 11 Alive | Uber, Lyft riders among those to face new taxes under mass transit proposal

State: New Mexico

The Bill: SB 255 (2018)

How SB 255 (2018) would implement direct sales:

• Defines line-make
• Provides for manufacturer sales if:

  • the manufacturer does not have any independent franchise dealers in this state

  • sells and services only the line- make of motor vehicles that it manufactures

Electrek | Tesla pushes a new bill in New Mexico to allow direct sales

Maine’s Republican Governor LePage is proposing  HP 1252 with the following fees on electric and hybrid cars:

• $150 for gas-electric hybrid cars
• $250 for all-electric models

How do the proposed Maine fees compare to the other 18 states that put a fee on EVs?

• Maine’s fees would be the highest in the nation
• Other state fees range from $30 to $100 for hybrids and $50 to $200 for EVs

Government Technology | Maine’s Governor Backs Bill to Boost EV, Hybrid Fees

Press Herald | LePage-backed bill would slap extra annual fee on electric, hybrid cars

The What: Georgia Transportation Commission is proposing a truck only highway that stretches 40 miles from metro Atlanta to Macon

The How: Either with federal funds or only using state funds at a total cost of  $1.8 billion

The Why:  To reduce traffic congestion by an estiamted 40%

The opposition:

•  The U.S. Public Interest Research Group says its a gamble of taxpayer money

WHNT 19 | No cars allowed: Georgia considers highway just for trucks

HSB 512  in Iowa would prohibit the “use of automated or remote systems for traffic law enforcement,” to ensure that both red light cameras and speed cameras cannot be used.

2 Points from the opposition in Iowa:

• Question about whether safvety is ctually improved with cameras
• The big brother aspect of camera monitoring

FOX 42 | New bill in Iowa legislature calls for end to red light and speed cameras

Michigan Governor, a former tech executive, says these 3 tings are holding back autonomous vehicles:

• Public is slow to embrace the technology
• Effective commubnication to the public of the benefits of self-driving and connected vehicles
• Coordinated work by 3 levels of government:
  • federal government to regulate design of vehicles
  • state government sets traffic laws & build highways
  • local governments install connected streetlights & other infrastructure 

What does Governor Rick Snyder think will be the first uses of autonomous vehicles?

• commercial deliveries or parking shuttles

Governing | What’s Holding Driverless Cars Back? It’s Not Tech. It’s People, Says Michigan Governor

The State: Virginia

The ride share tax: extending state and regional sales taxes to ride services

The ride share tax revenues will be dedicated to: 

• “$21 million a year for mass transit systems across Virginia, replacing the use of state-backed bonds to pay for new buses”
• $154 million a year for the ailing Washington-area Metro system
• ” one-time bond payment of $50 million as Virginia’s share of a $150 million pledge with Maryland and Washington to collect an equal share of federal funding for Metro if Congress reauthorizes the expiring Passenger Rail Investment and Improvement Act”

The bill: Virginia Senate Bill 856 (2018) 

Richmond Times Dispatch | Senate panel backs extending Virginia and regional sales tax to services like Uber and Lyft for mass transit funding

California Legislature is considering SB1014 (2018) that requires:

• all ride share companies to have 100% EV fleets
• By 2028
• $300 Million in funds to help ride shre drivers move to EVs

Which agencies are involved?

• The California Public Utilities Commission and the California Air Resources Board to set electrification targets

Los Angeles Times | California lawmaker wants all Uber, Lyft cars to be electric by 2028

California High Speed Rail, Phase 1, will  face an audit after these 3 things happened:

• Projected costs for phase 1 of California’s high speed rail have risen by $3 Billion
• A bipartisan group of legislators requested a formal audit
• Concerns that the project will need state subsidies

Due to the projected cost increase, the audit will make the following recommendations:

• how to accelerate the project’s timeline
• reduce costs and identify other sources of revenue
• best practices for approving contract cost changes, including eminent domain costs
• economic benefits of the project to communities

California Eminent Domain Project | HIGH-SPEED RAIL TO FACE AUDIT AFTER RISING COSTS

The Federal Rail Administration public meeting in Madison, County TX resulted in the following lists of objections:

• The route uproots 2 cemetaries
• The construction phase will require a 2 mile per side buffer zone 
• unfounded economics
• route opposition
• opposition to land acquisition by s privste company using eminent domain
• the large cost to be borne by taxpayers- eventually
• the project does not serve the public
• electromagnetic emissions
• noise pollution
• reduced land values
• environmental impacts
• County officials are concerned that the project will force counties to raise property taxes

Madisonville Meteor | County vocal in opposition to rail project

The Non-profit:  Fresno Rescue Mission which feeds and houses the homeless

How the non-profit is holding up high speed rail: The non-profit is standing firm in its compensation request to receive adequate relocation costs

Are there other complicating factors? Yes, the City of Fresno leases space to the Fresno Rescue Mission

ABC 30 | Local nonprofit agency seen as obstacle holding up progress of High Speed Rail

City: Seattle, which has adopted the  “Drive Clean Seattle” initiative that reduces the number of gas cars on the roads

Seattle installed which EV charging stations? 2 fast-charging stations for electric vehicles
 

What is Seattle charging for use of the super charging stations? 

• 43 cents per kilowatt-hour to charge
• This is about $10.70 to fully charge a Nissan Leaf

Other numbers to know about Seattle’s super charger stations?

• 80 miles of range per 20 minutes of charge time
• Seattle will install 18 additional supercharging stations in 2018

Geekwire | Seattle City Light installs first city-owned electric vehicle fast-charging stations

Nebraska Legislature is considering LB 830 to begin direct motor vehicle sales.

LB 830 will:

• in the list of what a motor vehicle seller cannot do in Nebraksa, LB 830 adds:
  • to advertising requirements the bill adds, “who is not the manufacturer” or not enfranchised or authorized by the manufacturer”
• adds to the list of what entities may transfer ownership of a motor vehicle ” the manufacturer of the motor vehicle, motorcycle, or trailer”
• creates an exception to the prohibition of manufacturer sales, that excepts manufacturers that:
  • does not have or did not previously have franchisees
  • and, sells to the general public only vehicles the manufacturer produces

There’s a list of repealed statutes too: 

• Original section 60-1411.03, Reissue Revised Statutes of Nebraska
• Section 60-1438.01, Revised Statutes Cumulative Supplement, 2016
• Section 60-1407, Revised Statutes Supplement, 2017

The messaging:

• Consumers need EV cars they can fit into. 6 foot Nebraskans can’t fit into EV Chevys comfortably
• Free market choices for consumers
• Nebraskans shouldnt have to go out of state to buy a car

Omaha World Herald | Tesla is knocking on Nebraska’s door, hoping lawmakers will let it in

• Direct sales is the freemarket place
• Direct Sales is rebranded as- Electric Vehicle Freedom
• Puts American and Wisconsin consumers first
• Creates high-paying jobs
• Promotes American-made products
• Direct Sales embodies the ‘America First’ principle 

The utility: PG&E

Total number of charging stations planned for the network of charging stations? 7500

Where does PG&E looking to place the EV chargers?

• Condominiums
• apartment buildings and
• workplace

What’s the Q1 phase for the EV charging roll out plan? PG&E will place EV charging stations in partnerships with business customers

Cost of the program? $130 million

Length of the roll out to achieve 7500 EV charging stations: 3 years and end in 2020

A  114-page bill proposal from Utah’s Legislative Transportation and Funding Task Force suggests this fee schedule for EVs:

• $200 annual registration fee for EVs, up from the current $44
• $75 annual registration fee for hybrid vehicles, up from the current $44
• The $200 fee is set to mirror the annual amount of gas tax the average Utah driver pays

The Salt Lake Tribune | Legislators propose radical changes for transportation, transit — including a tax hike 

Virginia Governor McAuliffe appointed a Tesla Motors Inc. employee to a board that oversees automobile dealers, and here’s what happened:

• The Governor became former governor before Senate confirmation
• The Virginia Automobile Dealers Association vocally opposed the appointment
• The Senate Committee rejects the appointment.

Background of direct sales in Virginia: The commissioner of the Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles permitted Tesla to open a company-owned store. The Auto Dealer Association filed a lawsuit in response.

What opposition arguments were made by the Auto Dealers Association?

• The appointment violates state law because the Tesla appointee is neither an owner or top executive of a car dealership.
• An employee cannot hold the appointment.

What was the response from Tesla representatives?

• highly unusual if not unprecedented
• the vote to reject the appointment “raises basic questions of fairness and improper political influence”

Richmond Times Dispatch | Senate committee rejects appointment of Tesla employee to Motor Vehicle Dealer Board

The State: Kentucky

The gas tax proposal, House Bill 211:

• 3 cents
• rebranded from “gas tax” increase to “school transportation funding fee”
• the new funds will be specifically dedicated to school transportation

The revenue estimates from a 3 cent school transporation fee in Kentucky:

• $90 million in new revenue
• $30 million to be used for bonds for new buses
• the remaining $60 million will go to the state’s share of school transportation funding

News-Enterprise | Lexington official proposes gas tax to help school transportation costs

California is building a high speed rail to connect the relaxed free thinkers of Northern Californians to the botoxed, bleached and bronzed support system in Southern California. 

Costs for the high speed rail construction have increased multiple times, the lastest in January 2018.

High speed rail costs have cliumbed 35% for construction phase #1, due to:

• Signing construction contracts prior to securing right of way lands

The California High Speed Rial project will submit a “business proposal” to the California Legislature this spring.

AP | Cost climbs by $2.8 billion for California bullet train 

Car seat laws, like Arizon’a usually require children younger than 8 years old or less than 4 feet 9 inches tall to sit in a proper child safety seat.

So, you get into a ride share with a child that requires a safety seat, but you don’t bring a safety seat- what’s the law?

• clear statutory responsiblity in ride share statutes or ordinances 
• ride share platforms can include car seat options
• requirements that divers cancel/refuse riders when there is no child safety seat

ABC 15 Arizona | No car seat? ‘No problem’

KTVB Idaho | Whether it’s Uber, Lyft or a taxi, child car seats are still required

The CFO: Hertz CFO 

The regulatory challenges of connected cars:

• Who owns the information conencted cars gather?
  • The Manufacturer? The OEM?
  • The tech company?
  • The vehicle owner?
  • the transportation agencies that want to communicate with the conencted cars?
• How long does ownership of the information continue? 
  • The life of the car?
  • Do manufacturers want to be in change of the information for the life of the car?
  • Do tech companies want to be incharge of the information for the life of the car?

Tulsa World | Mobility habits changing, Hertz CFO tells Friends of Finance 

West Virginia is considering SB 255 (2018) that places the following limitations on ride share drivers:

• no soliciting rides 
• no occuppying “cab stands”

The bill also sets up permissible county registration of ride share drivers.

Who will be responsible for pay as you drive taxes in Minnesota for ride sharing? Ride share companies

What is the reason for taxing the companies? More people will not own vehicles as ride share becomes more popular as do EV, and autonomous vehicles

Governing | With Gas Taxes in Peril, More States Study Alternatives

Where: El Dorado County, CA (Sacramento area)

The Partnership: With Lyft & Uber

The partnership benefits:

• The El Dorado County D.A.’s goal was to increase the number of safe rides to reduce the number of intoxicated drivers
• Lyft and Uber offered $10 discount to any new rider with a ride origin or destination in El Dorado, Sacramento, Yolo or Placer counties
• The partnership grew from the DA’s outreach campaign to reduce the number of drunk drivers

Tahoe Daily Tribune | Lyft and Uber partner with El Dorado County DA to offer discounts on rides

Colorado Department of Transportation released the results of a pay as you drive pilot study & here’s the results:

• There will be credit for any payment of the gas tax
• Participants reported that the pay as you drive system is fair
• CDOT remains unsure about the future of the pay as you drive program

The parameters for the pilot:

• 4 months
• Participants from 27 Colorado counties
• Participants reported how much they drove by:
  • using GPS tracker
  • photographing their odometer
  • other technology that tracked distance using travel time and wind speed
  • CDOT then calculated what would be paid if the fee was 1.2 cents per mile

Coloradoan | CDOT weighs new road funding options, including charging by the mile

A Florida appeals court ruled that information collected by the County for ride share companies operating at the Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport is subject to open records.

How did we get here? Taxi companies requested  the ride share data from the county under open records laws. The county said the data isn’t subject to open reocords. The taxi companies sued. The lower court said aggregate number of pickups and the fees paid were not trade secrets.

2 Reasons the appellate court said the information is subject to open records and isn’t a trade secret:

• Nothing indicates the fees or total pickups provide an advantage to Yellow Cab
• Nothing indicates that Uber derives independent economic value from keeping that information secret

Sun Sentinel | Uber must give up some secrets, Florida court rules 

Texas Department of Motor Vehicles has requested an Attorney General opinion as to whether a dealer that performs manufacturer warranty repair violates the Occupations Code.

Why? A manufacturer or distributor cannot act like a dealer under Texas law.

Again, why? Texas Automobile Dealer Association filed a complaint with TX DMV claiming Cummins South Plains LLC violated this separation by performing manufacturer warranty repair work on diesel engines

Where is the legislative clean up likely?  Clear up what the agency sees as a conflict between Occupations Code Chapter 2301that  lays out numerous sections where dealers’ “warranty work” rights are protected (primarily in Subchapters A- “General Provisions”, F – “License Requirements”, and I – “Warranties: Reimbursement of Dealer”)  & Subchampter M that says manufacturers are obligated by the same statute to ensure that their warranty is honored.

TX Attorney General Opinion Request 0206-KP

The chairman of the board of Texas Central Partners lists 5 reasons Texans should be excited about high speed rail:

• it’ll set Texas apart
• it’ll be the largest privately funded project in the nation
• It won’t be disruptive, the noise is a “swish” from the electric train
• it won’t have any crossings, because of the speed, the train will be elevated 25-35 feet
• jobs. there will be 10,000 jobs for 5-6 years

KWTX | Temple: McLane says high speed rail is something to get excited about

Where: Minnesota

The reasons that the Minnesota Department of Transportation was stopped from completing a high sped rail study:

• Republicans denied the study federal funds for completion
• Republicans said the study was a waste of taxpayer dollars
• Republicans say Minnesotoans opposes high speed rail
• A Republican said its not an economically viable project

Governing | High-Speed Rail Study Shut Down in the Midwest

State Legislature looking to expand electric vehicle manufacturer sales: New York

What does the 2018 bill look like?

• Limits current manufacturer sales of EV vehicles to 20 locations in New York
  • Requiring geographically diverse locations in upstate New York
• Requires that the manufacturer-seller also have repair services
• Applies only to manufacturers that were licensed to sell in March 2014

What’s current law on electric vehcile manufacturer sales in NY? 5 Tesla sales locations are permitted in New York City

Who is authoring the legislation? The House majority leader

AB 8248 (New York 2018)

City newspaper | Legislation would open Upstate to Tesla stores 

The business trend: Turo, a car sharing platform that describes itself as Airbnb for cars

The policy issues: liability and insurance

The platform offers insurance coverage, how are policy affected: Coverage levels and addressing the platform in statute

Business Insider via Register Citizen  | We tried the ‘Airbnb for cars,’ and it could upend the car-rental industry

As of January 1, 2018, ride share drivers in California cannot drive with a blood alcohol level above 0.04 if there is a passenger in the vehicle.

Desert Sun News | Happy New Year, here are your new California traffic laws

The new Port of Corpus Christi is Sean Strawbridge, who:

• Formerly was  Long Beach Port’s managing director of operations and trade development
• Since 2016 has served as Corpus Christi Port’s COO 
• The former Corpus Christi Port CEO John LawRue will stay on until he retires in June 2019

JOC | Strawbridge to succeed CEO LaRue at Corpus Christi Port

The Bills,  HB535  and SB 1200, would:

• Create the Statewide Alternative Transportation Authority
• Repurpose an existing $60 million in rail funds to fund alternative transportation projects
• The “alternative” projects would include:
  •  “Bus Rapid Transit”
  • Autonomous vehicles
  • Focus on urban areas like Tampa Bay area & Miami
• For local governments to get to the satte alternative transportation dollars, counties and cities would have to match funds

WUSF Public Media | New Legislation Would Create Statewide Alternative Transportation Authority

A recent feasibility study found that high speed rail could work in Washington State. So, what entities were backing the study?

• Microsoft
• Washington Building Trades
• Washington Roundtable
• Association of Washington Business
• Business Council of British Columbia
• Portland Business Alliance

How was the study funded? A $300,000 legislative appropriation and donations from Microsoft and Washington Building Trades

Is the Washington State proposal for high speed rail looking for private investors? Yes, it is a funding option being explored

Lens | Ultra high-speed rail could work, study finds

• Caliornia’s pilot pay as your drive program is called the  California Road Charge Pilot Program
• The state policy support arguments for pay as your drive: fairness as pay as you drive accounts for EVs, hybrid and feul efficient vehicles
• The opposition to taking the pay as your drive statewide: the privacy issues of mileage trackers.
  • will mileage trackers be placed in cars? will they track GPS locations?
  • will mileage trackers be installed at gas pumps and charging stations?
  • will mileage trackers be linked to mobile phones?

CBS San Francisco | California Considers Placing A Mileage Tax On Drivers

Houston Business Journal included the station land deal between Texas Central and the City of Houston on its list of deals of the year for 2017.

Why did it make the list? Because the City of Houston-Texas Central deal was the first of its kind for the high speed rail project.

Houston Business Journal | HBJ’s 2017 Deals of the Year: Economic Development

The Port of Galveston named Rodger Rees, the new director. 

What you need to know about Rodger Rees:

• Before Galveston,  Rees was deputy executive director and chief financial officer at Port Canaveral, Florida
• Top Priorities for Mr. Rees: Increasing revenue & improving bond ratings to finance future projects
• The Port’s Future capital investment plan includes building a third cruise terminal
  • The prot receives 80% of its revenues from cruise ships

Houston Chronicle | Port of Galveston names new director

The 7 states: Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah and Wyoming

The MOU: Regional Electric Vehicle Plan for the West 

The 7 Interstate Corridors: 

• Interstates 25, 70 and 76 in Colorado;
•  Interstates 15, 84, 86, and 90 in Idaho;
•  Interstates 15, 90 and 94 in Montana;
•  Interstates 15 and 80 in Nevada;
•  Interstates 10, 25 and 40 in New Mexico;
• Interstates 15, 70, 80 and 84 in Utah; and
•  Interstates 25, 80 and 90 in Wyoming. 

The goal of the states: to ease “range anxiety”

Marketplace | The number of electrical car charging stations is rising, but does that mean wider adoption of electrical cars will follow?

The business: Startup Circulation

Business model: offering non-emergency transportation to medical appointments utilizing existing ride share companies

Regulatory/Legislative: Transportation services for state managed health care plans / insurance regulation

What other ride share/health care partnerships are there:  Lyft partners with CareMore Health Systems

Is there data to support it? Data shows it reduces wait times by 30% and transportation costs by 1/3

BostInno | Circulation Now Works with Both Uber and Lyft to Provide Rides to the Doctor

Legislative Gusto:  Chair of the Senate Transportation Committee & vice-chair of the 21st Century Missouri Transportation System Task Force filed SB 734  to raise the gas tax

Support for the gas tax increase:  

• Likely to come from a recommendation of the 21st Century Missouri Transportation System Task Force, 23-member task force of state officials and private citizens.
• the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association calls it the most equitable funding approach
• Mayors in 27 cities support more trasnportation funding via the fuel pump

What does SB 734 do? Increases the gas tax by 10cents, if voters approve

LandLine Mag | Missouri bill would increase fuel tax 10 cents

The City: San Francisco

The ordinances: Address “cargobots” on city sidewalks and place these 5 limitations:

• Companies can have 3 robots a piece
• 9 total robots for the entire city
• bots will be relegated to low population industrial areas
• constant human monitoring
• Speed limit of 3 miles an hour

States that have passed statewide robot delivery laws: Idaho & Virginia

The legislation:  No constant human monitoring required. Idaho has a weight limit of 80lbs & Virginia has a limit of 50lbs. 

The business behind the legislation in Idaho & Virginia : Starship Technologies, a delivery-robot company based in Estonia that was founded by Ahti Heinla and Janus Friis, two of the co-founders of Skype

Re-Code | A robot-delivery startup helped write state laws that are locking out competition

Background: The Missouri Department of Revenue granted Tesla the ability to sell directly without using the dealership process. As a result, the Missouri Automobile Association brought a lawsuit in 2015.

The Appellate Court Ruling:

• The Court said the Autodealers did not have standing to bring suit against the Department of Revenue and that the “association’s challenge sounded more like a competitor seeking to avoid competition than an attempt to defend a larger public interest”
• Tesla’s argument stressed that prohibiting direct sales is an “attempt to decrease competition and limit consumer choice”
• Autodealers argument against direct sales is there must be a way by which to challenge the direct sales.

Washington Post | Tesla wins legal battle over Missouri licenses to sell cars

Wisconsin state representative Lisa Subeck has filed LRB-0964 to move ride share driver licensing back to the local level.

The impetus? Ride Share drivers accused of sexual assault 

When did WI pass statewide ride share law? 2015

Wisconsin State Representative Lisa Subeck | Recent Sexual Assault Report Prompts Proposal to Allow Local Licensing of Transportation Network Company Drivers

WKOW | State lawmaker wants cities to license Uber and Lyft drivers